With interest rates still low some homeowners are considering selling their current home and upsizing to a bigger residence as their needs grow. For others, they're in a reverse situation, looking to downsize and cash in on whatever equity they may have. Whatever situation you may find yourself in, the following steps will help to guide you through the process of relocating to a more suitable residence.

1) Find a reputable realtor. Time is of the essence as we are nearing the end of our summer season, which is typically viewed as the best time to sell since the weather is nice and your home and outside landscaping show better.

2) Consider the value in your asking price. Don’t try to price your house too high, but don’t give it away either. Try to price it as close to market conditions as possible after evaluating close comparable homes. You want to take advantage of the low interest rates, season, and finding another house sooner than later. The longer it takes your home to sell the more the current market conditions could change.

3) Prepare your home for sale. Don’t just sign the listing papers and forget it. Make sure your home shines. In order to do this remove any clutter and furniture pieces that aren’t necessary in a space. Make sure it is clean and orderly. If there is any deferred maintenance and repairs then try to get those completed as a buyer doesn’t want to have a to-do list as soon as they move in.

4) Be flexible in when the house can be shown. Some homeowners aren’t flexible with the agent when trying to show the home to prospective buyers. Make sure you try to be as accommodating as possible.

5) Prepare yourself for the move. As mentioned earlier clutter should be removed. But why not pack up any unnecessary items a little early? Clean out the linen closet or pack away unused items off of your garage shelves. Whatever you can pack up now will make the house show better and allow for less you have to pack later on.

6) Don’t put the cart before the horse. Although the main goal is to sell your home and upsize or downsize to a new one, don’t just focus specifically on this goal. Make sure to pay attention to your current home and its sale. While it’s great to look at new houses; if your house isn’t under contract you would probably only be able to put an offer in contingent upon your house selling, unless you can afford two mortgages until your existing home sells. Just don’t over extend yourself by purchasing a new home and still owning your old house.

7) It’s not done until it’s done. Even when you get an offer on your house that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s sold. It still has the escrow process to go through. Although the buyer may be qualified, the lender still has many hoops to make the potential borrower/buyer jump through and anything can happen. The buyer could get cold feet, could lose their job, have an illness in the family or have many other variables that could lead to them backing out of the deal.