Selling the House Too? How Your Estate Sale and Realtor Can Work Together

FOR FAMILIES & CLIENTS

Sometimes an estate sale isn't the only big thing happening. The house itself needs to be sold too.

When that's the case, your estate sale company and your Realtor may be working with the same property at nearly the same time. A little communication between the two can make the whole transition much smoother.

We work with Realtors regularly, especially when a client has already moved, lives out of town or simply needs someone local helping to keep all the moving pieces moving.

The Realtor's job is to sell the house. Our job is to handle what's inside it.

Those are different jobs, but they can work very well together.

Start With the Big Picture

If you know the house will be sold, tell both your estate sale company and your Realtor early in the process.

There may be listing photos to schedule, repairs to make, cleaners to bring in, movers to coordinate or a date when the Realtor would ideally like the property empty. At the same time, an estate sale company needs enough time to sort, organize, research, price, photograph, advertise and conduct the sale.

Knowing the overall plan helps everyone work backward from the dates that actually matter.

It also prevents situations where the photographer arrives expecting an empty living room while we're standing in it surrounded by six folding tables and 400 things that still need price tags.

A little coordination goes a long way.

Don't Empty the House First

One of the most common mistakes families make is assuming they need to clean everything out before calling for help.

Usually, we would much rather see the house before that happens.

Take the things the family is keeping, but don't automatically donate, throw away or haul off everything else because you're trying to get the house ready to sell. Ordinary household items can have value in an estate sale, and a good estate sale company can help determine what should happen with what's left.

The Realtor may have ideas about what eventually needs to happen with the property itself. We can help with the contents. Those decisions don't all have to be made at once.

Who Makes the Decisions?

When a homeowner has already moved away, the Realtor is sometimes the person we see most often. They may help coordinate access to the property, share scheduling information or stop by while we're working.

That can make them an incredibly helpful part of the process, but our client is still the homeowner, family or estate that hired us.

Decisions about belongings, what can be sold and other estate sale matters still belong with our client or the person they've authorized to make them.

Keeping that clear is good for everyone. The Realtor doesn't need to manage the estate sale, and we don't need to manage the real estate transaction.

Let Each Professional Do Their Job

A good working relationship doesn't mean everyone needs to be involved in everything.

We don't need to tell the Realtor how to market the property, and the Realtor doesn't need to decide how we're going to price the dining room.

What we do need to know are the things that affect one another.

When is the estate sale? When does the house need to be cleared? Is the property already listed? Are photographs or showings scheduled? Will cleaners or contractors need access immediately after the sale? Are there items that will remain with the house rather than being included in the estate sale?

Those are the conversations that keep two separate jobs from accidentally getting in each other's way.

The Estate Sale May Bring Attention to the House, Too

When the property itself is for sale, something interesting often happens during the estate sale: shoppers start asking about the house.

Estate sales can bring a lot of local people through a property over the course of a weekend, and some of them aren't only looking at what's for sale inside. They notice the neighborhood, the floor plan, the backyard or the screened porch. We regularly have shoppers ask whether the house is for sale and how they can learn more about it.

When appropriate, the Realtor may leave property flyers or business cards at the sale. Some Realtors also stop by during the sale so they're available if someone has questions about the property.

We don't consider an estate sale a substitute for an open house or a Realtor's marketing plan. People are there primarily to shop. But if the home is already on the market, the sale can naturally introduce the property to people who might otherwise never have walked through the front door.

Sometimes they're looking for a dining table. Sometimes they fall in love with the dining room.

What Happens After the Sale Matters Too

The end of the estate sale is often the beginning of the Realtor's next phase.

Depending on the family's plans, remaining items may need to be handled, the house may need cleaning, repairs may begin or the Realtor may be ready to move ahead with photography, staging or showings.

This is another reason it's helpful for everyone to understand the timeline before the sale begins. If we know what needs to happen next, we can plan our part of the process with that transition in mind.

One House, Two Big Jobs

Selling a home's contents and selling the home itself are two different jobs, and families don't need to become the project manager for every detail of both.

Choose professionals you trust, make sure they know about each other and keep the important lines of communication open.

When everyone understands the plan, the handoff can be surprisingly simple: we help the family deal with what's inside the house, and the Realtor helps them move forward with the house itself.

Every home has a story. Every treasure gets a new beginning. ❤️