A Beginner’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 home’s curb appeal, they won’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.
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?? ? 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.
Sort, store or sell possessions that are making your home feel cluttered. This includes items on walls and shelves.
Don’t take it personally, but strangers don’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 you’ll have to spend packing when your home sells).
Click here to get some help with de-cluttering.
4 – Go On A “Deep Down” Cleaning Spree
It’s not enough to make the beds and dust the TV cabinet. Your home needs a deep clean when it’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.
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!
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.
If it’s a rainy or dark day, turn ceiling lights on and use lamps to make each room more welcoming. If your lamps aren’t really brightening up a space, replace the bulbs with a higher wattage.
You don’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
It’s time to make “one day” today as you start tackling your to-do list.
The skirting board the dog chewed (he’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 tile—these are all the little frustrating jobs that are not difficult, they’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 don’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.
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 that’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 won’t have to figure out what to do with it.
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