Selling your house? Preparation really makes all the difference between getting your asking price or falling short.
As a homeowner, remember that your house is a product when it goes on the market. When a prospective home buyer walks into your home, it’s important for them to be able to picture themselves living there.
You want to set the stage for showing your home quickly, and your first step is to de-clutter, keeping a buyer’s point of view in mind. You may want to hire a professional stager to help you achieve the best possible effect.
The main rooms to consider when you begin are the kitchen and the family room. Consider carefully what can be done to open up space in terms of furniture placement and de-cluttering. You want to be sure that potential buyers can easily walk through the rooms of the house and see the space.
Seriously consider removing family pictures and other items of a personal nature in preparation for the sale of your house. This helps people to picture themselves living in the house.
Renovations are an important part of your selling plan. You want to maximize your resale value, so choose where and what you renovate carefully with this in mind. For example, investing in all new windows just before you sell would not necessarily result in a good return for you; updating your kitchen would be a wiser choice. Always think about which aspects of the home will have a real impact on buyer decision-making. Kitchen, being the centre of most homes, can deliver a very high return on investment compared to other renos you might consider.
The top six renovation returns are:
Landscaping
Kitchens
Fireplaces
Paint
Bathrooms
Floors
Buying a home is, for most people, their biggest investment. As a seller, make sure yours stands apart. The choices you make regarding home improvements will drastically affect your home’s market value.
Even a fresh coat of paint can make a dramatic difference in the appearance and first impression of your house. Your selling plan must include effective home staging because you have just one chance to impress a potential home buyer!
Easy Steps to Stage Your Home
- Eliminate all clutter-main rooms, closets, laundry room, basement, garage. An easy storage solution is to rent a storage space for the period of time that your house is on the market.
- Keep all countertops clean and clear. This creates a better impression of space.
- Remove all fridge magnets, keep all appliances super clean.
- Apply fresh paint to brighten things up wherever necessary.
- Easy upgrade: change the hardware in the kitchen and bathroom.
- Keep windows, faucets and taps sparkling clean.
- Curb appeal- how does your house look from the street?
- Spotless yard, front and back of house.
- A new welcome mat and wreath for the main entrance.
- All lights in good working order. Be sure to have outdoor lighting on in the evenings.
- A fresh-smelling home- the aroma of fresh-baking greeting prospective buyers is a nice touch!
Tammy Dufault
Century 21 BJ Roth Realty Ltd.
