You’ve decided that it’s time to move on to bright new adventures. You are ready and excited, but before your new journey can begin, you have to sell your home. Once you’ve hired a Realtor and the sign is officially out front the waiting game begins. While it may seem like the situation is out of your hands as you patiently wait at this point, on the contrary, there are a lot of things you can do yourself to help get your home sold. While your Realtor may be the one bringing in potential buyers, it is your hard work that will push those buyers to the selling table. Not sure where to start? Here are some quick tips to help sell your space.
Prepare Yourself
- First things first, make sure you are mentally ready for what’s about to happen. Take the time to go through your space. Sort belongings, donate and categorize the memories you have enjoyed in your old home. Remember what was great, and look forward to more adventures in the future.
- Un-attach. Now that you’ve enjoyed the memories you’ve had in your home, start looking at your house as a product to be sold. Separate your emotions and put them into a moving box. Your memories will always come with you, but the space you made them in won’t. Your house is about to come under harsh scrutiny as buyers come in and out critiquing and criticizing. Separate yourself early so that when questions come in you don’t take them personally.
Prepare the House
- Depersonalize your house. While this may seem difficult, it’s easier to jump the gun on this process and get it out of the way sooner rather than later. Taking down and packing away personal photos, trophies, diplomas etc., can make it easier for buyers to envision themselves living in your space. Pack these special items away in a well-labeled box so that you can put them right back up when you settle into your new space.
- Declutter, declutter, and declutter. This is not the time to sort and organize the junk drawer; this is the time to get rid of the junk drawer. You will need to go through all of your belongings to move and pack anyway, so get a head start and avoid startling potential buyers. Go through every drawer and every closet. If you aren’t sure where to start, prioritize with space you know your buyers will check out such as bedroom closets and pantries.
- Clean like you’ve never cleaned before. Yes, this means actually picking up the things on the shelf and dusting underneath them too. Doorknobs, floors, basements, attics, that cubby under the kitchen sink you’ve been avoiding, all of it- leave no shelf un-dusted and no floor un-mopped. Make sure you don’t neglect forgotten items such as the outside of windows or carpets that are due for a steam cleaning.
- Keep it tidy. Wake up fifteen minutes earlier every morning and before you leave the house do a walk through of every room to put away anything that has scattered around from daily living. Making your bed makes a huge difference.
- All the world is a stage, and so is your living room. Staging is an art, but a little bit of thinking and the help of a feng shui savvy friend can be all it takes for you to rearrange your space and make it look more open. Consider renting a storage unit if you have a bit more furniture than your space comfortably holds. If you are at a loss for where to start we can help! Just ask and we’ll be happy to help you stage your home.
Prepare the Property
- Don’t forget the landscape. You don’t need to plant an organic garden or add a water feature, but keeping the grass mowed and the hedges trimmed goes a long way. Take a long hard look at the yard and evaluate the eyesores.
- Check your curb appeal. Keep the trash under control, don’t let your recycling spill over, rake your leaves, and touch up painted window trim if it’s looking shabby. You want a potential buyer to be dying to come in the door, a yard that is neat and tidy lets them know the inside probably holds even more lovely sights.
Be a great caretaker and really wow potential buyers.