So you’ve decided to sell your home. You’ve established your asking price, you’ve contacted an agent, you’ve created listings online and you’ve baked a fresh batch of cookies to put out for people when they view the open house. However you are starting to realize that selling a property isn’t so simple. The process is time-consuming and where you thought that as soon as you listed your house on the market, hoards of people would be fighting to get in first like it’s a Black Friday sale, instead you’re seeing tumbleweed roll by your driveway.
If it’s your first time going through the process of selling a property, you may be overwhelmed, trying to figure out the best way to encourage people to see this place as their forever home. Don’t worry, with our list of tips for selling your home, you will have the papers signed in no time so that you can move on to your new home.
1. Depersonalize Your House
When people browse houses to consider where they may want to live, they try and envisage themselves in the properties they view. For example, they picture themselves on a Friday night snuggled up on the sofa in the living room watching back to back episodes of Game of Thrones. If you have family portraits everywhere or collectibles scattered all over the place, it is going to be hard for viewers to imagine that the place is theirs. You don’t need to remove absolutely everything, but try to pack away the photos and the personal items.
2. Clean and Declutter
Too many people do not realise how much first impressions count when it comes to selling their home. There’s a difference between “lived in” and messy. If you have kids toys strewn all over the place or laundry piled high in the bedroom, people will be immediately turned off and it will be difficult for them to picture how they could make the place their own. Try to be as minimalist as possible when you reach the viewing stage for your home. The added bonus of this is that it gives you a head start on your packing so that when you prepare to move to your new place, you are not packing everything up in one mad rush.
3. Make Sure it Smells Fresh as a Daisy
Have you ever noticed how so often you will go inside someone’s house and it just has a particular smell? It can be things such as air fresheners, fabric softeners and a plethora of other factors that make a household smell a certain way. Unfortunately not all smells are pleasant. If you have a pet for example, there’s a high possibility that your home will smell like the animal. It’s also likely that since you spend so much time in your home, you’ve almost become immune to however it smells and you don’t notice any scent. Be extra mindful of this when you are trying to sell your home.
In particular, be mindful of:
- Pet Odors (open windows, use air fresheners and fragrance diffusers where possible or see if a family member can pet sit for a few days)
- Removing old or fusty furniture
- Ensuring that your carpets have been cleaned (perhaps by a professional)
- Making sure that your property is well ventilated
- Try to get rid of any cooking smell by opening windows and cleaning up in advance of viewers arriving
- Taking out the trash and ensuring that drains are clean and unblocked to prevent any “unclean” smell.
4. Offer a Reasonable Price
It can be difficult to establish a suitable asking price for a property. Too low and you are losing money, too high and you are pricing yourself out of the market. It is for precisely this reason that it is important to ensure that you hire a good quality, reputable real estate agent. A realtor can help you set an asking price, as well as with selling your home quickly. Sometimes people opt to bypass the realtor and try to manage the whole process independently, but this can end up making the process longer or more expensive in the long run. At first thought you may believe that you are saving money by not hiring a realtor, however a good realtor will always help you to ensure that you are getting the best deal and you may not receive such a good price otherwise.
5. Make Sure the Outside Looks Presentable
It doesn’t matter how luxurious and spacious the inside of your property is if it looks like the scene of a horror movie from the outside. Things like garden clutter, unkempt hedges and unwashed cars can deter someone from even wanting to view your house in the first place. As such, you need to ensure that the outside of your home looks so beautiful that people are racing to get inside.
6. Know Your USP
When you are trying to shift your old property, you need to make sure that you are informed about what it is that makes the place so appealing to people who may be interested in purchasing it (your USP). As an example, perhaps the location of your house means that it falls into the catchment area for one of the most desirable schools in the region. Alternatively, perhaps excellent transportation links make your house perfect for long commutes. Consider all aspects that make your house such a great catch and be sure to drop them into conversation with prospective purchasers.
7. Trust Your Realtor
More likely than not, your realtor will have significantly more experience in selling properties and negotiating deals than you do so don’t be afraid to place your trust in them. Your realtor will know how best to pitch your home to viewers so they feel as though they need to snap it up immediately. They will also be able to provide you with plenty of pieces of advice to help you get a fair price for the sale of your home.
