When you want to sell a house fast, you can’t rely on estate agents to do everything for you. Putting in a bit of effort to spruce it up can make a good difference in financial returns and time taken to sell. Although in some cases it’s worth bringing in professionals, there’s a lot you can do by yourself if you know where to start.
Make a plan
It’s a lot easier to get things done efficiently if you draw up a plan to begin with. You won’t want to waste any time, so work out an order that enables you to get on with some tasks while others are already underway, such as while paint is drying or fabric is soaking. Work out how long different tasks will take you and how you can fit them around your other commitments, because you don’t want to end up showing prospective buyers around a house where the work is only half finished.
Get painting!
Painting is something that’s easy to do and doesn’t take very long. It can make your home look much fresher and brighter, and it’s also important because it makes it feel less personal. If you feel that you’re going to miss your old place, this will help you to make the break. It will also make it easier for viewers to project their own ideas onto the place and imagine themselves living there. For this latter reason, pale, neutral colors are the best idea. Painting ceilings a shade lighter than walls is a good trick for making rooms look more spacious.
Clean up
A little bit of cleaning goes a long way. Don’t just vacuum and dust. If you’re serious about selling, wash your curtains, cushion covers and bed linen. Deep clean your carpets with a product like Action ChemDry that helps you lift out ground-in dirt, and keep pets out of the way so that they don’t cover everything in hair again before your viewers get there. Be careful to tidy away clutter, but don’t make the place look too empty and artificial a fruit bowl on the countertop or a couple of mugs on the coffee table can create a more appealing, relaxed atmosphere.
Maximize space
When viewers look around your home, they’re mentally sizing it up to see what they’re going to be able to put into it. If you have somewhere else to store your furniture, it can be worth moving some of it out in order to make the place look bigger; if not, it can still be worth doing some rearranging. Adding extra mirrors, especially opposite windows, bounces light around and adds to the impression that your home is more spacious.
Get great pictures
Some people put a great deal of effort into sprucing up their homes, but really let themselves down when it comes to pictures. If your home is being featured in a catalog, people will only bother to visit if the pictures impress them. If you don’t want to invest in a professional photographer, at least make the effort to get as much light into your rooms as possible and stand back in a corner or doorway to capture as much of the room in each shot as you can. If your home has interesting details such as a feature window or an attractive inbuilt stove, make sure they can be seen in your pictures.
Appeal to the senses
When looking at houses, we always like to feel we’re making rational decisions, but in fact a lot of decision-making ultimately comes down to instinct. There are lots of subtle little tricks you can use to influence potential buyers subconsciously. The smell of fresh home baking, for instance especially bread instantly makes people feel at home. Freshly brewed coffee can have a similar effect, and fresh flowers on mantelpieces and window ledges make people feel they’ve walked into somewhere cleaner and brighter, again encouraging them to buy.
These simple jobs don’t take long to do and can really pay off when it comes to making a sale. They’ll also prepare you well for the kind of work you’ll want to do in your new home when your move is complete. A quick sale makes moving much easier and is likely to reduce your expenses overall. It makes organizing your finances easier and saves on stress, leaving you with more energy to put into getting your new home set up just the way you want.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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