Preparing Your Home for Sale

With all the new construction currently on the market, individual re-sales are forced to compete with homes that have never been lived in.  This puts a premium on condition.  Since you will have to compete with model homes in this market, here are some tips on making your home show like a model.

1. Remove Clutter – Any items that you do not use weekly should be moved to storage.  Considering hiring a cleaning service to give your home a full once over before you go on the market. 

2. Remove Personal Items – When viewing a home buyers want to be able to picture themselves living in the space.  This is difficult to achieve when surrounded by your wedding pictures, baby photos, and last years’ Christmas card starring Fido as Rudolph.  I understand they are keepsakes, but until your home is sold….storage.  Also, remove any small collectibles sitting on mantles, counters, or bookshelves.

3. Smell Matters – From the moment a prospective buyer walks through the door of your home they are forming opinions.  It is not just how your home looks, but how it smells as well.  Pet scents, exotic foods, and dirty laundry can all leave lasting aromas that you’ll want to counter act.  I would suggest air fresheners hold an aromatic oil.   You place reeds in the oil and over time the reeds soak up the oil and slowly diffuse the smell throughout the room.  They are perfect for maintaining a light fresh scent.  Keep it simple when searching for the fragrance, vanilla, light floral scents, and anything that is reminiscent of baking

4. Make it Easy to Show- Your listing needs to be accessible.  Model homes are open daily, in some cases for up to eight hours.  If you receive a showing request and tell the buyer “no, only Wednesdays at 3:15″ You are likely to never hear from them again.  There is simply too much inventory on the market.  While this is an extreme case, make showings as flexible and easy as possible.  Remember the goal here is getting your home sold at the best price possible in a reasonable time frame.  You just have to decide that the slight inconvenience is worth getting your home sold.

5. Professional Staging - Last but not least, hiring a professional stager can be well worth the expense.  Specifically if you are selling a luxury home.  Price, condition, and location are you major determining factors.  While you must price competitively, due to the type of competition, showing condition becomes a great predictor of a successful sale.

For more tips follow the link below:

http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20080214_improvements.htm

 Best,

JLC