We’re here to help you sell your home fast and for the best price! Whether selling your house privately or choosing an agent, the general process and method of sale preparation is exactly the same. Chances are you won’t need to extensively renovate to sell your home although cleaning and a bit of painting to sell your home are usually necessary.
Some smart home staging options and styling tips for selling your home will also help. Other sell house fast ideas can be found on the following pages and posts. Why Isn’t Your House Selling? or Selling Your Hervey Bay Property in a Volatile Market
Sell Your Home Fast and Get Maximum $$$
Disconnect, Disassociate & Distance Yourself Emotionally
The first step to selling your home to ‘let go of it’! Sure. It can be difficult to do, especially if you have lived there for years and it holds so many memories. The key is to disconnect, disassociate and distance yourself from your home emotionally.
The easiest way to achieve this is by imagining your house simply as a shell. Any memories created there will travel with you when you move into your new home. Memories and attachments are usually about people, not so much the building or house itself.
Your next house will soon feel like home, especially once you start to personalise it; guaranteed! You will go on to make new memories there. But for now, focus your energy on simply learning the steps to selling your home.
Time to Depersonalize
If you are seriously ready to sell your house you’ll want to depersonalise it. This means packing up your family heirlooms, personal photographs, miscellaneous objects and general clutter that may distract potential buyers.
Regarding furniture, it’s best to leave understated pieces that blend in rather than those that create an unintended impression. Presenting buyers with an impersonal, clean environment; enables them to easily imagine the home filled with their own furniture, photographs and such. The takeaway— your potential buyer may see the house as their future home.
Decluttering Your House
Decluttering and/or embracing a more minimalistic lifestyle is extremely popular nowadays and yet so many homes are filled with stuff. Deciding to sell your home is an ideal time to declutter.
Why do people choose to hang on to stuff rather than simply get rid of it? There are many reasons, including emotional attachment, intent to repair broken items, plan to sell or give away things that are in good working order, etc. An excellent starting point is to get rid of anything that you haven’t used in a year.
It is also best to remove books and any knickknacks from bookcases and to clean everything off your kitchen benchtops. Essentials that are used regularly are easily stored in small boxes or cabinets out of sight. You may want to check out about Staging Your Home for Sale.
Home Staging: A Decluttered Space Will Help to Sell Your Home Fast
Organised Bedroom Robes & Storage Cabinets
Buyers like to check out storage solutions your house offers and it’s best to present them with well-organised, uncluttered robes and storage cabinets. Less is more. If everything is organized, it indicates that you take care of your possessions, which to a potential buyer translates to you taking good care of the house. If your cabinets are filled with too much stuff, it’s best to declutter.
Renting a Storage Shed
When selling your property, it’s always good practice to have less furniture for home showings— simply remove pieces that hamper or block paths and walkways. Place excessive distracting furniture, artwork, empty bookshelves and unnecessary objects into storage. The goal is to create a more spacious feel. Leaving only enough furniture that best showcases the purpose of the room is best.
Remove or Replace Favourite Items
Generally, everything in the house (chattels) are included when selling. So you want to take specific fixtures, window coverings or built-in appliances with you? No problem. Avoid having to tell a buyer that certain items are not staying by removing such things before showing your home.
Make Minor Repairs
Lived-in condition homes or fixer-uppers may sell without too much complaint. However, in normal or hot markets, repairs and maintenance to your home can make or break a sale.
Repairs include general maintenance like fixing leaking taps, doors that stick or don’t close properly, kitchen drawers that jam, cracked tiles and so on. If walls are unsightly or paint colours are in distracting hues, painting them in a neutral colour is worthwhile. You don’t want buyers to remember your home as the “one with the bright pink bathroom.”
Let in plenty of light. Houses show better if the rooms are bright and clean. It’s usually simply a matter of opening the curtains or blinds and turning the lights on.
Sparkle & Shine
Everyone has a different concept on just how clean a house is. You may need to hire a professional cleaning crew as part of your preparation to sell your home. How do you ensure that your house sparkles and shines when on show? It may mean having to wash windows internally and externally, pressure washing external walls, paths, and the driveway polishing or waxing floors, recaulking baths, showers, and sinks, etc.
It’s also essential to remove all dust from under furniture, in the robes and cabinets, blinds and wherever else it can collect. It’s best to vacuum, mop, and dust daily as well as keep the kitchen and bathrooms spotlessly clean to maintain the level of cleanliness.
Understand that kitchens are often a big selling point for many buyers. It is imperative to keep it and all appliances, absolutely spotless and uncluttered. Be sure to eliminate any musty, odorous food or pet smells along with other unpleasantries like litter boxes or damp corners, etc.
Scrutinize Street Appeal
Many a sale has been lost when a potential buyer won’t even get out of the car to inspect the property. Why? Usually because of a lack of street or curb appeal, especially when they just don’t like the look of your home’s exterior.
Enhance the exterior by painting the front door, adding pot plants, a flower wreath, etc to your front porch. Perhaps hire a landscaper to tidy up your lawn and/or garden— or go the DIY route. Also, ensure that your house number is clearly visible to visitors.
A Final Step
Forgetting that you own the home; take some time to imagine how your house will look to a potential buyer. Linger in the doorway of each room, paying attention to furniture arrangement. Then rearrange each room until each is most visually appealing and also ensure that window coverings hang evenly.
Once everything has been repaired, you’ve decluttered and organised and the house sparkles and shines— it’s time to look at best ways to style your home and/or home staging.
