First Impressions
Remember what first attracted you to your house when you bought it? What excited you about its most appealing features? Now that you're selling your home, you'll need to look at it as if you were buying it all over again.
A spruced up house makes a great first impression on potential buyers. An attractive property grabs their attention and makes them excited about finding a house that looks and feels well-cared for. Because buyers know they'll encounter fewer problems if they buy it, your house becomes more appealing and stands out from the competition. So if you prepare your home correctly, you'll save time selling it when it's on the market.
A good first impression makes an impact on a number of levels. It's not just the way your house looks to potential buyers, but how it feels and smells to them, how their friends and family will react, how they imagine it would be to live there.
With simple improvements throughout your house, you can grab the attention of potential buyers and help them see why your house is right for them.
Plan Ahead
Create a plan to enhance your property. Keep a notebook for your selling project, and as you stroll through your yard, make a list of what needs to be done. Consider what your property looks like to people driving by or walking through your door. What will they like or dislike? What needs fixing, painting, cleaning? What can you improve? Whether you paint your house or fix up the yard, your efforts don't need to be costly; even inexpensive improvements and minor repairs go far toward attracting serious buyers. But remember, those seemingly insignificant problems you've learned to live with can actually discourage potential buyers. Here are ideas for increasing your home's appeal in order to sell it quickly at the best price.
Clean Everything
Buyers expect a spotless house, inside and out. So clean everything, especially your windows and window sills. Scrub walls and floors, tile and ceilings, cupboards and drawers, kitchen and bathrooms. Wash scuff marks from doors and entryways, clean light fixtures and the fireplace. Don't forget the laundry room. And put away your clothes.
Cut the Clutter
People are turned off by rooms that look and feel cluttered. Remember, potential buyers are buying your house, not your furniture, so help them picture themselves and their possessions in your home by making your rooms feel large, light, and airy. As you clean, pack away your personal items, such as pictures, valuables, and collectibles, and store or get rid of surplus books, magazines, videotapes, extra furniture, rugs, blankets, etc. Consider renting a storage unit to eliminate clutter in your garage and attic.
It's hard to get rid of possessions, but cleaning and clearing out the clutter can really pay off in the end. Packing away your clutter also gets you started packing for your next move. Make your garage and basement as tidy as the rest of your house. Simple little tasks such as storing your tools and neatly rolling up your garden hose suggest that you take good care of your house. Don't let anything detract from making your best first impression.
Closets
They're an important consideration to many buyers. By storing clothing you wont use soon, you'll make closets look spacious.
Paint
A new coat of paint cleans up your living space and makes it look bright and new. To make rooms look larger, choose light, neutral colors that appeal to the most people, such as beige or white.
Carpet
Check its condition. If it's worn, consider replacing it. It's an easy and affordable way to help sell your home faster. Again, light, neutral colors, such as beige, are best. If you don't replace it, you can suggest to potential buyers that they could select new carpet and you'll reduce your price; buyers like to hear they're getting a deal. At the very least, have your carpet cleaned.
Repairs and Renovations
It's best to avoid making major renovations just to sell the house since you're unlikely to recoup those costs from your selling price. Make minor repairs to items such as leaky faucets, slow drains, torn screens, gutters, loose doorknobs, and broken windows. Make sure repairs are well done; buyers won't take you seriously if your home-improvement efforts look messy, shoddy, or amateurish.
Leaks and Moisture
Water stains on ceilings or in the basement alert buyers to potential problems. Don't try to cosmetically cover up stains caused by leaks. If you've fixed the water problem, repair the damage and disclose in writing to the buyer what repairs were made.
Curb Appeal
The "Wow" factor (that first visual, high-impact impression your home makes on potential buyers) can turn a looker into a buyer. To determine your property's curb appeal, drive through your neighborhood and note other properties; then approach your own house as if you were a potential buyer. How does it look? Does it "wow" you? Will its curb appeal attract buyers? Note what needs improving, such as trimming trees, planting shrubs, or painting gutters. Little things convey that you've cared for your home, and this is your opportunity to sell that important message to buyers who are shopping from the street, simply cruising neighborhoods just looking for houses for sale. To get them through your door, do what you can to make your property look like someone's dream home.
Paint/Stain
If its peeling or blistering and you can't remember the last time you painted it, your house needs some attention. That also goes for stain that is significantly faded. A newly painted or stained exterior will help sell your house faster. And whether you do it yourself or hire someone, you'll also increase your home's value.
In the Yard
Grab people's attention by enhancing your yard and landscaping. If your house looks inviting and well-maintained from the street, people will imagine that it's attractive on the inside, too.
The Front Door
An attractive entry catches a buyer's eye and says, "Welcome," so highlight this area of your house with decorative touches, such as a wreath on the door or new shrubs and flowers around the steps. For an even grander entry, clean and paint your front door, or replace it with a new one for a few hundred dollars. Don't forget to fix and polish doorknobs, repair torn screens, and then put out that new welcome mat.
Clean and Maintain
Repair
Improvements
Is there an alternative to selling your home on MLS? Absolutely! Several in fact.
I spoke with a homeowner recently who was interested in a lower commission structure, but still wanted top dollar for his home. Does this sound familiar?
Initially, my instincts told me this was wrong. Not impossible, but fairly difficult at best. This because the commission rate he suggested meant an MLS listing was out, and an "exclusive" listing was in... told him I'd have to think about how I could do this for him effectively.
So I began thinking about how I would go about selling a home without the benefit of the Multiple Listing Service. My memory may not be perfect but it seems to me, in my area anyway, that I read 80% of resale homes were sold via MLS. I also recall a stat that said 93% of people looking for a home, turn to the internet at some point. Whatever the actual stats are, I figured around three quarters or more of home buyers hit the internet to varying degrees in their search.
Well, I've been hooked on Social Media, Online networking, Web 2.0 or whatever you want to call it for several years now. So I started to write down, off the top of my head, the sites I currently use that I felt would also would be good to promote a listing on. In the space of about five minutes I listed Twenty Two. TWEN-TEE-TWO. This without even thinking too hard. So I thought, "ya know, this is doable - VERY doable." And fffline would be the tried and true methods of; lawn signs, just listed flyers, open houses, ads in local papers, etc...
The catch is - of course there's a catch - it is hard work. But what fun it will be, especially in the midst of the CREA and Competition Bureau "MLS fiasco" to market homes without worrying about whether MLS is dead or alive.
This is a great time to be in the real estate profession!
Selling Your Home: 5 Ways to Maximize The Return on your investment
You've outgrown your home and are ready to move. The big question is where to spend your money so you get the maximum profit from your home with the minimum investment.
1. De-clutter. Almost every home shows better with less furniture. Simply removing a couple of items will make the rooms look bigger and be more enticing to buyers.
2. Clean. A clean house is a welcoming house. Make certain everything sparkles from mirrors to floors. Don't forget to clean out closets and kitchen cabinets.
3. Update the Kitchen. Kitchens are the heart of a home and the room that buyers look at first. Budget tips for updating this space include new faucet and sink, refinishing the cabinets with a fresh coat of paint/stain and installing new hardware.
4. Paint the Interior. While the mauve colour on the walls works for your decor, it is not everyone's taste. Painting can update a home and increase its attractiveness to buyers. Use a neutral colour like light beige and paint all rooms the same colour.
5. Curb Appeal. First impressions count. Trim brushes and trees and keep the lawn mowed. Spray wash the exterior doors and windows, paint the trim, doors and window frames. You may also want to plant flowers along the walks.
Whitby, Ontario Homes For Sale
Ashburn, Columbus, Brooklin, Whitby
New listings for Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Contact Bob Rodkin to arrange a private tour of any MLS listed property. This does not obligate you in anyway to buy or sell a home.
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Durham Region Condos For Sale
New Listings for Monday, April 12, 2010
Search for other homes at DurhamRegionHomeSearch.ca
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