How to Prepare your Home for a Quick Sale
Preparing your home for viewers is extremely important. It will not only ensure your property is sold faster, but can potentially add thousands of pounds to its value. This blog details the key things we believe are really important. Implementing just a few of these ideas will improve the chances of a a quick sale and achieve a higher sale price.
When it come to property, price has no predetermined amount. Not all three bedroom semi-detached properties cost the same to buy do they?
The definition of price when selling a property is 'the amount that a buyer is prepared to pay'. This being the case, what a seller has to do to maximise the sale price is create demand and desire for their property. The more demand and desire a property has, the higher the sale price will be.
As a seller, you have to make your three bedroom semi, using the example above, be more desirable that the three bedroom semi down the road. Only then will a buyer be prepared to pay more money for it.
In this article, we concentrate on what to do to prepare your home for viewers inside your home. Please see the article on KERB APPEAL to see what you can do to create desirability on the exterior of the property to make someone desperate to see the interior of your home!
Prior to marketing...
A Recipe for Success
Like it or not, it’s true. The kitchen IS the most important room in the house.
It’s not just those TV chefs that spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Prospective buyers can easily fall head over heels with a home after laying eyes on a well-designed, stylish kitchen.
We spend a lot of time in our kitchens, especially if it is spacious enough to include a dining area. It’s often where we start the day and where families get together. It is often said that life is created in the bedroom but lived out in the kitchen!
If you are going to spend money getting your home ready to market think seriously about how your kitchen looks and feels and if it needs upgrading. Don't just consider the look of of the kitchen as equally as important is a functional layout. Think about the best way of making effective use of the space and creating a smooth workflow. Potential buyers will notice the layout more as this will be the first time they have seen it, particularly as they imagine themselves cooking and working in the kitchen.
Having sufficient storage space is also crucial. Whilst our own kitchens often have items on the worktops, clutter-free surfaces create instant visual appeal, and again, will also help potential buyers to picture themselves using the kitchen.
Budget is obviously very important. If you do feel that a kitchen upgrade is necessary, ensure that the cost is in proportion with the price bracket of your home.
Tone Down the Decor
A neutral colour scheme on walls and floors can be far from boring! A neutral colour scheme can provide a “blank canvas” to decorate around and make it simpler to make a room look stylish. It allows someone to add their own personality which is essential for viewings as you want potential buyers to be able to see themselves in your property.
More vivid and personal choice of colour can be used with blinds, curtains, rugs and soft furnishings
So, consider giving your walls a fresh lick of paint with neutral colours as this will help make your home seem lighter and much bigger. Neutral colours can help viewers to easily imagine how they would adapt the rooms to their needs and strong bright colours should always be avoided. It will be much easier for buyers to move in and use the rooms straight away than if they need to repaint those bright purple or lime green walls!
DIY SOS
All those little jobs that need doing that you have gotten used to seeing… do them! It is so easy to get used to something when you see it every day. However, when someone comes in your home for the first time, they will undoubtedly notice every little thing.
Repair or replace holes in walls, broken door knobs, cracked tiles, dirty grout, bath and shower seals, cracked sockets and switches, torn or threadbare carpets. Know your limits - you want a professional job doing so, if you feel that you don't want to do it yourself, get a contractor in to do it. Do it once and get it right because it will be worth it when the viewers arrive.
Many buyers want to move in without making changes and some buyers will look for any excuse to make a lower offer.
Get ready for viewings...
Kill the Clutter
Empty rooms simply look bigger. It’s a fact. However, you can’t just get rid of all your stuff for a viewing! On the other hand, if you put your property on the market and it’s filled with clutter, it is a much harder home to sell.
The more things that are in a room, the smaller that room will look and feel and will not appeal to potential buyers who are walking round trying to imagine themselves living there. You want viewers to marvel about how big your rooms are, not be put off by the fact there is no floor space due to unnecessary items left everywhere. Less is very definitely more in this scenario as untidy properties tend to stay on the market a lot longer than smart, clean and tidy ones.
So, spend a bit of time de-cluttering your property before it goes on the market. Do it over a period of time, room by room. If you have items you simply can’t part with, put them into storage. Just don’t leave them lying around for a potential buyer to step over.
If you want to go into full-declutter mode so you don't have to pack anything you don't want or don't need, then go through every drawer, every cupboard and every wardrobe too. There is little point taking things with you to your new home that you don't consider worth taking.
The few hours you spend ridding your home of unnecessary clutter could potentially add thousands to your sale price AND get the offers coming in much quicker.
The Sweet Smell of Success
We know that first impressions count. A job interview, a date or viewing a property. It's human nature and the first few seconds are SO important.
Homebuyers make snap judgements very quickly and buyers like properties that not only appeal to their eyes but also their noses. I’m sure that you’ve read or heard about how the smell of coffee brewing or freshly baked bread makes viewers swoon. However, in the real world it’s highly unlikely that you’ll have an endless stream of homemade loaves in the oven or a constant cafetiere on the go!
Realistically, the best way to create an instant positive impact on once someone’s sense of smell when they have stepped through your front door is a combination or ALL of the following:
- Fresh flowers – not only look good they smell good.
- Freshly painted walls – always a good investment when preparing a property for sale.
- Clean crisp bed sheets – a fresh bedroom could clinch the deal
- Subtle air fresheners – Plug ins or candles work really well
The smells to avoid like an overflowing fish bin on the hottest day of the year include:
- Stale tobacco.
- Kitchen bins that are full of old food.
- Cheap and nasty air fresheners.
- Old cat litter, damp dog blankets and any other animal related smells.
One trick to make your home more welcoming is to put a little polish onto your radiators. It will give your home a welcoming and ‘cared for’ scent.
Accessorise
You won’t want to go ‘full staging’ with showhome furniture, however, you can mini-stage.
We've mentioned the benefits of having a neutral decor colour scheme, now it's time to bring those rooms to life.
Dress any windows that are ‘naked’ with blinds or curtains. Naked windows can make a room feel impersonal and cold. Buy some cheap, neutral ones if necessary.
Plants and flowers are great for adding colour, life and light to a room and can also help on the smelly front.
Consider adding different textiles around your home. It is one of the simplest and cheapest ways to brighten up the place. Throw over a throw (!) or scatter some cushions to instantly change the appearance of boring looking furniture.
If you have dull looking carpets, laminate flooring or lino, a nice colourful rug will do the trick adding some instant character to your floor.
The benefit of the accessories that you choose to use to create more desirability is that you can take them with you when you move home!
A Cleaning Frenzy
We've already said that when someone comes in your home for the first time, they will notice everything. This includes how clean and tidy your home is.
This is one of the most important things that you can do to prepare. You need to clean everything so get your apron on, get your multipurpose cleaner, polish, duster, window cleaner, vacuum and get cleaning.
If you have already moved out, then obviously this is going to be much easier, but if you haven’t then it might be worth considering hiring a professional cleaner to do that initial once over. It will be much easier to keep on top of things throughout the viewing period.
A few more viewing tips...
There are also other things to think about before a viewing takes place. Consider; School noise, traffic levels, parking availability, children, pets, light levels, smells and gardens.
- Avoid viewings around school leaving time thus avoiding congestion around your home.
- Avoid viewings during the busiest parts of the day; early morning, rush hour and early evening.
- If you have a parking space, park your own car somewhere else for the duration of the viewing.
- If you have children, can they stay with friends or relatives?
- If you have pets, can they pop over to a neighbour or a friend while the viewing takes place?
- Maximise light by opening curtains and switching on lights.
- Ensure that you have not smoked or cooked anything too smelly prior to the appointment.
- Remember your kerb appeal - tidy gardens, move bins and clear any rubbish.
You only have ONE chance at a first impression so make it count!
The time and effort that you put into getting your home ready to accept viewers will be very well spent and will help both maximise your sale price AND lead to a quicker sale. Call Simon, Tom or Jane on 01773 749972.