Thinking about selling your house, but not sure exactly where to start?
How exactly do you get your house ready to sell?
Preparing your home for potential buyers can be a daunting task. You must be able to commit to transforming your home into a place that home buyers can easily picture as their home.
Read below for our tried and true tips on how to get your house ready to sell.
How to Get Your House Ready to Sell by Depersonalizing
To answer the question of how to get your house ready to sell, you have to be prepared to emotionally detach.Our home represents who we are, but that no longer mattes once it's time to put your house on the market.
Instead of being your ideal home, it now has to speak to prospective buyers in a positive way. The best way to accomplish this is by depersonalizing your home, so it appeals to the most buyers.
Remove Personal Items
Our homes are highly personal. They showcase our memories, the things we have accumulated over time, and just our overall stuff.
However, buyers tend to label homes very quickly and first impressions are crucial. Eliminating personal items may be hard, but these can be huge distractions for buyers that can make or break whether or not they like your home. While you may love the large tiger photo in the dining room, it may scare off a buyer and should likely be put in storage until you move.
Declutter
Another distraction is clutter. While you may say your knick-knacks are not clutter, they can send a message that your house doesn’t have enough space.
For example, if you have collectibles sitting out everywhere, this may draw attention away from your ultimate goal. While these may be very important to you, they will likely just look like clutter to a potential buyer who is touring your home.
Everyone’s clutter is different. Our daily lives contain a lot of it! We have daily mail, car keys, loose change, toiletries in the bathroom and more.
For instance, let’s look at a kitchen counter. Many kitchen countertops are permanent homes to a coffee pot, a toaster, toaster-oven, a butcher block of knives, a canister of utensils, and a decorative bowl of often overripe fruit.
You may see this as a functional kitchen counter, but your buyer may view this as your kitchen not having enough storage space. Relocating these items can open up the space and make it look way more appealing.
Consider Professional Staging
Staging your home means bringing in a third party specialist with the objectivity needed to accomplish your goal. The best stagers will work with what you have, rearranging and relocating your belongings in order to present the property in its best light.
Sometimes home sellers take this personally. Don’t do this! A good stager will attempt to make your home look neutral and take away any items that may upstage the home itself.
It can be upsetting to see your home rearranged to suit the tastes of others. But if selling your home for the most money and in the shortest time possible is your goal, then it’s worth it!
Six Tasks You Can Do Immediately to Get Your House Ready to Sell
- Start the planning process. Consider getting a home inspection to see if any repairs are needed. If repairs are needed, hire a contractor for any major fixes that need to be done. You can also ask any local real estate professionals you may know for advice on whether or not specific repairs are worth the cost. Consider getting an appraisal if there is any question on the market value of your home.
- Clean and declutter. Thoroughly clean the entire home. This includes scrubbing tile (including grout) in the kitchen and bathrooms, cleaning hardwood floors, steam cleaning carpets and drapes, and getting rid of all dust bunnies. (Consider replacing any carpet with bad stains). If walls look dingy, paint them with neutral colors. Remove all family photos, magazines, and medications. If the garage is cluttered, remove items and store them offsite. This is also a good time to secure valuable items, such as cash and jewelry.
- Improve Your Curb Appeal. Be sure to power wash all siding and windows. If the exterior paint on your home is not up to par, then you may consider painting all shutters, trim and doors. Sweep the entryway and walkway, and clean the gutters. Trim shrubs, mow the lawn and rake leaves. Colorful flowers and new shrubs can also be planted. Add wrought iron window boxes for even more charm to your home’s exterior. Be aware of any unsightly toys or equipment lying in the yard. Clean up pet droppings, and repair any cracks in the driveway or sidewalk.
- Pay special attention to the kitchen and bathrooms. Replace old caulking around sinks and bathtubs. Also, remove any stains from sinks, toilets and bathtubs. Replace outdated hardware and organize the pantry and all drawers. Hang fresh towels and keep all toilet seat lids closed!
- Plan an open house. Get ready prior to the open house by installing LED light bulbs to brighten rooms. Plan for a place to relocate your pets on the day of the open house. Inform family, friends, and neighbors of the date and time. Advertise on social media. Put “Open House” signs on the front lawn and at nearby intersections with directions to the house. Create property description sheets and prepare important documents, such as homeowner’s association rules and inspection reports. On the day of the open house – sellers used to bake cookies - but now most burn scented candles. Offer light refreshments and turn off TVs. Open windows to let in fresh air and open curtains or blinds to let in natural light and show off views.
- Highlight your home’s best features. If your home has particular desirable features, make sure you show them off! For instance, if you have rugs covering up your hardwood floors, remove them. If you have a fireplace, make sure it’s in good working condition. If you have nice views, make sure the curtains aren’t blocking them and if you have a backyard pool area, make sure it looks clean and maintained!
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Advice from people who have been successful in getting a home ready to sell is invaluable. There are definitely stressors involved at every turn, but hopefully, these tips will help you in getting your house ready to sell.
Whatever the situation, it is helpful to consult with a licensed real estate agent who does this all the time.
At SimpleShowing, we can pair you with an experienced agent in your area who can not only share the best tactics to sell your home, but they'll also give you full support for only a 1% listing fee.
Contact us to learn about our full service listing and save $7,500 on average when you sell your home.
