Table of Contents
Introduction
With the housing market on the rise, now is the time to sell your home. But even if you’re ready to move on and make a profit, there are still some things that need to be done before you can officially put your house on the market. It’s not uncommon for homeowners to wonder how long they should spend preparing their house before selling it. After all, this is your home and you want it to look its best when you put it on the market! With that in mind, we’ve created an easy-to-follow guide designed to help you prepare your home for sale.
Invest in an Appraisal
When you’re preparing to sell your home, one of the first things you’ll want to do is get it appraised. This will help you know how much you can expect to receive from a sale, and also give you an idea of how much work you’ll need to do before listing it for sale.
There are two main types of appraisals: market value and investment value. Market value is simply what a buyer would be willing to pay for the property today, the amount they’d be willing to pay if they were going into the contract with no intention of reselling it later. This is less important than investment value, which represents what an investor would pay if they planned on reselling the property within three years after purchase. This will tell you whether or not your home has enough room for growth potential over time so that it could be sold at a profit later down the line.
You must find an appraiser who has experience in both residential and commercial properties. Appraisers who specialize in one or the other may miss some important details about your property that could have a big impact on your bottom line when selling it later down the road.
Make Some Repairs
If you have a house that needs some work, then fixing it up before listing can be an excellent strategy. The key is to not try to do too much at once or take on projects that are beyond your skill level. If you’re not sure how to fix something, it’s probably better to hire a professional rather than risk having things go wrong and having buyers lose confidence in the home’s condition or worse, actually get injured by faulty appliances or electrical wiring.
Here are some tips for preparing your house for sale:
- Consider hiring a professional like this house repairs in Perth. It may seem like an unnecessary expense if you’ve got experience doing home repair projects yourself, but there are many cases where it makes sense to hire someone else to take care of problem areas instead of trying something new yourself (and potentially making things worse). It’s best if you can find someone who has worked with similar properties before so they know what needs fixing and how much time they’ll need to make repairs effective enough for sale purposes.
- Do research beforehand so that when the time comes to make repairs or upgrades, everything will go smoothly without any delays due to incomplete research beforehand – this way potential buyers won’t get discouraged by seeing unfinished work just waiting around at their fingertips before leaving again.
Declutter & Depersonalize
Get rid of clutter. It’s hard to think about moving when your house feels like it’s bursting with stuff. But if you want to sell fast and for top dollar, it’s critical that your home be as clean and inviting as possible.
Remove personal items from the walls and shelves. When staging your home for sale, take down family photos, diplomas or awards from the wall; they can make the house feel smaller and more cramped than it is.
Don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink or food crumbs on countertops (or anywhere else). No one wants to see dirty dishes piled up in someone else’s kitchen when they’re trying to decide whether this is where they want to buy their next home! Plus, doing so makes your place look messy and no one wants a messy house.
Don’t leave mail on countertops or tables: people think of unread mail as an indicator that no one is living there anymore (even though sometimes it just gets lost in piles). If there is mail lying around somewhere in your space (especially if it’s addressed to someone else), remove those papers immediately.
Clean Every Corner
Cleaning your home is one of the most important things to do when you’re preparing it for sale. You might be thinking that some buyers may not notice a few cobwebs in the ceiling or an occasional dust bunny under a couch, but they will and they are going to judge you based on this.
First, vacuum all carpets and rugs. The vacuum cleaner should be used on both sides of the carpet so that it gets rid of any dust particles and dirt that might be hiding there. You can also use a soft brush attachment if necessary to remove stubborn stains that cannot be removed by just vacuuming alone.
Next, wash all windows with warm water and soap as well as any other glass surfaces in your home such as mirrors or picture frames that might have been collecting dust over time since they are not cleaned regularly like other surfaces inside the house would be cleaned regularly by homeowners themselves when needed such as during spring cleaning season or whenever someone comes over for dinner parties or holiday gatherings where guests would see these items first thing after entering their homes before going anywhere else inside their houses which usually looks very nice when everything has been cleaned well beforehand.
If you have pets, they may be left behind when you move out or they might come with you if they’re small enough. When preparing your home for sale, it’s important to consider what kind of pet owner will buy your home after you leave it behind. If pets are living there now, then this should be disclosed upfront so that potential buyers know what they’re getting into ahead of time.
If your house doesn’t look as clean as it could be, buyers will pass over your listing and move on to another one that does. Some potential clients will even walk away from looking at houses just because there are so many other properties out there that are cleaner than yours (and probably smell better too).
Boost Curb Appeal
There are several things you can do to improve the curb appeal of your home.
- Clean windows and gutters, or hire someone to do it for you. If there’s one thing that makes a house look neglected, it’s dirty windows and gutters.
- Trim bushes and trees so they’re out of the way of prospective buyers’ view as they come up your driveway.
- Mow lawns so they look tidy and green and don’t forget to rake up fallen leaves in the fall!
- Pick up all trash around the property: cigarette butts, gum wrappers, fast food cups, you get the picture.
If you want to go even further than these simple steps (which will still make a huge impact on potential buyers), consider adding a fresh coat of paint or stain on any exterior wood surfaces like fences or decks; repairing broken shutters; cleaning siding/roofing materials; removing snow from walkways; raking dirt piles into neat piles instead of letting them sit unattended in corners where they can be an eyesore to passersby; planting flowers along walkways (and not just petunias!).
Stage Your Home
Stage your home to make it look its best. The first thing you should do is clean up the clutter and clutter. You don’t want your potential buyers to feel like they need to walk through a minefield of dirty dishes, so tidy up the kitchen and empty all of those junk drawers. Then, add fresh flowers in vases around the house; this will create an instant lift in the mood for everyone who enters your space!
Next, use small tables as makeshift displays for items that you want to highlight in each room (e.g., artwork, books). This way, when visitors come into your home they will be drawn toward these focal points rather than distracted by things lying around on surfaces or floors that might otherwise draw attention away from them (like crumbs on counters). Finally, try adding some art pieces from local artists; this helps add character while also giving people a reason why they should buy it when there’s nothing else left at their disposal.
You should also make sure that your lawn and garden are nice and green so that potential buyers can see how well cared for your property is. If possible, keep pets indoors during showings so they don’t distract potential buyers from seeing how much space there really is inside!
While many people like having their houses staged before showing them off, this might not be necessary if you live in a neighbourhood where homes tend to sell quickly without staging first (or if you’re planning on doing some renovations soon). If you do decide to stage before selling though.
Conclusion
The real estate market has changed dramatically and many buyers are looking for homes that have been staged. This means that you need to get your home ready for sale, so it shows up on the first page of search results. Staging is not just about how a house looks but also how it feels when you walk through it. Your goal should be to create an inviting space that will appeal to potential buyers and make them want to spend time looking around at all the features they want in their new home.
