Preparing Your Property for Sale

Preparing your home for sale is a question of balance between improving the appeal of your home to prospective Buyers, thus increasing your selling price, versus the trade-off of the costs required to do so.
Some details, like removing or simplifying clutter, replacing worn or outdated carpeting, and applying a fresh coat of interior paint if there are many signs of wear, almost always will bring a much higher return than the cost of making the improvement. Some Buyers can look beyond the flaws of a home and see what it can be for them. But many potential Buyers have a difficult time looking beyond what the home is NOW...making first impressions so important.

Exterior

Does the home have nice “curb appeal?” In other words, is it the type of home that would make many Buyers think “I’d like to live there!” just from looking at it from the outside?

Possible actions:

• Paint the exterior
• Add flowers for color
• Bring the lawn to a fresh, green neatly trimmed appearance
• Trim overgrown bushes or trees that obscure the property
• Repair or replace the roof if it looks visibly worn

Interior

• Remove or minimize clutter (this can be especially difficult in households that include small children or a working home office)
• Replace worn or torn carpeting
• Eliminating or reducing odors from pets and cooking
  (I have seen strong “animal” smells reduce the sales price by as much as $75,000. Likewise, strong cooking odors from fish and/or oils can cause problems.)
• Repairing leaks and cracks in walls or ceilings
• Cleaning the home thoroughly so that it makes a good impression.