The time has come! Your home no longer fits your needs, or a life event happened and you need to move. Whether you’re moving down the street, across town, or across the country there is probably something that needs to be done to have your house ready to sell.
I’m often asked by clients on our first meetings what they should focus on when getting ready to list their home for sale.
During our initial meeting I’ll get a tour of the house where I’ll be able to see any of the most glaring issues that would deter a Buyer from making an offer on the property. Many times these are small maintenance issues that require little effort to repair and have the house ready for list.
On my initial consultation of the home we’ll determine how much work and what exact work you’d like to have completed prior to listing. In the case of my latest Seller, there wasn’t much room for being able to do a lot prior to listing the house for sale.
This particular Seller is downsizing after retiring. She is waiting for her full government retirement benefits to kick in, and because of that she does not have the ability to pay for major repairs or improvements. This particular Seller is on a fixed income for the moment.
In that case, I was able to swoop in with the little items that needed to be completed prior to listing. There were a few holes in drywall that needed patching, the windows were washed, the exterior power-washed, and the trim of the exterior patio doors was scrapped and repainted.
After all of those small repairs were made then it came time for cleaners to come in and deep clean the home.
You can see from this particular Seller that there wasn’t a lot that was needed to focus on before getting the house ready to sell. A few of the best tips a Seller can do when preparing their house for sale are the following:
Do a deep clean of your home. In fact, hire a cleaning company to come in and deep clean everything. From the baseboards to the ceilings you want your house to shine. Buyer’s don’t like spending time in a dirty home and often comment on how the house felt extremely dirty when they finish a tour.
If your home is dirty then it won’t present as well as it can to a potential Buyer. Be very particular and do all of those deep cleaning items – behind toilets, blinds/shutters, window sills, baseboards, etc.
The next thing you should focus on when getting ready to sell your house is making sure all lights work properly! Do you have a lightbulb that is out? Get a replacement bulb and fix that light.
It should be a no-brainer that any minor repairs that you, or your Realtor, see should be completed before getting ready to list the house.
The amount of work you put into your home before you sell it really depends on your desire and effort. If you have the time, money, or resources then a fresh coat of paint is a great way to get your house ready for sale. Paint may be the simplest thing a homeowner can do to improve their home.
It’s similar to having the house clean. A fresh coat of paint will help the house shine! Plus, you can purchase paint for a few hundred dollars and the return on your investment is through the roof. For a few hundred dollars you can get a few thousand dollars out of your home’s value.
The final item you can do to your house before selling is going through the closets and taking half of your items out of the closet. Buyers love looking for storage space, and many times the storage is one of the top items that a Buyer is subconsciously looking for in a home. You make your available storage space look even bigger when you eliminate half of your items out of your closets. It’s a simple trick that will help your home sell faster.
The big items are making sure small repairs that anyone who walks into your house could see are fixed, lights are working properly, and the house is deep cleaned! After that any other item you decide to do will only help your home sell faster.
Finally, pricing is going to be the biggest factor in what you should do before you sell your house. Working with a great Realtor will give you insight into the current state of your local housing market, and what homes values are selling for around your neighborhood. Pricing correctly is always going to be key to selling your house fast, and for the most amount of money.
Got a question about Buying or Selling a house? Reach out anytime by email! Michael@mansellrealtors.com
