These six steps will help you prepare your home for this shifting market.
In the last couple of years, as long as your house had a roof, floor, and walls, someone would come along and probably write you a very big check. However, this market is shifting, and that's no longer happening. You have to prepare your home before you put it on the market. Here are a few ways you can do that:
1. Clean your home thoroughly. I drive a pickup truck all over these mountains. According to my wife, it's not exactly the cleanest truck. I was going to sell it, but before that, I have to wash it, wax it, and clean the leather. It would be spotless. You need to do the same with your home before you put it on the market.
2. Remove all the bad odors from your home. There's an older lady that lived with a lot of cats; I'm sure you can guess what that home smelled like when she moved out and the house was enclosed. The odor just got progressively worse. I ended up having to bring in a company to rip down all the carpet, deodorize the home, and have a new carpet pulled out. Since we don't have buyers lining up like we had in the past, you have to address the odor before you list.
3. Start moving your things out. Rent a place, and start moving some of your furniture. This will make your space and rooms look bigger.
“Try to be impartial by putting on your buyer's glasses.”
4. Remove some family photographs from the house. Many folks have photographs of their family memories, and they're all over the wall. Start removing some of them. Having a few family photos is normal, but don't have so many that your potential buyer can’t envision themselves enjoying your home and creating their own family memories.
5. Invite someone over to give you an honest opinion. If you're hiring an agent to sell your home, they should call balls and strikes by pointing out the things that need to be addressed, cleaned, repaired, and fixed. If you're going to sell it on your own, get a friend that is known for speaking the truth, sometimes to a fault.
6. Think like a buyer. Buyers will come in and look at your home for the first time. My advice is to scrutinize your home as if you’re seeing it for the first time. Do the trees or bushes need trimming? Does it need a fresh coat of paint? What's your initial impression? Try to be impartial by putting on your buyer's glasses.
These are my six tips for selling a home in this shifting market. As always, if you have any questions about this topic or anything else that’s related, call or email my team or me. We’d love to connect with you!