Preparing to Sell Your Home?
Deciding to move often means that you are going to have to sell your current home in order to help finance the new home. The ultimate goal when selling your house is to maximize the value you can sell it at, this could be the same price you bought it for but depending on the market and the condition of the house now compared to when you purchased it could be different. While you cannot change the entire house to make it more appealing, there are many smaller scale things you can do in order to increase the value. Keep the following ideas in mind when you decide to sell your home and you should be able to raise the property of the value and make it more desirable from a buyer’s perspective.
Cleanliness
This goes without saying but your house should be as clean as possible. This means all the nooks and crannies that you have been avoiding in the past like behind the stove, underneath the TV stand, shades/blinds, and any rugs you might have. A note regarding bedrooms, try to have the closets only partially full so that the full size of the closet can be easily seen.
Landscaping
You only get a first impression once and unless you live in an apartment, the front lawn area of your house is the first thing that potential buyers are going to see. Trim overgrown shrubbery, get rid of weeds and dead flowers, make sure any walkways are clean, and if you are feeling really ambitious go out and buy some new plants to make it look even nicer. Pro Tip: make sure your mailbox looks presentable, while the postman will deliver your mail regardless a beat up mailbox can make the house look bad before even stepping inside
Neutrality
Over the years you have brought in various mementos to transform your house into a home, while these might appeal to you, others might not think the same. Removing anything that is personal will allow those exploring the house to imagine their own belongings in various places which will start to build attachment to the house. This also applies to paint, if you have gone wild in the past with an exotic color it is a good idea to repaint the room with a neutral white color so the client could again imagine what they would do with the space on their own.
Estimates
You know that old water tank that you have been avoiding replacing or the outdated dishwasher? Those things can have an impact on how much you can sell your house because buyers often ask for a lower price than asking if they are going to have to replace them after purchase. Going out and getting an estimate regarding what each thing would cost to replace means that when the buyer asks for a $5,000 discount you know it will actually cost $2,500, keeping that extra money in your pocket.
Upgrading
While upgrading can seem like a good idea before selling your house in order to increase its value this is often not true. First you will want to get an accurate estimate from a reliable contractor and then you need to talk with a realtor regarding how much value the upgrade will actually add to your home. If the upgrade costs more than value added, you should not proceed but even if the cost is less than the upgrade you must understand that some projects don’t work out exactly as planned so you might end up spending more money down the road making it a bad investment.
Papers
Make sure to gather all of the relevant documents in advance of beginning the selling process, this will make dealing with the real estate agent much easier. These include home ownership papers, manuals for appliances that will be sold with the house, and even paint selection choices. If you are able to gather utility bills from the past this is great! This will allow potential buyers to gain insight into what they can expect to pay each month which can be a selling point if low.
Hide Your Loved Ones
Specifically, we are talking about your children and pets, while they will always have a special place in your heart the unfortunate truth is that they are probably messy. Absence of both of these will ease the minds of buyers because the house will inevitably be cleaner not to mention that some individuals are against living amongst animals which can deter them from buying.
Last Steps
Once you believe your house is in order to be shown don’t do it yet! First get a realtor to do a walk through, they are professionals and know what buyers do and do not like so they will be able to make further recommendations to drive up your asking price even higher. After getting the final OK make sure to take plenty of photos, you will use these to post online and generate even further interest in your property. Finally, time the market correctly: typically, the best time to sell your house is in spring or early summer. This is because people are excited to explore the outdoors after a cold winter but also because buyers with children will want to get into a new neighborhood before the next school year begins at the end of the summer.
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