How to prepare your home before putting it up for sale

When you want to sell your home, hopefully you will want to make sure your home is in a condition that is ready for sale. Homes that are in better condition and presented clean and well kept are more likely to achieve a higher sales price.

In the process of preparing your home to put on the market, there are various items that you may want to do. Be sure to enlist your real estate agent for help in ideas or suggestions on what could be done in order to increase the buying price. Real Estate agents spend their days showing house to potential buyers through various properties and hear what people say about clean, dirty, organized, messy, older and even new homes. They know what items are deal breakers and how to increase value.

Perform Necessary Repairs

You may be thinking that you don’t want to put in a lot of money to repair your home if you are selling it, but you have to consider the end result. If a potential home buyer doesn’t have the means to make those repairs or sees too many “fix me ups” that need to be done, they may just move on. Additionally, if the repair work is underway while your home is on the market, buyers may not be able to imagine what the house will look after the home improvement work is completed. This could potentially decrease the value of the home and the buyer may only remember the house in a state of disrepair.

Check out Your Home from the Curb

How does your home look from the street? How does your home look from down the street, at the end of the driveway, in the driveway or even at the front door? Does it appear safe? Keep in mind that those may be factors that others consider, especially if they have children. Does it look warm and inviting?

How is your landscaping, is the grass cut, hedges trimmed, the siding been washed recently? Prospective home buyers will see themselves doing regular maintenance to this home and if they have to imagine them doing all that work right as they move – huge turn off.

Take the time to clean up your yard, trim your hedges and trees as well as pressure washing your windows and/or siding.

Check Your Home Interior

Prospective buyers will usually enter through your front door and wander around your house. This might be a great practice to do just that and look around to see what you see. Make sure that your house is not only clean but organized. If it is overly cluttered, they may have a hard time seeing past the “junk” to visually plan their stuff. With that being said, decluttering your home can include removing a lot of your pictures, personal items and leave it clean and clear. You want your buyer to see the home being sold as house neat and clean.

It would help to take the time and effort to have your home professionally cleaned and include cleaning carpets and floors. Don’t leave out the need to fill any holes in the walls and apply a fresh coat of paint or wallpaper.

Be Prepared for a Home Inspector

Most home buyers obtain a home inspector to review your home so an alternative might be to find a home inspector for yourself to get your home inspected prior to putting your home on the market. This can help with determining what effort and money you will be putting into your home before selling.

Similarly, it would be a good idea to review the home inspector checklist and see what they are going to be looking at and do yourself a favor and inspect some of these things so there won’t be any surprises when the buyer home inspector comes through your home.

Should you have any questions about how to prepare your home for selling or are considering hiring a home inspector for a house you are buying or selling, give us a call at (713) 730-3151 as we would be honored to help you with your sale or purchase.