There’s no way around it — selling a house requires a lot of work. You can’t just do some dusting, a little vacuuming, mow the lawn, and declare it ready to hit the market. Your house has to be a property that anyone passing by would want to see more of and could imagine themselves living in. Although this might sound difficult, it’s important to be objective. Put yourself in a buyer’s shoes and take a walk through each room. Look for anything that looks out of place, dirty, or disorganized, or anything that might make a potential buyer think twice. It takes time and a willingness to keep your property in ready-to-show condition. Keep reading for Sandra Erbe’s tips to make the process easier.
Keep It Clean
Clean everywhere, even places you’re sure no one would ever notice. Dust the top of the fireplace mantle, clean under the stove vent, polish your appliances, and clean behind the TV sets. Remember, discriminating buyers will look into every corner, open drawers, look into closets, and make summary judgments about your house based on something you overlooked, no matter how insignificant it might seem to you. Consider hiring a professional to give your home a deep cleaning, especially if you don’t have the time to do a thorough job. However, if you want to tackle this job yourself but you need an app to help you stay on top of things, check out Tody, which makes figuring out what to clean and when to clean it an absolute breeze.
Declutter
Whatever you do, don’t consider your home clean until you’ve decluttered each room. That means cleaning up loose objects, straightening or throwing out piles of loose paper, picking up clothing items, and keeping the kids’ shoes out of the hallway and in the closet. A cluttered home makes you look disorganized and unprepared, leaving buyers worried that there may be more deep-seated problems waiting for them elsewhere. Again, thankfully, there’s an app that can help you stay organized. Although it’s available as a business tool, Sortly can help you take control of your home life — and it’s free (with a few limitations).
Repaint the Walls
If you’re like most homeowners, your walls take a pounding and are probably showing the signs of years of wear and tear. Most realtors agree that nothing freshens things up like a fresh coat of paint. Be sure to go with a neutral color scheme, so that buyers will have an easier time imagining your space as theirs. A hallway painted voluptuous red or a cheerful yellow is distracting and will defeat the purpose of staging a home for buyers. Before you get started, head over to the website Glidden’s Room Visualizer to “virtually” paint your rooms using the site’s easy-to-use system. That way, you’ll get a good idea of what to expect before you begin.
Clean and Organize Closets
Closet space is a big “must-have” on many homebuyers’ checklists when they’re searching for a new home. Buyers looking for bigger closets will definitely peer into your closets, upstairs and downstairs to get a good idea of how much they can expect to store. A closet with wadded-up clothing, mismatched shoes and miscellaneous items that belong somewhere else will make it hard for buyers to see what they want to see in your closets. Need a digital hand to help keep your closet space organized? Smart Closet helps you do just that!
Go with the Flow
Flow is important for buyers. You want to show them a home without impediments and ready access from room to room. Get rid of any overstuffed furniture that’s in the way and put it into storage while you’re staging, or give it away to the Salvation Army or Goodwill.
Making Use of Technology
It’s also important to keep in mind that you’ll need a pretty recent smartphone to ensure the aforementioned apps and websites function as they should. Nowadays, thanks to powerful capabilities, most models can handle just about any app you throw at it. Additionally, you can take advantage of a newer model’s updated camera which will allow you to take wonderful pics that you can use in listings and on social media.
Make any improvements you would want to see as a buyer and be sure to keep everything clean and orderly. You only have one chance to make a good first impression, and it can make the difference between a disinterested buyer and a sale. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the process of selling your home, get in touch with Sandra Erbe for expert assistance.
Courtesy of Alice Robertson
