7 Ways to Prepare Your House for Sale

Are you planning to sell your house soon? Or, is your home not generating any bite in the real estate market? As a seller, you’re likely wanting to get the maximum amount for your house in the quickest time possible. However, finding a buyer who is willing to purchase your house at your asking price is not always a walk in the park. You need to employ the smartest techniques that will make your house stand out and appeal to a pool of potential buyers. To help ya out, we’ve compiled a cheat sheet of 7 ways to prepare your house for sale so you can move on to bigger and better things.

1. Declutter Your House

There’s no mistake about it; any unwanted junk in or outside your house makes the home look cramped, untidy, unorganized, and hard to live in. Junk will also make the available living space look smaller, and therefore less appealing to buyers. For example, a cluttered pavement or hallway looks slender with poor visual aesthetics. Make sure to de-clutter your home for showings. If you’re thinking about staging the home, I highly recommend it. Staging a home allows potential buyers to see the functionality of the living space and how they can utilize it. Research shows that staged homes spend 73% less time on the market and can sell for up to 17% more than a home that isn’t staged. It’s an investment that will certainly pay off, but before thinking about home staging, make sure to clean the house properly and clear any clutter that can be an eye-sore to your prospective buyer.

2. Minor Repairs Matter

The regular wear and tear of a house is unavoidable but it creates a less than desirable visual appearance. Check for scuffs and nicks on the moldings, carpet stains, scratches on wood floors, dents, and loose railings- just to name a few. You don’t have to fix everything, but sometimes a bit of old-fashioned elbow grease means you can attract more buyers and sell for more- a decision well worth the effort. If you don’t have the time or desire to fix it yourself, you can hire a handyman or other professional to help you. But be sure to get bids from multiple people and always check their credentials and reviews.

3. Add a Fresh Coat of Paint

Painting is a simple but very effective way to boost the curb appeal of a house. It’s amazing how a good pressure wash followed by a fresh coat of paint can instantly make the property look new again. But a fresh paint job also does more than making your house look great; it also adds an extra layer of protection from the elements. Plus, painting isn’t as expensive as making repairs so it’s a no-brainer to paint the exterior as well as the interior and give your house a fresh feel. Check out this article by The Spruce to learn tips for choosing exterior paint colors for your home.

4. De-personalize

Removing your identity from your house does double duty. First, it helps you as a seller to psychologically prepare yourself for moving out. By slowly removing items such as the mirror, family photos, calendars, certificates, and other collectables, it will be easier for you to move out and move on once you sell the house. Secondly, depersonalization helps buyers to imagine themselves in their new environment. You need to get in the head of the buyer and understand that if the buyer sees less of another’s personal items, it becomes easier for them to imagine themselves living there. And that’s what you want after all, isn’t it? Your goal is to show the buyer how the home could be lived in, not how you are currently living in it. So pack up your bean bag and Ariana Grande posters and leave your house to the imagination of prospective buyers.

5. Hire the Right Real Estate Agent

The real estate market is dynamic. New marketing channels surface every day, which is why it’s so important to work with an agent that stays current on marketing. Equally important is to find yourself an agent that works exclusively with sellers, not a jack of all trades type that knows little about a lot. A good listing agent will effectively market your property and do a comparative market analysis to determine a fair listing price. I would also recommend enlisting the help of an agent that knows how to use different media platforms and has an online presence. This type of agent will know how to market your property in today’s market to maximize exposure to a large pool of buyers. For example, realtors with better online presence are likely to be beneficial when you want to capture video of your house- and ultimately will expose your property to their large group of followers.

6. Enhance Your Curb Appeal

The visual attractiveness of your landscaping, driveway, sidewalks, porch, and outdoor fixtures can either scare away or charm your potential buyers. A charming curb appeal can immensely increase your home value too. Mow and trim the lawn and clean up bushes and shrubs. If you need to add new grass, do it. The exterior of your house is the first impression buyers get, and you want to pique their interest before they even enter the home. Clean and replace exterior lighting, and please throw away the broken plastic flamingo! Add new mulch for your beautiful plants and don’t neglect to clean and paint external structures, such as your dog’s kennel, the garage, and stairs.

7. Remodel the Kitchen

Ask anyone- the kitchen is the heart of any home. Buyers will be drawn to the kitchen as soon as they enter your house. Knowing this, you can use this to your advantage by making the kitchen desirable for home buyers. How do you do this? Well, the most obvious way is to have your kitchen renovated. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “How much is that going to cost me?” Well, don’t think about how expensive it will be before considering the return on your investment. Homeowners who remodel their kitchens usually receive 69% of that money back when they sell the house. Buyers will know within seconds whether or not they like the house so your job is to attract them and then keep them captivated. Buyers want kitchens that can resist the day to day wear and tear that comes with using a kitchen regularly. Granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, a kitchen island and lots of storage space are some of the most important items on a buyer’s list. Now don’t forget the basics! Clean the sinks and make sure that all pipes are well-drained. Finally, organize your drawers and add a coat of paint over them to spruce them up!

Wrapping it Up!

We know that selling your house is no easy task, so to make things easier for yourself we recommend working with a great team. Find a reputable seller’s agent in your market and schedule an interview. If you’d like to outsource a job-such as remodeling your kitchen (and we advise you leave this to the pros!), consider the website thumbtack.com to find local professionals in your area. Finally, you can use the Open Door calculator to estimate how much you’ll earn once you sell the house. There are loads of tools and resources out there to help you make the right decisions about selling your house. We wish you the best in this endeavor and trust that you’ll make the right decisions.