3 Things to Do Before Selling Your House
Selling your home can be stressful and getting your house ready to sell can be even more stressful. Everyone will give you advice on what they think you should do before you sell, and all that often-unsolicited advice can leave your head spinning. Here are a few basic things you should do that can help you sell.
Make Basic Repairs
While you should not spend a ton of time and money renovating your house before selling it, taking the time to fix up the small things can help you sell. If a buyer notices a loose handle, they may stop and wonder what else is broken, and begin looking at the rest of the house with a more scrutiny.
Replacing the door handles, faucets, towel bars, and curtain rods can be done for a rather inexpensive price and can help make your home look more appealing. Also replace any missing tiles, scratched up floors, broken windows, and other signs of wear.
Fixing up the little things, like that leaky faucet, squeaky door or floorboard, or the drawer that likes to get stuck, will make the house look better. If you have a deck, make the needed repairs to it.
While working on this, you should also finish those projects you started but never finished.
The best way to go about all of this is to make a list and go over it with your real estate agent. They can help you determine what needs to be done and what you can leave.
Declutter
Making the house decluttered is one of the most important parts of preparing to sell your house; clutter makes it harder for potential buyer to see themselves living there.
Sitting down and making the decision now as to what you do and do not need will make moving easier for you when the house sells.
Focus on a single room at a time and get started. If you have things that you cannot decide what to do with, put them in a plastic storage container to deal with later; that looks much better than a huge pile of papers sitting on a desk. One good rule for decluttering is to reduce by 50 percent. In a cupboard if you have 10 things on the shelf, take five out and store or donate them. Emptyyour closets by 50 percent to help show buyers how much storage space there is; it can be hard to tell how big a closet is if it is stuffed with clothes. This helps reduce the clutter that may distract buyers.
You can also begin packing up things you will not need between now and when you move, like season or holiday specific items that you do not need right now. If you start packing, you may want to get a storage unit so potential buyers do not see boxes everywhere.
Hide the Pets
Not everyone likes pets, and obvious signs of pets can be off-putting to buyers. They do not want to see the litter box, bowls of food, or squeaky toys. Some people feel that if there are clear signs of pets, it means the house is not clean, and it means they may not be interested in buying.
When you have an open house, take your pets with you for the day. You will not have to worry about your pet sneaking out when the door is open, or your ornery cat scratching someone during the showing. If you have small caged pets, take them with you too.
Taking them out will also help with removing the pet smell.
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