Take the stress out of selling your St. Petersburg property.

A STEP-BY-STEP FIRST TIME SELLER'S GUIDE

Putting your home on the market can be a stressful process, especially when you don’t know what to expect. Fortunately, with the help of the experienced St. Petersburg real estate expert at The Salamone Group and this easy-to-follow guide, you can smoothly complete the process. Following these steps will help you prepare so you can get organized and sell your home in St. Petersburg, Tierra Verde, and The Gulf Beaches for the best price possible.​​​​​​​



STEP 1:

UNDERSTAND WHY YOU'RE SELLING

What do you want to accomplish with the sale of your home? Do you want to make a certain amount of money that you can put toward a larger or nicer home? Do you need to sell it as soon as possible to facilitate a move to a new city or area? Once you understand why you're selling, you can better craft your price. For example, if you need to sell quickly, you might want to price your home lower than if your goal is to make a certain profit margin. Make sure you convey these needs to our expert team of agents once you choose one so we can adjust your selling price accordingly.

planked walkway to the beach

STEP 2:

DETERMINE SELLING PRICE

Knowing how to price your home is one of the most important parts of the selling process. When you set a fair price in the beginning, you’ll get the most interest from other real estate agents and prospective buyers. Overpricing your home could lead to reduced interest, and underpricing leads to receiving less than what your home is worth. Working with one of our real estate agents is the best way to determine the right selling price for your home. We have years of experience determining what other comparable homes are selling for, evaluating the current market, and even suggesting a home appraisal.

Interior shot of a table and chair

STEP 3:

START PREPARATIONS

If you’ve kept your home in showroom condition since you’ve lived in it, you’re in the minority of homeowners. Once you price your home, it’s time to start getting it ready to be shown to potential buyers. This includes getting rid of clutter, depersonalizing the space so that buyers can envision themselves in the space, making any small repairs, and doing a deep clean to make sure your home is in pristine condition.

white sand beach with a blue canoe on it under a palm tree. There is a dock with a fishing boat in the background

STEP 4:

DEVELOP A MARKETING STRATEGY

We have an established process to develop a marketing strategy that will be perfect for advertising your home. This involves listing the home and then driving the right people to that listing through digital marketing, social media campaigns, agent-to-agent referrals, traditional media, or SEO advertising. Our team creates a marketing campaign that aims to get the most possible traffic to your listing in the first three weeks after becoming a client.

Palm trees on either side of a street

STEP 5:

EVALUATE OFFERS

Receiving an offer is an exciting part of the process, but it doesn’t mean the journey is over. We will evaluate each offer and make sure the party making the offer is prequalified or pre-approved by a mortgage lender and that their offer is acceptable to you. If the offer is too low, we can help formulate a counter-offer or offer other ways to bridge the gap, such as covering some or all of the closing costs, making repairs, adjusting the move-in date, or leaving some appliances or fixtures for the new buyer.

street view of houses with palm trees in the front yards

STEP 6:

ACCEPT AN OFFER

Once we deem the offer is acceptable, we will review the proposed contract to make sure it’s all in order and includes the necessary components such as deposit amount, down payment, financing, inspection rights and repair allowances, contingencies, settlement date, and a list of fees and who will pay them. When both parties have agreed to the term, we will prepare a final contract.

Interior shot of a kitchen

STEP 7:

GET READY TO CLOSE

You have accepted an offer and are now very close to the end of your selling journey. But first, you and the buyer must make a list of what needs to be done before closing. In some cases, your home may need to be formally inspected, surveyed, and appraised. In other cases, major or minor repairs will need to be made before the house can close. We will head up efforts to develop and execute this list, get each action item paid for by the correct party, and make sure everything is in order by the closing date. A few days before the closing date, we will call the company closing the transaction to make sure everything is ready to go. If you haven’t done so already, you also need to make arrangements to move out of the home so the new buyer can take possession.

white sand beach with a fence, the ocean in the background

STEP 8:

CLOSE

You’ve reached the last step in the seller’s process. When you close on a home you are selling, you are legally transferring ownership of the property to the new buyer. We will meet with the company closing the transaction to sign the final paperwork and go over any issues that have not yet been taken care of. During this time, you can also make plans with your realtor to handle final details such as canceling utilities, cable, and lawn or trash services, changing the name on accounts that the new owner is retaining and ensuring the new owner has instructions for all appliances that will remain in the home.

Interior shot of an open concept kitchen dining room

CONGRATULATIONS!

Once you have sold your home, you’re free to take the next step on your journey. Whether this is relocating to a new city, moving into another luxury St. Petersburg home, or downsizing and enjoying your life as empty-nesters, knowing all your selling responsibilities have been taken care of will help you achieve peace of mind for your new path.



Contact Information

Provide a valid email address.

Mailing Address

Property Information

Please list the additional amenities of your house.

EXPERTISE. SOPHISTICATION. COMMITMENT.

handing someone a key

Home Search
looking up a stairwell

Home Valuation
Man and a woman looking at a brochure

Compass Concierge