Are you selling your home? Preparing your home for the real estate market is the most important thing you can do to help it sell as quickly as possible for as much money as possible. Here are some of the secrets that real estate experts use to help home sellers get their home ready to sell.
Help Buyers Imagine Living There
Buyers struggle to imagine what a home could be. They can only imagine what they see. If walls are brightly colored, wallpaper is peeling, or the carpet is stained, buyers will find it difficult to see past that and imagine the space as their own.
Staging a home can make the biggest difference in your selling process. Investing in staging can actually bring better returns on a home in the long-run!
Curb Appeal – Not Just an HGTV Buzzword
Curb Appeal isn’t just a catchy phrase created to boost landscapers’ incomes. It’s a crucial first impression that can make buyers either wary of stopping to look or eager to step inside.
Make sure that your lawn and garden look great, trash cans and bikes are put away, house numbers are attractive and easy to see, the front door is spectacular (because you’ve replaced or painted it and perhaps updated the hardware), and you have attractive potted plants by the door.
First Impression – A Pleasant Entryway
First Impressions come the minute a potential buyer steps inside your home. Coats on a rack, shoes underneath and keys and other doodads in a dish on a console table may show that you’re a fabulous organizer, but this look is not the way to sell a home. Put the coats and shoes in a closet, the keys in your purse and a vase of flowers on the table.
De-clutter ‘Till It Hurts
Nothing puts potential buyers on edge like knickknacks on a wobbly table or stacks of things on other stacks of things. If a home is cluttered, buyers can feel awkward or even anxious.
Selling a home is an excellent opportunity to pare down all the things we accumulate when we’ve lived in a house for awhile.
First: sell, donate, or toss anything you don’t want to keep or haven’t used in a long time. Out of the stuff you decide to keep, put things you don’t use regularly into storage. Go ahead and pack up family photos or collectibles, too many personal items will make buyers feel like intruders and not like it could be their home.
Don’t overlook cleaning and organizing cabinets, closets, and other storage areas. This will help them look bigger, and help buyers see space for their things.
Clean, Clean, & Clean Some More
Time To Clean! We often stop noticing our own dusty corners or grimy cabinets, but buyers will notice when they come into your home. You’ll want your home to be bright, fresh, & absolutely sparkling clean. Before your home hits the market, give your home a thorough, top-to-bottom deep clean.
Don’t skip windows (inside and out), behind the toilet, bathroom grout, under sinks…actually move your furniture to vacuum behind and under it.
Or, hire a cleaning crew for a one-time super-cleaning.
Rearrange Furniture To Find The Best Placement
Rearranging Is Key. Arrange your furnishings to frame — not obscure — views, fireplaces, and other architectural details. Put tall objects (furniture, vases, paintings, or plants) against tall walls. Highlight, don’t block, the traffic flow. Grab a couple of sturdy friends and play with different ways to arrange your furniture. Pay attention to your friends’ opinions.
From Staged To Show Ready
Staging your home for the market is only the beginning. Once your home hits the market, you will have a frenzy of showings scheduled (provided your home is priced right). Make sure your home is staged and “Show Ready” for every showing.
To quickly get your home ready for a showing, have a storage bin or laundry basket ready to throw things into at the last minute. If you maintain your deep clean and de-clutter, all you’ll need to do is put the day-to-day things such as dirty dishes or pet toys into your bin. Stash the bin in a spare closet, or take it with you. Have disinfecting wipes handy for a speedy wipe down, and head out before the buyers arrive.
Ready. Set. SOLD!!
Thinking about selling your Central Ohio home? It’s important to work with an experienced REALTOR who knows the area and how to best prepare, price, and market homes in your neighborhood. I’ve helped many Central OH home sellers, and it would be my pleasure to help you too. My clients receive a consultation with a home staging professional. Contact me, Rita Boswell at 614-830-9767, to learn more about selling a home in the Columbus OH area.