Selling your home is hard work. While it’s easy to think that your beautiful, much-loved home will instantly appeal to potential new buyers – the truth is that considerable prep work may be necessary in order to get the best return on your investment. With the current real estate inventory of homes on the market, many buyers can afford to be choosy…and will be. Make sure your property ranks among the best in its Brantford area by following these tried and true tips for impressing buyers and putting some spring into your real estate sale.
First things first…stop thinking of it as ‘your’ home.
It may be the house that you started your marriage in and brought your babies home to…but in order to successfully market your property, you need to distance yourself from it. Put on your buyer’s cap and take a walk around with an impartial eye, paying attention to the details – including the drywall nicks and the missing shingles. While no big deal in the scheme of overall quality – all those years of love in the home have left its mark, both on you and the walls. Take the time to say goodbye to each of your nooks and spaces and then get down to the business of selling your home. It’s time to look at the house like the asset it is, picture how potential new buyers are going to see it – and get to work.
To get you rolling in the meantime, we’ve included a few tips below to get you springing into action.
Outside.
The outside of your home will be the first thing a potential buyer sees – and as the saying goes, first impressions really do count. A shabby exterior will suggest to buyers that you may not excel at home maintenance which raises red flags and helps set the tone for criticisms.
- Clean up your landscaping. Trim the bushes, mow the lawn, rake up debris and sweep the cobwebs from your eaves. Don’t forget to look up – are there shingles missing, dead tree branches dangling and last year’s holiday light clips still hanging? It’s OK to call for help if the job seems too big – Sutton Team realtors have a great list of local people to recommend.
- Tidy up. Clean up the massive pile of kid’s toys and equipment; the buyers don’t need to know that the children usually leave the place in shambles. Hide away your hoses, trash cans and recycling bins. Clean out the gutters, eavestroughs, wash the siding and make sure that walkways are clear.
- Give a fresh perspective. A fresh coat of paint on a front door can be an inexpensive way to freshen up a home’s exterior look and feel. Plant flowers to add some colour and appeal; if it’s too early in the season get some planters to emphasize key focal points. Yellow is a great colour for emphasizing warmth and hominess and can be found in many inexpensive plants such as geraniums.
- Give them a show. Remember that most people will drive by or find your home as advertised online, so make sure that your initial presentation sparks enough interest to get your house on the buyers ‘must see’ list.
Inside. - Declutter. We collect an amazing amount of stuff – and we often have far more than we need. Take this opportunity to clear things out by having a garage sale or donating your extras and un-necessaries. Get rid of the piles of shoes, messy linen closets and overflowing office files. Consider renting a storage unit and fill it up with those extra pieces that overfill your spaces and make it appear that your house is not as spacious as it really is.
- Depersonalize. Pack away the vacation souvenirs, the gallery wall of family cuteness and Grandma Josie’s heirloom mirror (because the buyers aren’t getting it anyway!). Clear out the personal belongings so that new buyers can picture themselves living there instead of seeing the home as some other family’s space.
- Organize. Take this opportunity to help with your decluttering process and organize your closets, kitchen cupboards and other storage spaces. Clean up the kids art nook, pack away the fridge magnets and clear off the countertops. The potential buyers will be peeking around looking for storage space, so you might as well show them that you’re an organizational ninja with impeccable home maintenance skills – and lots of storage space to offer.
- Clean, clean and clean some more. Wash windows, scrub floors, clean out the fridge and other appliances, polish faucets – if you can say it, you should probably spray it (with cleaner) and get it back to looking its best. Cleaning the home from top-to-bottom can be a daunting task, so hiring a cleaning crew may save you time, money and lots of frustration in the long run. Ask your realtor for advice on a trusted local company that can help get the job done right.
- The time for repairs has come. Time to make good on that list of repairs that you’ve been meaning to get to for just about forever. Make sure you set aside a reasonable amount of time for re-caulking tubs, showers and sinks, fixing leaky faucets, replacing burnt out pot-lights and patching drywall nicks. While you’re at it, you might want to consider repainting those colourful accent walls a more neutral colour. Regardless – be prepared that we often underestimate how long these projects may take (especially when unexpected surprises arise), so make sure you’ve left yourself enough time to complete repairs in advance of your ideal listing date.
Getting your London area home ready for sale won’t be an easy process – but these suggestions
will help you to create a very appealing and marketable home. Keep in mind that a little effort will go a long way towards helping you get the best offer available for your property…and that a qualified
agent can help you with the rest. Reach out to Martin Denis Sarkissian – Broker to Talk Real Estate!
Trust, Integrity, Honesty and Education; This is the framework of Martin Sarkissian’s Real Estate Business