Usually there is a lot of excitement around the idea of selling your home and finding new adventures ahead, however, along with this excitement comes anxiety and questions.
One of the biggest questions about selling a home is "What should I do to get my home ready for sale?"
The good news is that we (The Radcliffe Real Estate Team) have helped thousands of people answer that question and if you would like to know the answer, keep reading!
There are several things that should be done when getting your home ready to sell, and fortunately they are simple (not always easy, but certainly simple), generally inexpensive, and tremendously effective!
#1. Find, interview and hire a professional listing agent to help educate you on your local housing market.
You can do your own research about your local housing market, but no matter how much personal research you do, having a professional, experienced agent who is familiar with local properties that have sold (or not sold) in your area will always give you an edge when coming up with a pricing strategy and any other questions you might have.
Your agent works for you, and if you hire a good one, he/she will be working with your best interests at heart.
Obviously, we would suggest hiring us (The Radcliffe Real Estate Team) as we have over 80 years combined experience and networking in our local market and are highly dedicated to always making sure our clients’ best interests are top priority.
#2. Buy some extra light bulbs!
This step is so easy and yet is sometimes overlooked because of its simplicity and seemingly obvious nature, however, making sure that every light in your home has a working bulb is a fantastic way to be ready for showings when they start.
When your home is being viewed by potential buyers, you will want to have every light and lamp turned on to showcase your home in the brightest, lightest way.
#3. Deep clean.
The importance of this step cannot be understated.
It will take some time if you are doing it yourself, however, it costs you nothing but energy and the pay off will be huge. If you do not have the time to do it yourself, hire a cleaner.
The end result will be well worth the relatively small cost.
When thinking about doing a deep clean, pay special attention to items that do not get cleaned on a regular basis: light fixtures, baseboards, bathroom grout, windows, dusting surfaces, scrubbing floors, wiping door frames/knobs and light switches where there could be extra fingerprints.
Try to look at your own home through the eyes of someone who is seeing it for the first time; be picky!
#4. Declutter & Depersonalize!
Again, this is something that costs nothing but your time, however, when done well, can change the entire look of your home, making it open and attractive to potential buyers.
When a space is clutter-free, buyers can focus on the actual home instead of on the junk, knick-knacks and overflowing closets.
When selling a home, you want to strike the perfect balance between depersonalization and creating a warm, welcoming home.
This involves removing family framed photos, bulletin boards and personal items (think: photo albums, magazines, toys, equipment, awards, etc.) throughout the home.
When a space is neutralized of personal belongings, it makes it easier for a potential buyer to "visualize" themselves and their own belongings in the space, which is ultimately what will draw them to make an offer to buy your home.
Sometimes it is difficult to figure out what to do with these extra items during the process, as they are your personal keepsakes and you will not be purging or getting rid of them, and yet they need to be out of sight for several weeks while showing and selling your home.
If you do not have anywhere offsite that you can borrow some storage space, it can be helpful to rent a short-term storage unit nearby where you can temporarily place your overflow items.
The cost of these units is relatively low in the grand scheme, especially if it means that you show off your home so well that it becomes extra desirable to potential buyers.
#5. Have a handyman on speed-dial.
During your "get ready to sell" process, you should look through your home with a detective eye and make a list of all the small deficiencies that you have been living with that become unnoticeable after seeing them so many times yourself.
Either hire a handyman to do small repairs or if you can do them yourself, even better!
Make sure anything and everything that needs to be fixed (think: locks, hardware, leaky faucets, running toilets, cracks in the walls, broken appliances, squeaky doors, etc.) has been taken care of before listing a home.
Otherwise, buyers may think your home has not been well taken care of, which can be a turn-off for many.
#6. Fresh paint is one of the easiest ways to make your home look almost new.
Many people ask, "should I paint?" and the answer is usually "yes!".
If you have the time and the budget, a fresh coat of paint can be a miracle worker.
Start by painting over those bright orange and green walls with neutral colours.
Stick to whites, light grays, light beiges, and “greige” wall colors.
These shades will make your home appear bigger, brighter and more welcoming.
Even if the walls already look good, consider refreshing the paint on baseboards and trim.
Adding a fresh coat of paint to your home will also help cover the walls’ imperfections and convey a blank slate to potential buyers.
#7. Consider staging your home.
If you have done all the pre-listed items and still feel that your home needs a bit more help before going onto the open market, staging could be a good option. "Staging" simply means arranging the furniture and decor of a home to enhance the visual appeal and make it as attractive to potential buyers as possible.
This can involve bringing in extra furniture and decor or removing too much. It can also be as simple as re-arranging already existing items to make the space more visually appealing.
A professional staging company has the potential to be pricey, however, the difference between a well-staged home and one that is not can be paramount to the sale of that home.
The FANTASTIC news is that we at The Radcliffe Team have a staging consultant on our team who is committed to free consultations and, depending on the level of assistance needed, can provide a range of items for a range of prices starting at free!
#8. Make sure your home has exceptional curb appeal.
Literally go out and stand on the curb in front of your house and look at your home with a discerning eye.
Take notice of anything that needs fixing, refreshing, tidying, cleaning or painting.
Spend an afternoon cleaning up the landscaping and possibly planting some fresh colorful flowers or add a couple bright fresh planter pots.
Sweep or power wash your sidewalk, steps and porch and make sure the entrance to your home is attractive and tidy.
You could even add some inviting chairs with colourful cushions and a fresh welcome mat.
Make sure there are no broken or chipped bricks, concrete, steps, paint or anything else that could indicate that the home has not been well maintained.
Never underestimate the value of creating a good first impression!
If you have the time and the budget, a fresh coat of paint can be a miracle worker.
Start by painting over those bright orange and green walls with neutral colors.
Stick to whites, light grays, light beiges, and “greige” wall colors.
These shades will make your home appear bigger, brighter and more welcoming.
Even if the walls already look good, consider refreshing the paint on baseboards and trim.
Adding a fresh coat of paint to your home will also help cover the walls’ imperfections and convey a blank slate to potential buyers.
For many, the thought of getting their home ready for sale, and the thought of moving in general can be overwhelming and stressful, but for every problem there is a solution!
If you are thinking about getting your home ready to go on the market, keep calm and call The Radcliffe Real Estate Team.
We have assisted and created solutions for hundreds of clients in various situations and we have a full team of Professionals with expertise in EVERY area of any Real Estate transaction, who love to provide service, advice, encouragement and a helping hand during each step along the way.
We are Real People who execute Real Results, and we love to see you happy!