Home Staging -
Preparing Your Home for Resale
By RWM
One of the most important
decisions you will make in your lifetime is to sell your home. You
have probably lived in this house for several years, compiling thousands of memories.
Perhaps this was the house your children were born in. Perhaps this was first house you
ever owned. Leaving your existing home can be as heart wrenching as moving into your new
home can be exciting. For whatever reason for your move, making your house ready for
resale is vital to a quick and successful sale, and a task not to be taken lightly.
You want your home to debut to prospective buyers as a place to create
their own memories. You want to present a home as opposed to a house. In order to best
show your home, take the time to make it inviting. Depersonalize it, but keep it showy.
Turn on all lights and open all drapery in the daytime. Turn on air conditioning or light
the fireplace. Keep your pets outside during showings or at a friend’s house. Have as
few people in the house as possible or, better yet, be absent during all showings.
Potential buyers often feel awkward and rushed if they feel they are being ‘sized
up’ or inconveniencing the owner.
The first impression of your home to prospective buyers often starts as
soon as they drive up to it. Having a clean and well-maintained front lawn goes a long way
to creating interest. Mow the lawn, trim the hedges and shrubs, plant flowers, and keep
the weeds to a minimum. Clean the driveway and sidewalks free of dirt, leaves or snow, and
water the lawn so it looks lush and green. Well in advance of selling, clean and repair
rain gutters and siding, and touch up the paint. Keep windows, screens and doors washed
and in good repair. You only get one chance and about 20 minutes to make a great first
impression. Therefore, in order to create that ‘love at first sight’, pull out
all the stops.
Once the buyer is inside, there is nothing like an untidy home to turn
them away. The old adage “cleanliness is close to Godliness” is something to
live by when selling your home. While we all can’t be perfect, keep the ‘lived
in’ clutter to a minimum when showing your house. Clear all of your countertops and
de-clutter all heavy traffic areas. Keep laundry and extra coats out of sight and remove
any build up of bills, statements and magazines. While you want to create a feeling of
‘home’, you don’t want potential buyer to view your personal affairs. Keep
indoor plants looking healthy, fish tanks clean, and toys and pet supplies tidy. Clean out
kitty litter and keep garbage bins empty. Make all closets and cupboards neat and tidy and
only half full, even if this means moving items to another storage area. If it is
possible, store your surplus furniture to reduce feeling crowded. Wash or polish all
floors and have the carpets cleaned. People tend to compare how clean your bathrooms are
to how well the rest of the house is taken care of. Make them sparkle. Don’t forget
the garage and storeroom!
Potential buyers love to reduce the price by picking on minor repairs.
Beat them to the punch by touching up interior paint and paper, repairing cracked plaster,
tightening doorknobs and cupboard latches. Oil any squeaky doors, repair leaky plumbing
(taps, shower heads and toilets), and seals/caulking around bathtub and sinks. Make sure
all appliances, including the furnace and humidifier, are clean and working properly. It
is worth the cost of you doing the minor repairs, as simple things can greatly reduce your
resale value.
You want to display all the assets your house has to offer. You fell in
love with this house when you bought it, now it is up to you to make potential buyers do
the same. However, you only have a small amount of time in which to accomplish this. After
only fifteen seconds, most buyers have already developed a perception of your property
that will influence their feelings for the rest of the showing, and perhaps dramatically
affect their perceived value of the property. They are not only looking for a home to grow
in, but a sound investment too. Remember, the condition of your property as well as price,
location and accessibility to convenient services all play an important role.
RWM |
