As a Realtor^®, when I’m asked to make a listing presentation, I have some basic assumptions. I assume, for instance, that the seller really does want to sell their home. And I assume they have the necessary plans in place for vacating the property in a timely fashion should the property sell.

Silly me.

Granted, selling or buying a home can be a stressful process. Often times, there are extraneous factors, such as a job change or other significant events, that add more pressure to the process. That said, some recent experiences have me wondering if I need to really get back to basics in some of the questions I ask in a listing presentation.

Some thoughts:

Do you really want to sell your home?

I ask this because it’s rare that, as a seller, you will get a full price offer on your home or that you will not be asked to perform some minor or major repairs after inspections. These repairs will cost money and must be done by licensed tradespeople. Are you ready to do that to sell your home?

Do you understand that the purchase and sale agreement, and all the dates and conditions therein, create a legally binding contract?

In other words, there’s no “pushing back a few days”, without agreement from all parties. You can’t “get to it ASAP”. There are dates and timelines in the contract for a reason. Meet the dates or risk having the contract, including the purchase price, renegotiated or abandoned completely.

Do you have somewhere to go the day your home sale closes?

Unless other arrangements are specified in the contract, the buyer owns the home on the day of closing. Not only must you and your family be gone, but your stuff must be gone, as well. Make sure you have a plan for your move.

Seems pretty basic, right? But maybe more sellers should ask themselves these basic, but difficult, questions, before testing the market.