Preparing Your Home for Buyers in today´s Real Estate market

To do so you need every advantage possible to get your property sold. The condition of a property and how it looks is something you, as an owner, have total control over. As you prepare your home for sale, there are things you can do to make your home appeal to buyers. Keep in mind Buyers like a property to look like a model home, so keep in mind that is what you are striving for.

Here are some suggestions!
Clean, Clean, Clean! This cannot be stressed enough! Bathrooms should sparkle, trash emptied, no dirty dishes sitting out, clothes and personal items put away, floors mopped, beds made, etc., etc., etc. If you don´t have time to do it, hire a cleaning service.

Eliminate any odors. Smell is very important to buyers. Some people are especially sensitive to pet odors. Cooking odors can be another culprit. And tobacco odors are the ultimate turn-off. Living in a property you can get accustomed to a smell, so it is a good idea to have a friend or family member come in to make sure there are no odors. Use smell to your advantage by using fresh smrlling cleaners or potpourri. And you can use an old Realtor trick of baking cookies right before your house is shown.

Clear out the Clutter: Counters should be as cleared as possible, newspapers, magazines and mail organized, no stacks of CD´s or picture albums setting out, children´s toys are put away. Collections of any kind no matter how lovely and valuable, should be packed and stored until your house has sold. Make your house appear as unlived in as possible.

Light Sells: Have all blinds, shades and curtains open; allowing as much natural light as possible into the home. The only time to have a window covered is if the view out of it is horrendous. Always turn on all the lights when you are having a showing.

Create a feeling of Openness and Space: If you have to, rent a storage locker for excess furniture, toys, electronics, clothes or anything else that takes up room in your house. Clean out as much as possible from closets to make them appear larger. Make sure it is easy to maneuver around furniture in the rooms and the main living areas have an open flow.

Curb Appeal: Every professional will tell you the importance of curb appeal. Most real estate agents have had at least one buyer refuse to even go inside a house because of the way it looked from the outside. Besides having your front yard mowed, edged, and landscaped, you should have some nice potted plants and a clean welcome mat by the front door. Door knobs and knockers should be polished and the doorbell needs to be working. Planting some colorful annuals is also appealing. Anything that makes a buyer want to go inside and feel that the house has been cared for.

Depersonalize: Buyers get distracted and need to project themselves into the home. Only have one or two family photographs sitting out. Remove any questionable objects or decorations which might not appeal to the masses. This includes nude pictures, religious artifacts, wild posters, hanging beads, black lights, insects or reptiles in jars, and make sure the false teeth are put away.

Neutralize: The single most inexpensive thing a seller can spend money on to make their house appeal to buyers, is paint. Even though dark wall colors are popular, any wall that is dark, bold or a unusual color should be painted a neutral color. Buyers like neutral houses so they can decide how to decorate. Also use accessories and/or accents to neutralize.

Staging: There are professional stagers and some Realtors who will bring in furniture and accessories to an empty property or assist a seller rearrange and stage their existing furniture and accessories to maximize how a property shows.

Visit my site at http://www.interactiverealty.com/ for more useful information.

Jeanette

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