The process of selling your house can be a rollercoaster ride, but it doesn’t have to be. By using some simple tips and tricks, you can expect an offer quickly and with little restlessness or worry. Buyers will be most interested in your home when it is first put on the market, so the opening weeks are key for making a good first impression and driving interest. Here are four tips and tricks that will help you prepare your home to be sold, to make the home-selling process easy and stress-free.
Cull the Clutter
One of the very first steps to take when preparing your home for sale is to declutter. Sorting through all the stuff you have collected in the home to donate or discard should be your goal—if you don’t love it or need it, it’s time for it to go. You might think that stowing some of your possessions in closets and other storage spaces in the home will do the trick but think again: storage space is highly sought after by buyers. Jamming your stuff into your storage spaces does not draw attention to them as a selling point, but instead leaves the impression that such space is lacking. Removing unnecessary items will help uncover this and other features of your home that you can highlight for potential buyers.
Another important aspect of decluttering is to remove some of your furniture, especially large or oversized pieces, and to place them in storage. Clearing the home of these pieces will help open the interior visually and make it look more spacious overall. Plus, removing some furniture will clear paths throughout the house, to play up the easy and efficient interior traffic flow. Bonus: decluttering early will reduce the amount of stuff you will need to move to your next home.
Take Center Stage
According to the National Association of Realtors 2019 Profile of Home Staging, 83% of real estate agents representing buyers reported that it is easier for buyers to visualize properties as their future homes when those properties have been staged, with specific interest in the living room, kitchen, and master bedroom. You can do this yourself, but if you need assistance with home staging, your real estate agent can help or recommend a professional who can stage your home using some of your belongings or rented pieces. (Budgeting for a professional home stager is key, as their services can cost $300 to $600 for an initial design consultation, and $500 to $600 per month per staged room on average, according to information from realtor.com.) Home staging will help you depersonalize the space for prospective buyers, so they have somewhat of a blank slate for them to imagine living there themselves.
Come Clean
An organized and clean home points to a higher level of home maintenance over the years. Leaving beds unmade, toys strewn everywhere, or dust and dirt on surfaces undermines that image. Tidy, clean rooms draw in buyers because they appear more spacious. You can easily manage the cleaning of your home on your own, but you might consider hiring a professional cleaning company if you want to make sure you don’t miss anything you don’t clean on a regular basis (e.g. kitchen counters and toilets), or things that might need professional attention (e.g. large windows and high ceiling corners and fans).
Groom the Garden
How your house looks from the outside has a significant impact on the number of potential buyers who will take the time to view the entire property. Your home’s exterior is what those buyers see online and in person; so, it is important that it is well-maintained. Simple steps such as keeping the lawn mown and the shrubs trimmed neatly can help boost the curb appeal of the house for buyers. Freshening the paint and hardware on the front door and keeping the front porch swept and clear of leaves and spider webs is key; and adding flowers in garden beds or entryway pots will make your home feel more inviting. Carry the organic, fresh feeling into the house by adding some plants and fresh-cut flowers throughout the home as well.
WEICHERT, REALTORS® – The Place of Houses is a real estate company with a track record of success when it comes to selling houses in the Corpus Christi area. The competent professionals in the office are ready to help you sell your home. Contact WEICHERT, REALTORS® – The Place of Houses to speak to a licensed real estate agent to get your property ready to sell.
