How To Get Your Home Ready to Sell – Realty Times

Prepping Your House For Sale

Although blind luck can sometimes play a part in helping a home sell quickly, most of the time it is the result of hard work and a well-developed plan. Since most areas usually have multiple homes for sale across a range of prices, attracting a buyer will require your home to stand out from the crowd.

The following tips will explain how to get your home ready to sell and help you complete the process sooner rather than later.

Make The Home Neutral

When potential sellers visit the home they want to envision living in the home. However, this can be a tough task if they are surrounded by photos and personal items that all reflect you and your loved ones.

Put away the personal stuff along with your heirlooms that speak to your personality and tastes.

The idea is to create an environment that a buyer looks around and thinks “it would be SO EASY to live here!” This means having only a few pieces of furniture in each of the major areas of the living room, kitchen, and bedrooms. People can picture their own items better if there are few distractions.

It is also a good idea to have neutral colors. Off white, tan or similar colors for walls make the place feel as if it could be changed easily to fit the buyer’s tastes.

Physical Actions to Improve the Appeal of Your Home

There are 3 main things to focus on in order to physically improve the appeal of the home.

Rearrange – closets and cabinets need to be organized to maximize space and allow future buyers to see how their belongings will fit in the confines of the new home.

Neatly arranged closets and storage spots will indicate to the buyer that you have taken great care of the home.

Here are a few ways to make order out of chaos.

  • Stack all of the pans and dishes as neatly as possible.
  • Hang pants together. Likewise, hang shirts together and facing all to the same direction.
  • Place the shoes in a neat line.
  • Align all the spice jars in alphabetical order.
  • Turn each of the coffee mugs so that all handles face a uniform direction.

Remove all clutter – The majority of people hang on to a number of things long after their usefulness has expired. Now is a time to get rid of the stuff that you no longer need.

  • Pull down all of the books from the various bookcases.
  • Items that are used every day should be kept in a box. The box can then be put away in a closet. Things like coffee maker, toothbrush, razor, comb, etc.
  • Put things that are no longer used in one spot. Sell them online or donate them if they are truly of no use to you any longer.
  • Gather all knickknacks, gifts, etc. and pack them up.
  • Clear off all the counters in the kitchen. Makes the room look bigger and more user-friendly

Store things in a temporary unit – Homes are usually easier to sell when they are not packed with furniture, clothes, appliances and the like. For this reason, it may be a good idea to remove a few items from the home and place them in a storage facility.

The books and knickknacks mentioned earlier can be stored away. Also, if you have a dining table with removable leaves, take out the extra leaves and store them away. Each room needs a modest amount of furniture.

This allows potential buyers to picture their own items in the various rooms without too much distracting them.

Take Some Time to Let Go

If you have been in your current home for any length of time, there are likely many warm memories wrapped up in the place. Moving away and leaving those moments behind can be emotionally painful. Here are some ways to help you make the transition.

  • Spend time in each room to reflect on the memories of those specific spaces. Then say goodbye to the rooms.
  • Keep repeating to yourself “the precious memories of this place will always live on in my heart and mind. The home is merely a place to be bought and sold.”
  • Consider the fact that a new owner(s) is looking for a place to create their happy spot and joyful memories.
  • Also, consider that you are enabling the new owner to develop a calm and peaceful place to call their own by selling your wonderful place to them
  • Now is the time to embrace a bold, new future

By physically and mentally going through the process of saying goodbye to your old home, it will make the sale easier. Instead of only being sad at the thought of change, you will be in a mindset that you are making an opportunity for a new owner.

Read complete Realty Times article here.

Blog pictures from Recently Sold Whitefish property by Listing Agent Patti Codiga of Glacier Sotheby’s International Realty.

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