Planning To Sell Your Home

4 Ways To Make Your Home More
Attractive To Home Buyers

Email: kevin@kevinmcvicker.com Phone: (919) 369-4926

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The Importance of Staging

One of the essential steps that must be taken to quickly sell your home is to stage it well. It’s surprising how many folks overlook this necessary part, but the presentation of your home is of the utmost importance. I know, it sounds scary even thinking of tackling such a huge project, but just trust me on this. You’ll be glad that you did.

I'm going to give you a few tips and tricks that will help folks get past just viewing your home as a potential and dreaming of it as their picture perfect nest. I know what you’re thinking. You’ve seen all of these articles and blogs about revamping your house to make it sellable, but you just don’t have that kind of cash. It’s okay. Stay calm and take a deep breath, because the fact is that we can lead you to staging your home perfectly know matter how large or small your budget is!

Essential Tip #1: Make it Sparkling Clean

The very first, and possibly most important tip we’re going to give you is to simply clean, clean and clean some more. We all get used to our homes. Most of us don’t keep show places in our day to day lives. We really, truly, actually live in them. That usually means stacks of mail on the table, unfolded laundry on the dryer and hidden unknowns in closets. Did we mention the kid’s toys and litter box? That’s what living in a house is all about, right? Right, but the goal is to convince another couple or family that your home is just perfect for them. That’s tough when they’re surrounded by your stuff.

You see, living in your home also means that you don’t see your home as potential homebuyers might. You just don’t notice what you stare at every single day, but take our word for it, people trying to see if this could be there new haven do notice and are turned off by seemingly innocuous clutter. Not a problem, because this is a task that we can manage with just some elbow grease and time.

First of all, get out your pad and pencil. Start at your front door and do a walk through just as though you were being shown around by your friendly, neighborhood realtor. Put on your fresh eyes and take notes of everything you notice that is unpleasing. It’s not a bad idea to keep track of what you find that is quite pleasant to look at, as well.

Typically, you’ll be starting in the foyer or entrance. Simply make a list entitled foyer, and note everything that needs to be tackled. For example:

Foyer To Do's:

• Cobwebs in the corner
• Fingerprints on mirror
• Spot on carpet
• Declutter junk basket
• Take down all but one photo frame
• Polish table
• Put up shoes
• Keep fresh flowers looking and smelling nice

Hall closet To Do's:

• Funny smell – Go through old shoes and air out
• Clean off shelf
• Get rid of mouse trap

See how that works? It’s really simple. You’re quickly taking note of all of the things that need cleaning, straightening and decluttering. Go through your entire house this way, making your notes and keeping your fresh eyes open to the possibilities. Envision just how beautiful your home can really be with a little sprucing up. After all, you want your potential buyers to envision your current home as their future one. Your stinky socks and sneakers won’t help with that, but a bright and shiny entrance will!

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Now, once you’ve made your extensive To Do list, you need to make a second list of the supplies that you need to accomplish your tasks. Cleaners, garbage bags, paper towels, polish and even light bulbs might be on this list. The best part is that you’re going to have almost everything that you need on hand, so this spectacular and important tip is nearly cost-free!

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Handy Tip: Smell Matters

Smell is incredibly important when you’re trying to sell your home. Some would even say that people buy homes with their noses. It doesn’t matter how beautiful something is, if it smells bad, it just isn’t inviting. You’ve got a handle on this, though. Follow these tips for a home that smells as lovely as it looks.

• If you’re a smoker, consider going outside for smoke breaks until your home is sold. Non-smokers have noses like bloodhounds, and they often detest that lingering scent.
• Avoid cooking greasy or incredibly spicy dishes, particularly if you know someone is coming to view your home soon. Stick with the oven! It’ll be better for you, too.
• Empty the garbage religiously. We all forget sometimes, but make that concerted effort to get it outside every single day from every single room. Make sure fresh bags are in the cans before a viewer is scheduled to visit.
• Watch the pooches. Believe it or not, some folks just aren’t animal people and they detest the smell of dogs, hamsters and litter boxes. We know you can’t just throw your babies out! Just make adjustments as you can until your home is sold.
• Keep scented candles handy. Light them a couple of hours before you’re expecting someone to help mask all of those scents that are hard to get rid of. Keep in mind that you don’t want your home to look as though you’re about to have a séance. Just a candle or two will do nicely.
• Another way to get a pleasant aroma without going into overbearing mode is to add a little cinnamon or vanilla to a tea kettle of water and warm it. It’s lovely.
• Shampoo the carpet. Some smells just linger, and they get into your carpets just to stay put and torture you. If you don’t have a shampooer, they can be rented fairly inexpensively at department stores, or you can buy a low-end one for about a hundred bucks.
• Wash the curtains. It’s the same principal as the carpets. Smells linger in fabrics, so if you can, wash your curtains and any other offending fabrics, such as linens, that can trap odors.

Essential Tip #2: Don’t Forget the Yard

Again, this is an important step in the staging of your home and many people simply fail to really see their yardfor what it is. It’s okay. Get out your handy dandy list again, and go to town with your newfound note-taking abilities. Maybe even do a drive-by, since that is the first impression a potential homebuyer is going to have. The neighbors might think you’re a little odd at first, stalking your own house and all, but you’re on a mission. After all, they won’t be your neighbors much longer!

Drive by slowly and just drink it all in. Are the bushes neat? How does the grass look? Is there debris lying around? What you’re trying to see is whether or not your home and yard look like invitations to come on in and have a look inside. Or, on the other hand, if they look as though they would send a potential buyer screaming for the nearest exit out of your neighborhood. Chances are there are areas that need some improvement, and that’s just fine. You’ve got those kinds of skills, after all. If you can declutter a whole house, you can absolutely make your yard inviting.

Keep in mind, that neat and simple landscaping is much preferred to elaborate landscaping that is a mess. Don’t feel compelled to put tons of money into this project, but rather declutter and clean just as you did inside of your home already. After all, you want to make as much money off of this sell as possible. Investing tons of money into something that isn’t necessary is essentially eating away at your eventual profit. With that being said, neat shrubs and fresh mulch go a long, long way.

Don’t misunderstand. There may be areas that require a little monetary push. For instance, if your porch light no longer works, it’s advisable to update that. Your steps are broken in a place or two? Go ahead and replace them.  You see where we’re going with this?

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Handy Tip

• Start at the curb. Is it clean, neat and well kept? Is it littered with garbage, cigarette butts and grass clippings? Clean it up, because this is the first glimpse potential buyers get of your home.
• We’ve already mentioned checking your bushes for trimming needs, but go a step further. Are your flower beds overgrown? If so, weed them out. Make sure and trim away all dead foliage, as well. It just isn’t pleasing to the eye.
• Do your walkways need repair? Often, walkways can be mended rather than having to be completely replaced if there’s just crack or two.
• Take a good look at your outdoor furniture. It can either make or break the look of a patio or porch. A good washing with bleach water might be all that they need to look like new, or they might need a fresh dose of paint. A small amount of cash and effort can go a long way with this.
• Wash down the outside of your home. Unless you’ve already done so recently, it can likely use a going over. If you don’t have a pressure washer handy, a garden sprayer with bleach water, a hose and sponge mop work great.
• Don’t forget your outbuildings! Wash them down, as well. Make sure everything is nice and tidy around them.
• Put up the toys every single day. It can be tough to keep a yard neat and still give the children a place to play. But simply putting unused toys neatly out of the way can make a yard look much more groomed, and more like a home for couples who don’t have children.

Essential Tip #3: Home Improvements to Boost Value

Believe it or not, just the cleaning and simple mending of a yard and home go a long way to making its salability rise dramatically. However, in some cases it may be advisable to take that next step and do some quick updating. This could be advisable in areas where many homes are on the market similar to yours, and you need yours to be distinctive.

For times like these, you are prepared. The single most inexpensive project you can take on that will both improve the look and the value of your home is fresh paint. You can do it yourself if you’re on a budget, or you can hire painters if you’d rather not tackle such a time consuming affair.

It is essential to remember that you are selling this house, so you need to make sure you choose colors that are going to sell rather than cater to your personal tastes. Neutrals tend to work best. They are clean, open spaces up and allow a fresh pallet where potential buyer’s minds can play out their home ownership fantasies. Neutral, mind you, does not mean all white. Sure white is a neutral sort of color, but it is also sterile. You want your buyers to feel homey rather than hospital-like. Warm it up a bit. Beiges and creams work well. Greys are also nice and seem to be the newest go-to in this area.

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Handy Tips

Here’s the conundrum. What do you do if you’re on a tight budget and you need to make some of these higher cost projects happen? Well, it is going to take more money, and there’s no way around that. However, you can cut your costs by being frugal and using your imagination.

• Shop the paints that have been mixed incorrectly for other customers. They’re often half the price of original paint, and the colors aren’t necessarily horrific, but rather not specifically what someone else wanted. The worst that can happen is that there is nothing of use to you when you browse.
• Buy paint, rollers and accoutrements in bulk. Did you know you can buy a five gallon jug of paint? You can, and it costs less than buying five separate gallons.

Essential Tip #4: Going Above and Beyond

Believe it or not, just the cleaning and simple mending of a yard and home go a long way to making its salability rise dramatically. However, in some cases it may be advisable to take that next step and do some serious updating. This could be advisable in areas where many homes are on the market similar to yours, and you need yours to be distinctive.

Another thing that you can look at updating that carries a little more bang for your buck is replacing old worn floor coverings with hardwood. No, this is not dirt cheap. However, if you really need to raise the value of your home, this is a great way to do it.

Don’t be afraid to shop for flooring on social media either. Countless times there are people who have bought excessive flooring and want to sell it inexpensively just to get it out of the way. There are even moments where folks just up and change their minds about the floor they want to put down, and they sell huge lots on the cheap.

Other ways to update your home is to include new appliances, update lighting fixtures and install new kitchen and bath hardware.

These tips and tricks can absolutely help you to make your home a buyer’s palace. You won't be able to do it all in a weekend, but the end result will be completely worth it!

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We’d love to help you out with any other questions that you might have. We’re here for you, and we want to see your house sell. Not only do we want to see it move, we want to see it go as fast as humanly possible. Give us a call if we can be of any further assistance to you.