Your home is likely the greatest investment youhave ever made, and so when it comes to resale,you need to take every step to the get the highest price that you can. While you don’t want your house price to be inflated beyond the local market, you want the sale price to give you as high a return on your investment as possible. Here are some tips and tricks on how toprepare your house for resale.
Declutter
When people come to visit your home, they need to be able to imagine themselves living there. Walk around the house and note the number of personal mementos and souvenirs that you have. Can you reduce the number? Clear surfaces can help with the aesthetics of a room. It also gives a good first impression, making rooms appear bigger than they are. Therefore, it may be worth rethinking and restricting the number of trinkets and accessories that you have on display. Decluttering depersonalises the house and makesit easier for viewers to picture it as there home.
Kitchen counters are notorious for attracting clutter – unopened mail, bills to pay, etc. During the sale process, keep your paperwork on a tray so that you can swiftly hide it before viewings.
Clean
You want your house to be open and inviting to visitors and make animpact on them. You do not want your home to rememberedfor all the wrong reasons. Give your house a thorough clean from top to bottom before the agents visit to value the house and ensure that you clean before any viewings.
Clean windows allow more daylight into the rooms and help promote the illusion of space. If you have animals or haven’t cleaned your carpets for a while,it is a good idea to get them cleaned. Carpet cleaning not only removes odoursfrom the household but will transform and rejuvenate the look of the room – an advantage for the buyers if they identify that they don’t need to replace the carpets.
TIP: the exterior of your home is just as important as the inside. Remember, your property’s kerbside view is the first impression that people have of your house.
Stage
If you have any part of your house that currently doesn’t fulfilany function, you are missing an opportunity to show how the spacecan be used. You may have a spare bedroom that is a dumping ground for unwanted clothes, toys or furniture, but all this shows the prospective buyer is that it’s a room – it does not add value to their experience.
Even if you have to borrow a bed base from friends until you have a sale, stage a bedroom scene and store the clutter elsewhere. The same goes for any redundant space. You need to help the viewers to be able to visualiseliving there. You need to make the space in your home appealing – add a reed oil diffuser in the downstairs bathroom and cushions to add colourand interest to your lounge.
Selling your house can be a stressful experience, especially if interest wanes and it is on the market for a long time. Follow these tips and tricks to help make the best impact on your estate agent and viewers as possible.