How The Pros Get A Home Ready To Sell
If you’re thinking about selling your home, then there are probably a thousand things going through your mind. But getting a house ready to sell is about more than advertising through your estate agent: it’s also about making sure that it’s in a good enough condition so that buyers want to pay you for it.
The problem, however, is that the vast majority of homeowners don’t see it this way. They continue to live in their homes as they always have, creating a mess and very much putting their mark on the place. After all, what’s a house if not somewhere to live?
Common sense probably tells you that this isn’t a good idea. Getting a home ready for sale requires you to put in a little effort and go the extra mile to impress visitors. You need to make it feel like people looking around could quite happily move in tomorrow and make the property their own.
Professionals have been getting houses ready for sales for many years. Check out some of the things that they recommend that you do before putting a property on the market.
Replace Broken Lightbulbs
If you want to increase the appeal of your home, it’s good practice to make it as bright as possible. The more vivid it is, the more that people will come to believe that it’s a place where they could live.
Brightness is a rule of thumb, and it’s essential to achieve it in every room of the house, especially those that do not get natural light through a window. Replace any broken bulbs and choose higher wattages than you would ordinarily. Instead of a 40W equivalent LED, go for an 80W as this will show off your rooms well, even during daylight hours.
Steam Clean Your Carpets
Most people will vacuum their carpets and have a general tidy before entertaining potential buyers. But if you want to impress, then steam cleaning is the way to go, according to Steamaster Co. The reason professionals like to steam clean carpets is that it not only makes them look like new, but it also removes all of those annoying odors that linger when carpets trap thousands of particles underfoot. Steam cleaning penetrates deep into the carpet, lifting out dirt and, if you’re lucky, making it look as if you’ve just renovated. At the very least, it hides or reduces stains – a definite no-no when trying to sell.
Repaint Your Walls
Painting is the most powerful ally in your quest to sell your home. A property can be falling down at the rafters, but if it has a fresh paint job, even the most run-down house can become saleable.
Paint is cheap and if you decide to paint the walls yourself, even less expensive. When you live in a house for a long time, you often don’t notice the dulling of the walls. It only becomes apparent when you apply a fresh coat of paint.
Flaking paint is also a big no-no, especially on doors and window frames. Remove old paint with sand-paper and gloss over it with a fresh layer.
Deliberately Stage Your Home
Home staging is, in essence, making your home look as if it’s come straight out of an interior design catalog. There are dozens of ways to stage your home, but one of the most critical is how you arrange your furniture. Most homeowners arrange their furniture up against the wall and don’t leave any space for people to walk around the edge. But if you look in most interior design catalogs and websites, they frequently place furniture in the center of the room.
It might not be practical to arrange furniture in this way long term, but it’s certainly worth trying if you’re planning on putting your property on the market. Remember, it’s just a temporary arrangement. You’ll soon be able to move out (quicker with the help of staging).
Get A Professional Photographer To Take Pictures Of Your Room
Try as you might, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to take good pictures of your home, particularly the interiors. Getting the angles and lighting right is a challenge. Home-made photos never look as good in a brochure or real estate website.
Professionals sell homes by hiring expert photographers. They understand that the quality of photography is one of the primary drivers of the sale of a home. It’s what gets people excited about your property and through the front door. Professional photos showcase your home at its best while at the same time being faithful to its real-life appearance.
Rent A Nearby Storage Unit
Carting half of your stuff off to a storage unit is a hassle. But on the plus side, you can declutter your home without throwing out half of your possessions. Storage units are ideal for those large household items, like tables, that you want to keep but are getting in the way of your attempts to stage your home.
Get Rid Of Anything Personal Or Quirky
Telling somebody to get rid of anything personal or quirky from their home sounds like the opposite of good advice. But when it comes to securing a quick sale, it’s vital. The more stuff that you can shift, the better. The reason for this is that quirky possessions make it more difficult for buyers to imagine your property as being their new home.
Keeping things neutral, on the other hand, has the opposite effect. Your home is a blank canvas, one which buyers can project their ideal decor or layout. It also gets rid of any distractions, making it easier to imagine how they might use a particular space.
Fix The Stuff That’s Broken
Leaking faucets or cracked guttering might not be a dealbreaker, but it can cause buyers to wonder whether you’ve looked after your property. Hire a handyman for a day or two and get them to fix all the stuff around your house that doesn’t work as it should. You’ll be surprised just how much more tantalizing it makes your home to buyers.