| by Adam Provance |
The real estate market has shifted from a robust seller’s market of a couple of years ago to a more constricted market. Many buyers, especially first time home buyers have been pushed out of the market, due to interest rates hovering around 7%, After historic lows, housing inventory is now on the rise, meaning there is more competition for sellers to sell their home. Perhaps you are looking to sell, but you don’t exactly know where or how to start. Look no further!
Here are 15 proven tips to help sell your home faster.
1. Get the right real estate agent.
When it’s time to sell your home, and sell it at the highest price, the right real estate agent will make all the difference. Choose one that is knowledgeable about the current real estate market, familiar with the area, and knows how to price your home correctly to sell quickly.
Pick an agent that can walk into your home and tell you exactly what buyers will love and things will need to be addressed. Find one that is friendly. There are a lot of moving parts during a real estate transaction, and you want to have someone who is on top of things. Buying or selling a house can be emotional, and you will want to get an agent that will be transparent, and also compassionate. Communication between the agent and the seller is key. You’ll want to find a realtor who takes the time to explain each step from start to finish.
2. Pictures are worth a thousand words.
Make sure that those words are good! Today, everyone uses the internet to start looking at homes. The pictures of your home posted online are the first impression that prospective buyers get. You could have the most immaculate and beautiful home around but If you only have six pictures and they are blurry, dark, and unflattering, buyers will just move on to the next online listing.
Once I was looking at a home for some clients and the listing had pictures of the toilet with the toilet seat up and clothes on the floor! We already know what the inside of a toilet looks like. Yikes! That’s not the impression you want to make.
Get a professional to take pictures of your home. As good as smartphone cameras are these days, they can’t convey the home like a professional photographer who specializes in real estate photos can.
Realtors should also give you a list of things to do so your home is ready for photos. The photographer knows what to take pictures of and what not to, so your home looks warm and inviting.
3. Curb Appeal.
First impressions are everything. Hopefully, you or your realtor has hired a professional home photographer to come and take great pictures of your home. Now the prospective buyers want to see the house in person. When they first pull up to the front of your home, many buyers, within 5-10 seconds have already subconsciously made a decision on your home based solely on the curb appeal.
Move all cars from the front of your home or driveway. Let’s not impede the view of the home. When the driveway is full and there’s no parking in front of the house, this sounds ridiculous, but this is where the buyer’s mind goes:
“Hmm, lot of cars = Lots of people living here = Must be cluttered, messy, smelly = Must not have much storage cause everything is probably stuffed in the garage = OK, let’s go to the next house.”
I promise you, subconsciously that’s what’s going through a buyer’s mind.
Also, clean up the flowerbeds. Have the bushes trimmed back, weeds pulled, and the lawn manicured. Water the lawn a little extra and add fertilizer, or fresh sod where necessary to add some green, and plant some flowers, or get a hanging basket to give your home a pop of color. Remove any old holiday decorations from the home. For heaven’s sake, the last thing a buyer wants to see is an old composted pumpkin on the porch in July! (Yes, I’ve seen this too.)
4. Clean up the outside of the house.
This goes hand in hand with curb appeal, but this takes it a step further. One of the most neglected parts of a house can be the exterior. Take a broom to the front door, the porch light, and the eaves above the porch and garage door. It can look downright frightening with all the spider webs, dust, dirt, and dead bugs hanging around. It is an instant turnoff.
Several years ago, I was going to show some buyers a house. I had gotten there early to make sure the house was ready. Unfortunately, it was evident that it had been at least a couple of days since someone had used the front door. There were three large spiders just chilling in huge webs that were between me and the front door. We didn’t even go inside!
Cleaning the outsides of windows, window wells, and even hosing down dirty siding or stucco will make a big difference!
5. Price it right.
Overpricing your home will not bring you more money, and in fact, it could cost you thousands. Once a home is on the market for more than 30 days, prospective buyers and realtors tend to see it as a home with some type of problem, or having sellers who are unwilling to negotiate. Pricing it just under market value can bring in more than the original asking price because it attracts multiple buyers.
6. Declutter, Declutter, Declutter!
This tip may be the most important when it comes to selling your house. This has a two-way benefit for sellers. Decluttering will make moving easier. You will be astounded at all the stuff you have. Pack away all of the knick-knacks that are on shelves or end tables, and clean off bookshelves. In the kitchen and bathrooms, remove/hide everything from the countertops.
Remove extra furniture that takes up space in rooms. If a room feels cramped, try and remove one-third to one-half of the furniture in each room and put it in storage. Arrange your furniture to maximize the space.
The same goes for the garage. You’d be surprised at how many garages resemble a storage unit instead of a place for vehicles. Yours may be one, and that’s A messy, cluttered garage can give the buyers the negative impression that the house is messy and dirty.
I recently had one of my sellers tell me that they took a combined 22 truckloads of stuff to the dump and the local goodwill/thrift store prior to selling their home!
8. Rent a Storage Unit
As mentioned, one of the keys to selling any home is to show every prospective buyer how open and roomy your home is. You will be amazed at how many things a family can accumulate in just a couple of years. If you don’t want to throw out/donate what you’re willing to part with, then rent a storage unit and put extra furniture, clothes, seasonal equipment, children’s toys in there.
This shouldn’t need to be long term. Most storage places have a month to month option. This is what I’ve done every time we’ve moved. I’ll rent a storage unit for a month or two and then once the house sells, I’ll move everything out.
7. Closet space.
Confession: I have too much clothing. I have a full closet. However, I’m pretty sure that I wear the same 5-6 shirts and pants in a rotation. (Don’t worry I wash them.)
Storage is important to every buyer, and you can’t have too much of it. Go through all of your closets and remove at least half of the clothing or linens found in each one. Organize what is left in there so it is neat and tidy.
Buyers will open closets when touring a home, so keep them clear and organized. Once, there was a downstairs closet that my buyers opened. Little did they know that on the other side of the door was a closet space stuffed to the brim with an avalanche of children’s toys and games awaiting them. (Ever try to pick up the cards/pieces to 20 different board games at the same time? Hint: Not easy!)
9. Deep clean the inside of the house.
After decluttering and moving extra furniture, clothes, and other belongings to a storage unit, deep clean your home. Get the carpets cleaned, wipe down the baseboards, clean all the light fixtures, dust each room of the house, so the house looks and smells clean and fresh. For just a couple hundred dollars, a cleaning crew can come in and completely change the look of a home, and save you from a week or two of soreness and misery.
10. Let there be light!
I’m amazed at how many homes I take my buyers to see that have multiple light bulbs burned out. One house had 17 burned out light bulbs!
The amount of light a home has is an important factor for many buyers. Replace them! If you have a bathroom vanity with four light bulbs, make sure all the light bulbs are the same size, wattage, and color temperature.
Also, make sure all of your lights are on, and that your blinds are open before you leave the house prior to a showing.
Open up all blinds and drapes to allow in as much natural light as possible. Speaking of the blinds, dust and wipe them down. Also, dust off any lamp shades or light fixtures. Clean the windows, both inside and outside. Clean the window sill. The pictures of your home will look cleaner and brighter. The more light, natural or otherwise, the better!
11. Pet and Odor Control.
I love pets. I went with some buyers to see a home, and the realtor left me a message saying, don’t mind the parakeets that are flying freely around in one of the bedrooms. She wasn’t kidding! Talk about one of the fastest dealbreakers around! Pets and pet odors can kill a buyer’s interest in the home faster than almost anything else. If you have pets in the house, make them as invisible as possible while selling your home. Remove/Hide the pet food and water dishes, bird cages, litter boxes, kennels, dog beds, and gerbil cages. Just because you love pets, doesn’t mean that prospective buyers do. Just by seeing any of those things, buyers get the impression that the home is not clean and suddenly the house has a stinky pet smell to it, even when there may not be one.
If you have dogs or cats, take them out of the house for all showings. A howling dog in the garage distracts potential buyers, makes them feel like they are intruding on the homeowners, and almost always triggers that psychological “stinky dog smell”. If you have a couple of large pets, get the carpets professionally cleaned, and paint or replace any doors leading outside that may have been scratched up or scarred by dogs wanting to be let out.
If you have pets that do their business outside, make sure that everything is scooped up. Nothing will turn off potential buyers more than stepping in an unsavory surprise as they are checking out the yard. If they’ve dug holes in the backyard, fill in the holes and put down sod.
12. De-Personalize Your Home.
This is a lot more important than most people think. The more pictures and personal items in the house, the more difficult it is for potential buyers to imagine themselves in it. Pack away family pictures, trophies, awards, personal keepsakes, and put them in storage.
Remove all magnets, papers and pictures from the refrigerator, etc. You want prospective buyers to be able to picture themselves in the home, and seeing your family pictures makes that more difficult. Buyers respond much more positively when the homes they see don’t seem to have an identity or connection to the current owners.
13. Always be ready to show.
This one sounds inconvenient for the seller, especially when you have children, but it is so important for selling a home quickly!
Limiting the availability that your house can be seen by prospective buyers by requiring 24 hours notice, etc., you will lose potential buyers. They want to go to the house as soon as possible. If not, they’ll look at other houses that are more accessible. The more people that see your home the better.
I would much rather subject my sellers to a week or two of inconvenience to get their home under contract quickly by being ready to show at a moment’s notice, rather than drag it out for weeks or months because of a strict showing policy.
14. Make small upgrades.
Some sellers think that it may be necessary to make expensive upgrades to attract buyers. While those are nice, it usually is not necessary. The chances are that you will not get a 100% return on your investment. Instead, do some smaller upgrades, especially in the kitchen and bathroom. Something as simple as new shower curtains, and light fixtures are inexpensive and immediately change the feel of a room, instead of doing a time consuming and expensive kitchen remodel you’ll never use. I would also not fret about recarpeting the entire house. It is wiser to concede a little in price than spend thousands to change the carpet.
I’ve seen sellers install new carpet, just to have the new buyers rip it out and put in luxury vinyl plank flooring (LVP). Also, don’t worry about repainting the entire house. However, if you have a room with a very odd pattern, or unusually dark tone, I would recommend repainting that room in a neutral color.
15. Fix Those Nail Holes
You never realize how many nails you have put in your walls until you start taking down pictures in preparation for a move. Fortunately, filling nail holes is inexpensive and relatively easy to do. All you need is spackle and a spackle knife. Hopefully, you still have some matching paint left over to complete the job.
Bonus Tip! Get the neighbors involved.
Sure, the neighbors will see the sign in your yard, but give them an opportunity to choose their new neighbors. Talk to them and give them a flier with the information about your home. Ask them if they know of any of their friends or co-workers who are looking for a home. You’d be surprised how many homes are sold to a family that knows another family in the neighborhood.
In a competitive seller’s market, you want to do whatever possible to have your home stand out in a good way. By following these tips, your house will be in the best position to sell for the highest price and in the shortest amount of time!
Do you have other tips that have helped you sell your home? I’d love to hear them! Share them with me at adamprovance@gmail.com.