How to Sell Your Home Fast and Avoid Seller’s Remorse

If selling your home fast wasn't stressful enough, an unhelpful helping of seller's remorse can certainly complicate the process. When regret and guilt are added to an already strenuous situation, it can lead many sellers to second-guess their decision and back out of a deal with nasty results.

Understanding what seller's remorse is and how to avoid it while still getting a fair offer on your home can help you avoid the costly consequences of canceling a sale and allow you to move forward.

Causes and Cues of Seller's Remorse

Depending on when a seller chooses to cancel a real estate sale, the consequences can range from minor to severe. If the seller hasn't signed a listing or purchase agreement, they likely won't suffer any repercussions. If they back out of the deal after signing, they may be sued by the listing agent or the buyer and have to pay damages for lost commissions and housing costs. Yet, even knowing this, many still opt to cancel the sale when seller's remorse sets in. 

What is Seller's Remorse?

Just as buyers may experience feelings of guilt or regret after a big purchase, sellers may experience similar feelings: especially during fast sales, if they were forced into the sale, or they hadn't considered all the ramifications of the sale itself. Sometimes, the feelings of seller's guilt are unavoidable, but there are ways to prepare yourself to work through them.

Foreclosure and Short Sales

Facing foreclosure or a short sale on your home is among the few times a seller is forced to sell, and that alone can cause a lot of grief, guilt, and a host of other emotions. Give yourself time to process the emotions, let them go, and forgive yourself so you can move on.

Job Transfer, Growing Family Needs, or Relationships/Life Changes

Sometimes, staying in your current home isn't an option, even if you are financially stable. A new job may ask you to relocate, or the needs of your family may have outgrown your home. Or perhaps you are going through a relationship change, such as marriage or divorce, and want to make a fresh start. Whatever the reason, leaving the home that holds so many memories can be emotionally trying, but finding ways to celebrate the new adventure can help you work through it.

Having to Settle for Lower than Your Asking Price

Buyers don't always want to pay the asking price and may submit an offer that is lower than you hoped for. Worrying about whether or not other offers may come could cause you to grab the first offer that comes along, which can lead to seller's remorse at closing. While you can back out of the deal, doing so can be costly unless the buyer also changes their mind. 

You can avoid these types of situations by planning ahead of time. Map out what you are willing to negotiate and how much. Understanding your non-negotiables can save you time, money, and emotional stress.

Key Takeaways

Seller's remorse can add stress, guilt, and regret to an already difficult decision. While there are many ways to deal with it and work through the emotions, it can't always be avoided, but it can be lessened if you work with a buyer you can trust. At Joe Homebuyer, we can help you alleviate the stress and minimize the guilt and regret that may develop as you prepare to sell your home by giving a fast and fair offer so you can move forward.