Nov 12, 2014 | Home Seller Tips
Whether you’re just listing your home for sale or you’ve already started entertaining potential buyers, focusing on your “curb appeal” can drastically increase your chances of a quick and successful sale.
In today’s blog post we’ll discuss how to stage your front and back yards in order to make them seem more inviting and welcoming to home buyers.
It All Starts with a Great Lawn
Whether you’re standing on the street looking at the front of your home or you’re on your patio looking out over your back yard, your lawn sets the tone and is one area that potential buyers are sure to focus on.
You’ll want to ensure that your lawn is very well-kept, with no weeds, dandelions or patches of clover breaking up the continuity of the grass. You’ll also want your lawn to be a healthy green, unless you’re in an area which has some seasonal turnover or your community has watering restrictions.
Use Gardens to Add a Splash of Color
Once the lawn looks incredible, it’s time to move on to your gardens and other landscape features. Gardens are the best way to add a vibrant splash of color to your yard and they can be used to accessorize the front or back of your home to break up the monotony.
Choose flowers or plants that are in season for your area to ensure that they are healthy while potential buyers are driving past and viewing the home. Also, keep in mind that most of the time, less is more; don’t overdo your gardening or you’ll have a small jungle on your hands.
Make Your Backyard Feel as Inviting as Possible
Your backyard will be a major selling feature for many different types of homebuyer – especially those with children. You’ll want to ensure that your backyard feels as inviting as possible. If you have a deck or patio, ensure that you have furniture and your BBQ tastefully arranged so the buyer can picture themselves hosting friends and family.
Staging your front and backyards is just one of the many tasks that you’ll need to take care of in order to prepare your home for a successful sale. For more information about how to prepare your home, contact your local real estate agent today and they’ll be able to share expertise that is specific to your local community.
Nov 4, 2014 | Home Seller Tips
Are you thinking about selling your house or condo? If you’re in a market that has a lot of newly constructed homes, you’re going to be competing with those listings for buyers’ attention.
In today’s post we’ll share a few tips that can help you attract buyers and convince them that your pre-owned home is just as good as a brand new one.
Upgrade And Modernize Your Home Prior To The Sale
Numerous studies have shown that buyers who prefer brand new homes are mostly interested in the new appliances and fixtures throughout the home.
If your home is more than a decade or so old, you’ll want to invest some time and money in upgrading your appliances and fixtures before trying to list your home on the market.
If you have newly constructed homes very close to yours it might be worth installing these items after you’ve moved out so that the buyer is the first person to use them.
Focus Your Marketing On A Specific Buyer
Depending on which neighborhood your home is located in and the local amenities, you may want to consider focusing your marketing on one particular buyer. For example, a downtown condo would be marketed to a completely different prospective buyer than a large four-bedroom home out in the suburbs. Take some time to consider the “persona” of your target buyers, and craft your messaging around what these individuals or families will be looking for in their dream home.
Shine The Spotlight On Your Home’s Strong Points
As with any major sale, you’ll want to ensure that you spend as much time as possible highlighting the strong points in your listing. Be sure to mention any local community amenities as well, such as schools, parks or community centers. If you’re selling to a family, your proximity to these amenities will be a significant point of comparison with brand new homes in the area.
If you have the budget, you may also want to consider having your home professionally staged, as staging is an excellent way to show a potential buyer just how good your home can look with tasteful furnishings, art and other finishing touches.
Selling your home is a challenging proposition that shouldn’t be faced alone. When you’re ready to sell your home be sure to contact your local real estate agent, who has experience selling in your local market and can help to ensure your sale moves along smoothly.
Oct 16, 2014 | Home Seller Tips
Whether you’ve decided it’s time for an upgrade or you’re moving on to a new city, if you’re selling your home you may be wondering how you can boost its value before listing it up for sale.
In today’s blog post we’ll share four ways that you can spend a bit of time and money upgrading your home before it hits the local real estate market.
Spruce Up Your Landscaping
You’ll want your home to make a great first impression, and as such a great place to start is by sprucing up your lawn, gardens and other landscape features. Your grass should be a healthy green, free of weeds and freshly trimmed.
If you can, look to add seasonal flowers in your front gardens as this can add a bit of color to your home. Keep any shrubs or trees trimmed away from the home so that buyers can get a good look.
Apply A Fresh Coat Of Paint
Another excellent way to increase your home’s “curb appeal” is by applying a fresh coat of paint to the house, the trim around the windows and the front door.
Of course, painting a house is a big job so this might be one that is best left to a team of professionals. For added effect, replace the fixtures on the front door and pick up new house numbers.
Upgrade Your Kitchen Appliances
Many buyers will focus intently on your kitchen and the condition of everything from your flooring to your cupboards. If you have an older refrigerator or stove you’ll want to replace those with newer stainless-steel models.
You’ll also want to ensure that you have quality countertops – if you’re replacing them, consider going with granite as it’s popular with younger buyers.
Install A New Set Of Bathroom Fixtures
Finally, if you haven’t renovated your bathroom recently you’ll want to invest in modernizing your faucets, mirrors and other fixtures. The decor of your bathroom should match that in the rest of your home, but also stand out in its own unique way.
If you have an old bathtub with stained porcelain, consider replacing it with a glass-enclosed waterfall shower. Don’t forget about your light fixtures; if you find the bathroom is a bit dark, replace these with something that adds brightness.
For more information about the home staging and selling process, contact a local real estate professional today. Real estate agents are your best source for expert advice when selling a home, so don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and call if you have questions.
Aug 21, 2014 | Home Seller Tips
Do you remember when you were buying your first home?
You may have looked at dozens before you settled on the perfect home for your family to live and grow in. Perhaps another home came in a close second, but you ultimately settled on that house or apartment – the one you’re now selling.
Chances are you don’t remember anything much about most of the homes you viewed, and the things that stand out are the best (that bedroom with a fireplace!) or as bad as they can be (remember the sofa placed over the cigarette burn in the carpet?).
When you’re staging your own home and giving tours to prospective buyers, it’s important to give them something to remember, and saving the best for last is one way to do it.
First In, First Out
When it comes to memories, older isn’t necessarily better.
In fact, research shows that the brain clears out older memories to make room for new ones. That’s why what you did today is fresh in your mind, but things get hazy when you think about last week or try to remember life as a child.
If you show off the best rooms in the house toward the end of the tour, it will stick in the buyer’s mind after she leaves.
Just like you make sure the first impression is good – this is known as ‘curb appeal’ – you’ll want to end on a high note. This helps sell your home faster.
Doorway To The Mind
Entering a new room causes you to forget why you’re there in the first place. Researcher Gabriel Radvansky from Notre Dame completed a year-long study about this phenomenon, which is also known as ‘event boundaries.’ In essence, your brain compartmentalizes data to a specific location.
When you’re indoors, the walls around you literally become mental boundaries. As soon as you step through a doorway, you forget that you meant to put the phone back on the hook. For home buyers, every new doorway acts as an event boundary.
If you put the bedroom with the fireplace or the outdoor jacuzzi in the first half of your tour, buyers will walk through a lot of doorways after seeing some of the best parts of your home.
Every doorway is an opportunity for their brains to forget something that might help you when it comes to getting the sale closed. Put fewer doorways between the strongest architectural or design features and the end of the tour to make the biggest impact.
If you have further questions about staging, contact your real estate agent today for advice and strategies.
Aug 19, 2014 | Home Seller Tips
Irritating any potential buyers is the last thing you want to do when selling a house because it is can be a challenging and sometimes lengthy process.
The buyer is going to have a wide array of options when deciding on a new home, so they have no problem going somewhere else if they see something they do not like.
While there are a plethora of ways for a seller to irritate a potential home buyer, these are the four most common – and most costly.
Pricing The House Too High
There is nothing worse you can do when trying to sell a home than pricing it too high. While you may think that it gives you room for the buyer to counter at a lower price, they are more likely to simply ignore your listing entirely even if the home is a good fit. The best way to keep this from happening is by pricing your home in the same price range as the rest of the neighborhood.
Not Making Home Repairs
Buyers are going to be immediately turned off if they walk into the home and see a state of disrepair. Not taking the time to make small visible fixes is going to make the buyer think that the house is going to have major issues. Taking the time to get the house in great shape before showing it at an open house will ensure the house sells faster.
Leaving Your Stuff Everywhere
Buyers want to feel like they could move into the house as soon as the purchase is finalized. They also want to envision themselves living in the home, and this is almost impossible if you have your personal items throughout the house. This is more difficult to pull off when selling a home you are currently living in, but it is best to stage the home with as few personal items as possible.
Getting Emotionally Invested
While you may have lived in your house for years, you have to drop any emotional attachment to the home the second it hits the market. You can’t take it personally if the buyer wants to make a major change to the house after the purchase. Their idea of a perfect home is not going to be the same as yours. The best way to make sure you do not insult the buyer when they bring up their vision of the home is by letting your agent handle home viewings. If you have become too attached to your home or are guilty of any of the other three things on this list, then you make sure they are corrected before your next open house.
