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Sell Your House Quickly
How To:

A Beginnerโ€™s Guide To How To Sell A House Quickly

1 – Focus On Curb Appeal


The first impression of your home starts on the outside. If buyers are unimpressed with your homeโ€™s curb appeal, they wonโ€™t bother stepping inside.

Make sure everything looks picture perfect from the moment they pull into your driveway. The lawn should be mowed, rubbish bins stashed, driveway swept and unruly trees pruned. Just pretend your MIL is on route, you get the point!

Image Credit: Elizabeth Lauren Jones + Farrow + Ball

Something as simple as giving the front door a fresh coat of paint, investing in a new doormat and pulling weeds along the path can make a world of difference when potential buyers come to visit.

Sweep the front step, change any outdoor light bulbs that have blown, tidy up the garden and make sure no paint is peeling or railings are in need of repair.

A beautiful exterior will instantly impress and entice visitors to enter. If you are thinking of upgrading your door with a fresh coat of paint, then a popular choice for door colour is Railings by Farrow + Ball.

And don’t stop with your own garden, check out the rest of the street too for anything unsightly, your buyers will. Get it cleared!

2 – Staging Sells


If you need one top tip for how to sell your house quickly, this would be it. Staging really does sell, paint the picture of what life would be like when they move to your house.

Image Credit: Elizabeth Lauren Jones 

Harsh but true, this isn’t your home anymore. If you can remove the emotional connection, your buyers will be able to attach there own emotional connection to your home.

  • Set your table with plates, napkins and a centerpiece. Make your buyers excited to host a meal there!
  • Dress the sofas! Drape throws or blankets and cushions on sofas, chairs, and beds. Make them feel inviting.
  • Ensure that your coffee table has a few lovely books on it.
  • Minimise items on bookshelves, get styling! They can be functional but not overstuffed. Stack books nicely and add decorative items.

Bring the outdoors in, flowers make a house feel like a home, and are especially effective when selling during spring!

3 – Clear The Clutter


What me, talking about clutter?? ๐Ÿ˜‰ Space is hugely valuable. To take advantage of this, decluttering should be a big focus for you.

Nothing is more appealing than a tidy, clutter-free home that allows potential buyers to envision themselves living there.

Too much stuff will make a room appear crowded and will turn buyers off.

Image Credit: Sarah Delaney Design

Sort, store or sell possessions that are making your home feel cluttered. This includes items on walls and shelves.

Donโ€™t take it personally, but strangers donโ€™t want to see your trophies. Personal items such as awards, photos or prized collections are yours to celebrate. Pack them up and store them away while your home is on the market.

The less you have on display, the easier it will be for potential buyers to picture their own belongings in the space (and the less time youโ€™ll have to spend packing when your home sells).

Click here to get some help with de-cluttering.

4 – Go On A โ€œDeep Downโ€ Cleaning Spree


Itโ€™s not enough to make the beds and dust the TV cabinet. Your home needs a deep clean when itโ€™s on the market.

Take a walk through each room and check for dirt and dust everywhere. Keep skirting boards, door and window ledges and tops of artwork dust free.

Image Credit: Sarah Delaney Design

Have carpets cleaned and bathroom tile re-grouted if it needs it. Make sure every surface is spic and span from top to bottom, including glass globes on light fixtures, taps, the showerhead, and wardrobe floor.

Do whatever you need to do (or have it done professionally) to ensure your home is as clean as it can be. A clean house has a huge impact on a potential buyer’s opinion of your home.

5 – Make It Appear As Large As Possible


Clearing clutter and simplifying a space is a great first step to making every room appear larger than it is.

If you have dark corners or small areas, you can also use mirrors to open them up. Mirrors reflect back into a room, making it appear more open and airy.

Proper mirror placement can work wonders when you want to make a dark space brighter (place a mirror opposite a window) or a narrow space appears wider (place a mirror at the end of a hallway).

Check out this post for 15 simple ways to make a room look bigger and fake the footage!

Image Credit: Jared Winston

6 – Brighten Things Up With Sunshine And Proper Lighting


Show your property in the best possible light (literally). Open curtains and let the sun pour in.

Image Credit: Grace In My space

If itโ€™s a rainy or dark day, turn ceiling lights on and use lamps to make each room more welcoming. If your lamps arenโ€™t really brightening up a space, replace the bulbs with a higher wattage.

You donโ€™t want a room to be too bright, but you want the space to have an ambience and be bright enough for visitors to look around.

7 – Tackle Your To Do List


Itโ€™s time to make โ€œone dayโ€ today as you start tackling your to-do list.

The skirting board the dog chewed (heโ€™s 12 now), the spindle that came loose when Grandma leaned on the back railing, the grout that dried in several spots on the bathroom tileโ€”these are all the little frustrating jobs that are not difficult, theyโ€™re just easy to put off.

Go room by room and make a note of everything that needs fixing. Make sure every light switch and the plugs has a cover, door handles are on tightly and holes or wall imperfections are patched and touched up.

If you donโ€™t take care of minor repairs, the buyer will assume that the home has not been properly maintained and major issues (such as roofing and boiler maintenance) have also been overlooked.

8 – Ensure Rooms Are Set Up As They Are Intended To Be


Sure, having a home gym on the main level where the dining room used to be, works for you and your family, but a less active couple who hold large family gatherings want to see where their dining table could potentially be.

Image Credit: Anders Bergstedt

Every room in your home was designed with a specific purpose. Set up rooms as the original layout intended so that visitors can visualize their furniture in the space.

The only time that I would suggest leaving a room as is, is if you have a home with an odd layout or a bonus area thatโ€™s in an odd location.

In that case, if the original space threw you off when you bought the home, and you came up with a brilliant solution, leave it set up so that the potential buyer wonโ€™t have to figure out what to do with it.


Create a room you love… without the overwhelm, confusion or costly mistakes

Say goodbye to half-finished rooms and design guesswork. The Starter Kit walks you through the essentials… vision, colour, mood boards, and styling… so you can transform your space without wasting time or money.

No more โ€˜hope it worksโ€™ decoratingโ€ฆ this is your blueprint for a beautiful room.

YES, I WANT TO DESIGN MY DREAM ROOM

TAGS:declutterdecoratingfeng shuihow toInterior Designinterior design tipsinteriorsselling
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Author:
Natalie

Hey I'm Natalie, designer, renovator and creator. I've broken down the decorating process into simple and repeatable steps that anyone can follow, even if you don't have an eye for design, so that you can create a beautiful home that looks and feels like you. Click on the links in the top menu to find out how we can help you find your deisgn superpowers ๐Ÿ’•

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