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Taking the Stress Out of Selling

Our homes are one of our most important investments which is why it's important to have an experienced team guide you every step of the home selling process.
From strategic pricing and carefully executed staging, to high-end video production and contract negotiations, you can rest assured that you're getting the most of your investment.

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 an experienced team of real estate agents 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 for the best price possible.

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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 your needs, you can better craft your offer. 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 your team of NAR members once you choose one so they can adjust your selling price accordingly.

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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 a team of real estate agent is the best way to determine the right selling price for your home. A team of real estate agent with experience can determine what other comparable homes are selling for, evaluate the current market, and may even suggest a home appraisal.

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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.

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Step 4: Develop a Marketing Strategy

We will develop a marketing strategy that is perfect for advertising your home. This involves listing the home and then driving the right people to that listing through 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.

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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, you can make 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.

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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, a final contract will be prepared by your team of real estate agents.

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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.

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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 team of NAR members 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.

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 a larger 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.

What Our Clients Say

Michael Thornton and his team are a pleasure to work with. They respond promptly and are competent and efficient. We have felt secure with Michael from the start, and as our closing date approaches, we are confident that Michael will competently close this transaction, allowing us to begin a new chapter in our lives; turning the page of the past 31 years. We recommend the Michael Thornton Team.

— Connie M

What Our Clients Say

House hunting from out of state was a challenge and Mike Thornton walked us through it carefully and thoughtfully - and via FaceTime! I trust his experience and his eye for a home that fit our needs. We could not have felt more supported - his team jumped in to help us out several times along the way and every one of them was so kind and eager to get us in the right home for us. Navigating a home purchas...

— Molly B

What Our Clients Say

Mike Thornton and his team were fantastic from start to finish. He came over and layed out the strategy, he implemented the strategy, and it paid off big time. He sold our home within 48 hrs and it was well over asking price. He’s professional, knowledgeable, and highly communicative. Don’t play games when it comes to selling your home, partner with the Thornton Team and get what your home is worth!

— Austin A

What Our Clients Say

Our experience with Michael Thornton and associates was very positive. They were very professional and receptive to our needs and helped us to find the right house for us during a very demanding season. Thank you, Michael! We appreciate doing business with you!

— Elisei R

What Our Clients Say

Mike Thornton and his team are incredible. They're very proactive and communicative, which made the home buying process as smooth as could be. Mike Thornton even accurately predicted where the market would take the price of the home we ended up buying. This was really helpful since we were mentally prepared to make an offer up to that price in a competitive market. We also worked with Kyle quite a bit wh...

— Michael M.

What Our Clients Say

After using Mike for the purchase of our house previously, we knew he was the go-to guy when we were looking to sell. Mike is a master at his craft and a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the real estate world. As first-time sellers, we needed all the help we could get. His team was able to assist us with timelines, staging, and making our house look its best when it came time for showings. Communicat...

— Brittany M.

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Work With Us

Welcome to The Thornton Team Residential, your premier real estate experts in Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, and Chicago Suburbs. As a top 1.5% producing team, we understand that a home is more than a property, it's about community. Led by Michael Thornton, a top-tier member of NAR with a proven track record, we are dedicated to making your real estate journey seamless. Join us in finding not just a house but a place full of awesome memories that you call home.