What you need to know before selling your home
Things are looking bright for real estate sales in 2016 after a strong year in 2015.
About a third of homes on the market sold in less than a month in January. The median price rose more than eight percent year over year because of low inventory and high demand. The improving job market and slightly easier lending standards have also boosted people's confidence in the real estate market.
But if you are looking to sell your home this year, that doesn't mean you should be complacent.
"There is a little bit of a problem right now, which is we got low inventory -- just not a lot of houses in the market -- and that pushes prices up. Great if you 're a seller, not so good if you're a buyer," CBS News business analyst Jill Shlesinger told "CBS This Morning" Thursday.
Schlesinger says that it is crucial that you know your strategy before listing your price.
First, consider the tax implications of a sale, especially capital tax gains, or tax on profit from a sale.
"You actually have to pay your capital gains if you lived in that house two of the last five years, and so you can't push it forward unless it's a rental property," Schlesinger said. "So you do have to pay that capital gains tax. But the most important thing also to recognize is if you're looking to downsize, you got that capital gain, you may not actually see any savings by downsizing."
There are also many factors to consider when looking for a real estate agent. According to Schlesinger, you should get at least three people to do a competitive market analysis, make sure candidates have experience in your neighborhood within your price range, a digital marketing plan and a presence on social media, where first-time buyers are increasingly searching for homes.
In addition to relying on the realtor for the pricing of your home, you should also do your own research by looking at the competitive market and seeing what options exist in your neighborhood.
"How you price this house may actually lead to the success of selling. Realtors told me that if the price is too high, you spook investors and you spook those would-be buyers and they get very anxious, they don't come back," Schlesinger said. "If you have not sold that house or gotten a bite in, say, three to four weeks, you may want to consider dropping the price."