Written By: Luke Skar
Prepping Your House
For Sale
Although blind luck
can sometimes play a part in helping a home sell quickly, most of the time it is the result of hard work and a
well-developed plan. Since most areas usually have multiple homes for sale
across a range of prices, attracting a buyer will require your home to stand
out from the crowd.
The following tips
will explain how to get your home ready to sell and help you complete
the process sooner rather than later.
Make The Home Neutral
When potential sellers
visit the home they want to envision living in the home. However, this can be a
tough task if they are surrounded by photos and personal items that all reflect
you and your loved ones.
Put away the personal
stuff along with your
heirlooms that speak to your personality and tastes.
The idea is to create
an environment that a buyer looks around and thinks “it would be SO
EASY to live here!” This means having only a few pieces of furniture
in each of the major areas of the living room, kitchen, and bedrooms. People
can picture their own items better if there are few distractions.
It is also a good idea
to have neutral colors. Off white, tan or similar colors for walls
make the place feel as if it could be changed easily to fit the buyer’s tastes.
Take Some Time to Let Go
If you have been in
your current home for any length of time, there are likely many warm memories
wrapped up in the place. Moving
away and leaving those
moments behind can be emotionally painful. Here are some ways to help you make
the transition.
- Spend time in each room to
reflect on the memories of those specific spaces. Then say goodbye to the
rooms.
- Keep repeating to yourself “the
precious memories of this place will always live on in my heart and mind.
The home is merely a place to be bought and sold.”
- Consider the fact that a new
owner(s) is looking for a place to create their happy spot and joyful
memories.
- Also, consider that you are
enabling the new owner to develop a calm and peaceful place to call their
own by selling your wonderful place to them
- Now is the time to embrace a
bold, new future
By physically and mentally
going through the process of saying goodbye to your old home, it
will make the sale easier. Instead of only being sad at the thought of change,
you will be in a mindset that you are making an opportunity for a new owner.
Physical Actions to Improve the Appeal of Your Home
There are 3
main things to focus on in order to physically improve the appeal of the home.
Rearrange – closets and
cabinets need to be organized to maximize space and allow future buyers to see
how their belongings will fit in the confines of the new home.
Neatly arranged
closets and storage spots will indicate to the buyer that you have taken great
care of the home.
Here are a few ways to
make order out of chaos.
- Stack all of the pans and
dishes as neatly as possible.
- Hang pants together. Likewise,
hang shirts together and facing all to the same direction.
- Place the shoes in a neat line.
- Align all the spice jars in
alphabetical order.
- Turn each of the coffee mugs so
that all handles face a uniform direction.
Remove all
clutter – The majority of
people hang on to a number of things long after their usefulness has expired.
Now is a time to get rid of the stuff that you no longer need.
- Pull down all of the books from
the various bookcases.
- Items that are used every day
should be kept in a box. The box can then be put away in a closet. Things
like coffee maker, toothbrush, razor, comb, etc.
- Put things that are no longer
used in one spot. Sell them online or donate them if they are truly of no
use to you any longer.
- Gather all knickknacks, gifts,
etc. and pack them up.
- Clear off all the counters in
the kitchen. Makes the room look bigger and more user-friendly
Store things in a
temporary unit – Homes are
usually easier to sell when they are not packed with furniture, clothes,
appliances and the like. For this reason, it may be a good idea to remove a few
items from the home and place them in a storage facility.
The books and
knickknacks mentioned earlier can be stored away. Also, if you have a dining
table with removable leaves, take out the extra leaves and store them away.
Each room needs a modest amount of furniture.
This allows potential
buyers to picture their own items in the various rooms without too much
distracting them.
Take Out Items to Avoid Haggling
There are people who
are truly gifted at decorating a home. They are so good at it, that some buyers
may see the home and wish to buy it as is, with everything in place. However,
most sellers envision taking their belongings with them when they move.
If you are attached to
any particular fixture, or you wish to keep the appliance(s), go ahead and move
these things out now. If you cannot move them to the home of a friend or
relative, consider putting them in short-term storage.
Buyers will never ask
to buy something if they have never seen it.
Shine Up the Home
This is a great time
to perform a deep cleaning of the whole place. It may take more
than a day. It could also be a wise investment to hire a professional cleaning
company to help out.
Do not rule out staging your bathroom either. It’s an
important opportunity to add appeal that a lot of home sellers miss out on.
Here are some of the
major items to clean:
- Wipe down any cobwebs from all
rooms
- Remove old items from
refrigerator
- Clean both the outside and
inside of every window
- Apply fresh caulk to sinks,
tubs, and showers
- Dust all the light fixtures as
well as the blades on ceiling fans
- Put up clean, new towels in all
bathrooms
- Clean the sidewalks and
driveway with a pressure washer
- Wax any hardwood floor
- Use bleach to clean the grout
in tile floors
- Apply polish to all mirrors and
the faucet fixtures in bathrooms and kitchen
Getting everything
sparkling clean will impress potential buyers with not only a nice look but
also a fresh smell in the home when they make their first entrance.
Fix the Small Stuff
Walk through the home
and make note of any small repair that you have put off.
Getting everything in working order will boost the home’s appeal.
- Repair leaks to faucets
- Replace any cracked tile. This
includes tiles on the floor and tiles along the walls in the bathroom
- Remove any non-working light
bulb and replace with new bulb
- Apply oil to squeaky doors.
- Fix any drawer in the kitchen
or bathroom that does not close/open easily
- Apply spackle to any holes in
the walls. Then paint over the spackle
If a potential buyer
sees multiple small repairs that need to take place, it could have a negative
impact on their perception of the home. Instead of viewing the place as move-in
ready, they may see your property as a fixer-upper and try to negotiate the
price down severely.
Maximize the View from the Curb
Some people make a
choice to see a home or turn it down based on the appearance from the curb.
Take some time to improve the exterior of the home to get as
many buyers as possible to make an appointment.
- Clean off the sidewalks of
leaves, toys and any other item.
- If the paint on the trim around
windows is faded, repaint it
- Trim the hedges
- Keep the lawn mowed
- Add some yellow flowers to the
front entrance. Yellow has been shown to cause people to buy more
frequently
- Check to see that the house
number either on the mailbox or the home is easy to read
Improving the curb appeal should improve
your chances of getting more appointments to view the home. Remember, only one
happy buyer has to agree to purchase your home.
Summing Up How To Get Your Home Ready To Sell
As previously
mentioned, properly preparing a home for sale can take a bit
of work. The strategies outlined above will help you with every section of the
home and should increase your odds of getting more viewers to your property.
By upping the number
of people coming through your home, you should be able to sell the place much
sooner than you originally anticipated.
Give Jinks Realty a
Call (956) 429-3232.
