Selling your house and selling it quickly and for top dollar is not an art, but a science. There are very specific things sellers should do when preparing their house for sale. The list below has 11 easy tips for transforming your house so that it gives buyers a good impression. While it is not an exhaustive list, and your house may have particulars, these general tips will help. For more specific advice and tips talk to your Realtor®. They should be able to customize a list of suggestions that will help you sell your house.
1. Declutter
When buyers walk into a home they want to be able to see the house. When a house has too much clutter it detracts from the house. In order to properly declutter you must make the room look like it is not lived-in. While most of us sell our houses when we are living in them, during this time, it is important to make the house look like it is not being lived in. If you need help clearing the clutter, consider contacting a professional organizer to help you. I promise you it will be worth the money! And last but not least after a good decluttering, make sure to give the house a nice deep cleaning so it is ‘hotel clean’.
2. Rent a storage unit
Once you have gotten rid or organized all the clutter you may need somewhere to put it all. If you have a garage or attic, you can store some of your boxes in there, as long as there are not too many most buyers will understand. But if you have an overwhelming amount of stuff consider renting a storage unit and taking it off site.
3. Clean like you’ve never cleaned before
As mentioned in Tip #1 your house should be hotel clean when buyers come to visit it. Consider hiring professional cleaners to get the job done and to maintain it while the house is on the market. Once they have cleaned your house and made it impeccable, remember to make it smell nice. Lavender and lemon are two scents that are easy to find and make the house smell fresh and clean.
4. Up your curb appeal
Never underestimate the power of curb appeal. I cannot even count how many times a buyer pulled up to a property with an unkempt appearance and said, “Never mind, let’s go to the next house”. The thinking is that if the property looks bad on the outside it is probably not that much better on the inside. However, if it looks great on the outside, chances are it will look great on the inside too. If landscaping is not your thing, hire a professional landscaper. Nice landscaping coupled with a decluttered and clean house is a recipe for getting lots of interested buyers.
5. Depersonalize the House
Remove anything that personalizes the house. Pictures, collection of dolls, or anything that is specific to you personally. Buyers want to be able to imagine the house as their own. It is hard to do that with someone else’s stuff staring them in the face.
6. Be your own Marketing Machine
Ask your agent for marketing collaterals and help spread the word. The more people that see the house the greater chance you have to sell it. So market like you have never marketed before!
7. Make sure your photos are perfect & plentiful
Buyers first impression of your house will most likely be based on online listing photos. So make sure your listing package includes professionally taken photos of your property. If buyers don’t like the pictures chances are they won’t ask for a showing.
8. Make minor upgrades (that make a major difference)
Paint your house in neutral colors, change kitchen and bathroom hardware and update light switches and fixtures. These are all inexpensive changes that go a long way to make the house look better and more inviting to buyers.
9. Keep Pets and Pet Smells Out
While your fur babies may be part of your family not everyone loves animals or the smells they leave. So make sure during showings that the animals are not present and that their scents are neutralized. If a house doesn’t smell good it will turn off buyers. Remember lavender and lemon make a house smell fresh and clean.
10. Adding a Closet, Adds a Bedroom
If you have a den also known as a flex space you can add a closet to show buyers it has potential as an additional bedroom. You can also decorate it as an office/guest room in order to give buyers ideas of the flexibility of this space.
11. Take care of anything that will pop up during inspection
You know that broken doorknob or loose cabinet handle? Well it is time to start avoiding and time to start fixing. Avoid these little items popping up on an inspection. If the buyer feels the house is well taken care of, they will have more confidence in purchasing it.
