Questions Every Seller Must Ask

Selling your home shapes your financial future. So don’t leave your biggest asset to chance. Selling your home is likely your largest financial transaction — yet you’re entering it with almost no experience, in an industry ranked among Australia’s least trusted. Most sellers don’t realise they’re underselling by tens of thousands of dollars while paying inflated commissions and unnecessary marketing costs. Questions Every Seller Must Ask shows you how to play the game when the rules are stacked against you. Author Neil Jenman has spent more than 25 years as Australia’s leading real-estate consumer advocate, influencing legislation and protecting homeowners from industry exploitation. This essential Q&A handbook delivers 200+ practical questions with straight answers, showing you exactly how agents operate and how to take back control. From interview scripts to contract exit strategies, you’ll finally have the insider tactics that level the playing field. You’ll discover: Why auction is the worst selling method if you want to maximise your sale price How to insist on terms that will protect you from losing thousands if your home doesn’t sell The techniques that convince buyers to reveal their true maximum offer Red flags that signal agent exploitation and what to delete from their contracts. Whether you’re upgrading, downsizing or selling an investment property, this book gives you the confidence to make high-pressure decisions without being manipulated. Stop trusting agents who put their commission first. With Jenman’s proven strategies, you’ll sell your home for more — and keep more of what’s yours.

Introduction: It’s tough to buy, but selling a home is where big losses happen xxv Part 1 Introducing the real estate industry 1 Part 2 Planning to sell 15 Part 3 Hiring an agent 43 Part 4 Understanding commission and costs 89 Part 5 Deciding on a selling method 113 Part 6 Pricing your home for a successful sale 129 Part 7 Presenting your home for sale 143 Part 8 Marketing your home 161 Part 9 Negotiating the best price 189 Part 10 Conquering your selling worries 219 Part 11 Completing the sale 243 Part 12 Other questions you may want answered 253 This is not goodbye. It’s ‘see you later’ — I hope 261 Acknowledgements 265