Selling Your Home in 4-D
There are many steps to selling a home, and it helps to have a Realtor® to represent you and guide you through the process. But there are some general guidelines that can help make your home competitive in the market. Here they are, in memorable form: Selling Your Home in 4-D!
Declutter
If you’re like most Americans, you probably have a lot of things in your closets, on shelves, in cabinets and drawers. Having too many things in these places can make a buyer think the home is too small for their needs. If you can’t see the back wall in your closet in some places, or if you can’t open a drawer and see each item in the drawer without moving anything around, then you probably have too much of your stuff in the space for the purposes of selling your home. Try to empty 1/3 to 2/3 of your stuff and make it easy on yourself by packing it in boxes now. Just stack the boxes neatly in the garage or spare bedroom. There are some additional benefits to doing this early in the process. For one, there won’t be as much for you to clean and keep track of when a buyer walks through your home. And having fewer things in the space makes it easier to conduct a thorough inspection.
Depersonalize
This goes along with decluttering, but also has to do with the types of things in your home. Buyers like to visualize their things in the space. If you have too many family photos or hobby items or very personalized décor or paint colors, it can be difficult for the buyer to see through those things to the “bones” of your home. That being said, don’t empty your home completely. “Staging” the home can be a very successful strategy for selling your home quickly and for a price that makes you happy. Freshly laundered towels on the rack in the bathroom, or a pitcher of flowers in the middle of the kitchen table can brighten up your home, and make it feel comfortable, but are generic enough that they won’t interfere with a buyer “mentally moving in.”
Deep Clean
Enough can’t be said about this. Giving your house a deep clean can improve the smell, feel, and polish of your home without spending a single penny. Even the most modest dwelling can feel like a palace if it is deep cleaned, and it sends a message to the buyer that the owner cares about the property. This leads the buyer to conclude that the property is likely in good overall condition as well.
Detach
If you complete the above steps in the order they appear here, they will help you complete this last step. If you can learn to look at your home as a property or a house that you are selling instead of the place where your baby took his first steps, it will help you to see your house from a buyer’s prospective and you may then look at your house with a more critical eye for other ways to make it as competitive on the market as possible.
Yes, it is true: Realtors® love to sell houses. But Realtors® LOVE to sell houses that are fun to show and are standing tall! If you would like more advice on how to make your home as competitive as possible in this tight market, schedule a free consultation with one of our many talented Realtors®.
