Easy Ways To Make Your Home The One That Buyers Want
Written by Karen Hutchinson, REALTOR® and Seniors Real Estate Specialist®
8 Easy (but IMPORTANT!) Things To Do Right Now If You Are Considering Selling
“Buyers decide in the first eight seconds of seeing a home if they’re interested in buying it. Get out of your car, walk in their shoes and see what they see within the first eight seconds.” — Barbara Corcoran, Founder of The Corcoran Group Real Estate Brokerage, New York City
BACK IN THE DAY…
Remember when you found your current home? You walked in and got the feeling that it was a great fit for you and your family. Now it’s your turn to help your potential buyer feel the same way about your house, so they can immediately imagine living there.
YOUR GOAL
When you decide to sell your home, you need to make the same impression on the next potential buyer that the previous homeowner made on you when you bought this home.
Your goal should be to make the house feel less like yours, and more like a home a buyer could picture themselves living in.
Even if you completed all of the following projects, the total cost would only amount to a few hundred dollars.
Here are some tips I’d like to share with you on how to easily do that. Ready! Set! Go!
- Make sure your home looks clean and uncluttered. Have it professionally cleaned if you don’t have the time or energy. You can also have it professionally de-cluttered if you are overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. Let me know if you would like me to send you referrals to these professionals!
2. Get packing! Start boxing up items you want to keep but won’t use for a while. You might want to put some items in storage, as some of my clients have done. I can help you find sturdy moving boxes to purchase that will protect your most cherished items!
3. Research the local market. Knowing what homes in your neighbourhood are selling for and how long they have stayed on the market can help you gauge your home’s value and estimate the time frame for the sale. I have the inside scoop on this information and I’m happy to help you with this!
4. Get any needed repairs done. Even things that you have gotten used to, like a squeaky backyard gate or dripping faucet will quickly get noticed by a home buyer.
5. Give it a trim! A well-groomed yard gets noticed. It increases curb appeal and gives a hint to the care you’ve taken to the inside of the home as well.
6. Make your ENTRANCE GRAND!
Even if you don’t think your home is necessarily the grandest, you can still make a grand entrance.
How? It’s as easy as a freshly painted door in a pleasing colour and a humble and tasteful doormat. These are a couple of the first things a buyer might notice about your home.
The right choice should not reveal, say, your quirky sense of humour or distinctive (ahem!) taste in colour.
Rather, it should be attractive and in good condition.
This also sends the subtle message that you’ve taken good care of the home interior over the years.
Check out these examples of front doors. Do they make you feel like you want to run away? Or do they make you feel welcome and wanting to see what’s on the other side of that door?
7. Correct the colours! If the bedroom is painted purple and the living room is painted a bold shade of orange, re-paint those rooms in a neutral colour.
Even if non-offensive tones are already prevalent in your home, think about applying a fresh coat of paint. Nothing else can so easily and affordably make a room look like new!
8. Bath time!
Be sure that in the bathroom all corners appear conscientiously maintained.
Re-caulk around the tub, replace the shower curtain and liner, and if the toilet seat has seen better days, put in a new one.
These quick and inexpensive improvements won’t necessarily impress, but they’ll prevent the buyer from finding a reason to run the other way.
BONUS TIP
Be realistic. Having realistic expectations for your home sale will help to relieve some of the stress of the selling process. I’m happy to help with this, too!
THE BIGGEST THING TO REMEMBER (and often the most difficult!):
Because you’ve decided to sell your home, it’s now time to let go of your emotional attachment to it. It’s a big request, isn’t it?
But remember that it’s not what you see that matters, but what the buyer sees.
- Buyers do not see your family gatherings at the dinner table
- Buyers do not see your children’s treasured moments etched in time
- Buyers do see the well-presented home
- Buyers do see their family gathering at the dinner table
These tips are not particularly difficult or expensive to implement. Yet, in my experience selling homes, they can make a big difference in how quickly your home sells and for how much. Just do it! You will thank yourself for it!
Easily contact me by clicking here https://karenhutchinsonrealtor.ca/contact-us/ and I can discuss some further tips with you that are specific to your own home, so that I can help you appeal to the right buyer and get your home sold for the most money possible!
