5 Ways to Prepare Your Home for Sale

Outdoor Charm

Take a look at the outdoor aesthetics of your home and measure it against that of your neighbour’s dwelling. If it leaves you feeling humiliated, it’s more than likely you will fail to leave any prospective buyers impressed with your homes surroundings!

Ask yourself these simple questions:

When was the last time I maintained the lawn?
Have the gutters ever been cleaned?
Could the window frames use a fresh coat of paint?
Were those paving slabs always unkempt and uneven?
Can people see my house number behind the overgrown shrubbery?
Does the overabundance of weeds say that I’m a lackadaisical homeowner and I’ve shirked my duties in taking care of my home, or that I’m a nature lover and embrace all forms of the wild?

If you’ve become exhausted just thinking about all the chores you need to take care of to maintain your home, consider hiring someone who can oversee your projects like a landscaper or handyman. They should be able to bring your home together in a timely manner and for a fair price.

Put Away Your Personal Items

Those lovely photographs of your family that you have placed throughout your home should be taken down and put away. Don’t forget to include the adorable paintings that your grandchildren made for you for your birthday a few years ago.

Prospective buyers aren’t interested in seeing all the beautiful memories you’ve made for yourself throughout your home. They want to picture the wonderful life they are going to make in their new home, so don’t cloud that vision.

Get Rid of the Clutter

Over time it’s easy to accumulate a number of items so now is the perfect time to decide if you’d like to dispose of them, give them away to a charitable organisation or find a place for them in storage. You may even consider having an garage sale to help get rid of all the unnecessary items. Do whatever it takes to ensure that the home looks uncluttered and any prospective buyers won’t have to set their sights on the mess.

It’s important to pay specific attention to the following:

Books, DVDs and CDs
Ornaments and mementos
Kitchen gadgets, utensils and appliances, especially those that sit on the kitchen counters
Potted plants
Signs and Posters on your children’s walls

Other ideas most sellers have adopted is to rent a storage facility to store any extra items like furniture and mementos that may make your home feel crowded and cluttered. Be thorough and remove half the items in your home to give it the space it needs to appear sleek and sharp. There should be plenty of room for everyone to move around pleasantly, yet the remaining items should fulfil their purpose.

Give Your Home a Thorough Spring Cleaning

Clean your home thoroughly and make sure to pay attention to all the little details. A quick once-over isn’t going to do the job.

Dust and clean the skirting boards
Windows should be cleaned both inside and out and polished with newspaper.
Clean furniture and all lighting fixtures
Vacuum and get rid of any dust and debris along the floor
Remove cobwebs
Shine mirrors and bathroom taps
Go through your refrigerator and throw out any unnecessary items. To give it a fresh smell, place an open box of baking soda or wipe the inside with vanilla to rid it of any unattractive odours.
Brighten tile grout with bleach
Potential buyers are nosy and opinionated so be sure to clean and scrub your oven thoroughly

Leave the Premises

Your estate agent is knowledgeable in their area of expertise and has sold many houses before. Leave them to do what they do best, and that is to sell your home.

Potential buyers aren’t interested in a homeowner hanging around and hovering around them while they are looking at your residence. They will feel more comfortable to linger in your home and will mostly likely see the home as their own if you leave and give them space to make the home their own and want to purchase it.