TIPS FOR SELLING YOUR HOME

PREPARING YOUR HOME FOR SALE:

1) PEOPLE BUY WITH THEIR EYES: According to the experts, buyers decide within 7 SECONDS whether or not they are interested in your house. If you’re thinking of selling, start with sprucing up the outside, not the inside of the house. Power wash the house, windows, walks and driveway. Wash the outside windows and remove all the bugs and webs from the stoop. Get the lawn in shape and pull the weeds. Colorful flowers, red or yellow, by the door make a home more inviting.
Have a few minutes during the day? Clean out and neatly arrange the drawers and closets. Clean out the Garage. This tells buyers you are concerned about ‘little things’ and gives them confidence about the over all condition of the house.

2) PEOPLE BUY WITH THEIR NOSES: Smoking in a house is the “kiss of death” when trying to sell, REGARDLESS OF MARKET CONDITIONS. If you smoke in the house, STOP TODAY. Take your habit outside. When showing your house, dump the evidence and put all smoking materials out of sight. Removing the smoking smell requires cleaning all fabrics (drapes, rugs, furniture, bedspreads, etc) and repainting the interior of the house. Make sure there are no butts in the yard.Forget burning candles, air sprays, and potpourri left out around the place. There is no substitute forthe smell of ‘clean’. Before showings, spray Febreze in every room to remove stale air, without leaving a scent.. Spray and wipe Windex on your bathroom and kitchen counters for a “just cleaned” effect.

3) COLOR MATTERS: If you repaint, paint the trim white, but put some pale neutral color on the walls. Don’t paint the walls white as it leaves the house with a cold, lifeless feeling. If the outside trim or walls of your house are painted green, repaint. I don’t know why, but the color green seems to turn buyers off immediately. Colored carpet should be replaced with a neutral.A word of caution about installing BERBER CARPET. The chemical process of this carpet can cause severe allergy reactions in some people, so I don’t recommend its use.

4) GET RID OF CLUTTER: Remove and pack as many personal items as possible from your walls and out of the room. You don’t want buyers to admire, or dislike, your personal possessions. Let buyers see the home’s space and layout so they can envision their own things in their home-to- be.

5) REPAIR ALL THE LITTLE THINGS: It only takes a few minutes to tighten all the loose screws, replace burned out bulbs, and eliminate squeaks from doors and cabinets. Replace worn, torn blinds. Fix the sink drips and running toilets. Buy new toilet seats. CLR removes rust stains in a flash. Clean all the vents and ducts and get down the webs. If you have louvered doors, make sure they stay in the track when the buyers open them.

6) THE KITCHEN IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ROOM IN THE HOUSE. Make it look as big, clean and inviting as possible. Replace the appliances if they look old or worn. You will lose more in the value of your home if an offer comes in than it will cost to replace them. Fresh cut flowers always make an impact.

7) DARK HOUSES ARE HARD TO SELL. Turn on lights, open blinds, and have a skylight installed if necessary. Trim bushes away from windows and prune trees to brighten your space.

8) ASK ME FOR SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR HOME’S SALES APPEAL. Staging a home has become popular and seems to be very effective.

SHOWING YOUR HOME: DON’T MISS ANY OPPORTUNITY TO SELL YOUR HOUSE!

1) WHEN YOU LIST YOUR HOUSE FOR SALE, ALLOW THE AGENT TO PUT A “LOCK BOX” ON THE FRONT DOOR. Buyers often come on the ‘spur of the moment’ so give your agent the ability to get them in to see what you’re offering. Buyers are also sellers: they don’t care if the house is not spotless or if they can’t go into a room because someone’s sleeping. The listing agent can handle your special needs. I can’t tell you how many lost opportunities occur because the seller wants to be at the showing or the buyer can’t wait for the seller to open the house.

2) LEAVE THE HOUSE WHEN YOUR PROPERTY HAS A SHOWING!!! Some sellers insist on being at a showing of their house thinking they can assist the buyers with information the agent might not relay. WRONG!!

Buyers want privacy when they look at a home. They may know instantly the house doesn’t suit their needs, but are then obligated to make small talk with the seller in attendance. In all but rare cases, if the buyers have no negative comments, they also have no interest in the house. The seller’s presence interrupts the buying process as candid discussions will not take place with the seller in the house.

3) TURN ON THE LIGHTS, OPEN THE BLINDS AND CURTAINS, WINDEX AND FEBREZE, AND MAKE SURE THE BATHROOMS ARE CLEAN. IF YOU HAVE DOGS OR CATS, CRATE THEM OUTSIDE OR IN THE GARAGE, OR TAKE THEM WITH YOU.

4) NEVER PASS UP AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW YOUR HOUSE! If you have 10 people in for the holidays, suitcases everywhere and the house is a wreck, show your house. If you’re halfway through cleaning out the garage, and look like something the cat wouldn’t drag in, show your house. Doing laundry and Hubby just returned with $200 worth of groceries? Show your house. If you have a day sleeper, put a note on the door, and show your house. NEVER PASS UP AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW YOUR HOUSE.