Tips on Selling Your Home

New homebuyers typically need to sell their current homes before they can pay for a new one. Once you find the house you want, you need to sell fast. Follow these tips to speed up the process. The bottom line is “less is more.” Prospective buyers can see the potential of your home – and imagine it as theirs – when you make the right preparations.

Get it clean and clutter-free – rent a storage unit or relative’s basement to stash extra boxes, older furniture and all those knick-knacks that collect dust. Clean your windows to make them sparkle. Dust your window sills. Clear out your closets so they look bigger. Clean the carpets.

Appeal to the senses – Open up the curtains and blinds to let in the daylight. Repair or remove screens with holes. If it’s a cloudy day, install higher-wattage bulbs in your lamps. Bake bread or cookies just before a showing (those refrigerated ready-made ones are quick and easy). Put out bowls of mildly scented potpourri. Outside, trim back shrubbery and trees, put out brightly colored potted plants, and water the lawn. Glistening grass always looks better than a dry lawn.

Freshen up with neutral colors – A fresh coat of paint and new wallpaper, in neutral tones, can brighten any room, particularly the entryway and bathroom. For a positive first impression, paint your front door and doorframe.

Clean up appliances – Keep your kitchen and laundry appliances clean. If their colors don’t match, use a professional to repaint them all the same neutral color.  It’s a lot less expensive than replacing them all.

Don’t forget outdoor details – Get the oil stains off your driveway or garage floor with a liquid drain cleaner. Clear out any dead or near-dead plants. If you have a pool, open it up and put out your patio furniture, no matter the season. And park your car down the street, so there’s plenty of room for the realtor and prospective buyer.

Consider financial incentives – Discuss these with your broker, but consider offering to make the first three mortgage payments, the first year to three year’s principal, or carrying back a second trust deed. Make sure you understand these options beforehand.

Working together, we can help you realize your goal of new home ownership.