How
to Prepare your House for Sale
In this
economy and with our unstable real estate market, many homeowners are looking
for answers on what brings the most impact in selling their home for top dollar.
According to
Diane Britto, Broker Associate with J. Rockliff Realtors, “We’re in one of the
most expensive markets in the U.S. We need to have it almost perfect to sell
(think model Home).” Although it may
seem like a large sum of money spent up front, the value you are adding to your
home will enable you to reach a broader & higher end clientele. This will
lead to a stronger offer from potential buyers allowing you to more than recoup
the cost of your initial investment.
The
following are several steps she suggests you can take to ensure greater selling
potential for your home.
1.
Keep up on Deferred
Maintenance/Repairs. Sellers aren’t always willing to walk into a
house that is in need of many repairs. It can allude to further problems in the
home that will cost them more money on top of the purchase price. Up – to –
date maintenance is a selling point that can be used to bring in buyers with the
cash to purchase immediately!
2.
Invest in Staging
your Home.
Staging your home is incredibly important. Most people have too much personalization in
their homes. Remember that not everyone
lives how you do. The level of personalization in a home can hinder potential
buyers from picturing themselves in your home.
Diane suggests renting storage space to hold personal items such as
bulky furniture, family portraits, etc. and hire a professional stager to help
create a vision for the buyers to place themselves in your home. Not sure you
want to spend the money on a stager? Work with your Real Estate Agent/Broker to
remove items that are personal and add items to inspire your buyers. You can
find inspiration in catalogs like Restoration Hardware and purchase items at
stores like Home Goods to set the scene.
3.
Professionally Clean
your home. Pay a reputable cleaning
service to deep clean your home including things like baseboards, blinds, etc.
The sparkle of a freshly cleaned home will contribute to the selling power of
your home.
Diane Britto
Broker Associate
CRS, GRI, SRES
Office: 925-280-8508
Cell: 925-200-5569
Efax: 925-871-5589
DRE #01065211
1700 N. Main Street
Walnut Creek, CA 94596