Thinking about selling your home? The first step is to get prepared. You get one chance to impress a buyer & have them fall on love enough to make them think it's THE one for them.
Your first opportunity to impress is online. 2nd opportunity is person at the showing.
The pictures have to show amazing to entice them to want to even step inside your house in person. Make sure your real estate agent is hiring a professional photographer to showcase your home & its assets.
Go through the house with a critical eye.
Eliminate as much as possible. Less is always better. Even if items are something that you have emotional ties to or you personally love displaying, think about a model home. Would that item be displayed in a model home? If the answer is no, pack it up.
Store packed up items.
Neatly store them in boxes or bins along the garage wall. Home buyers expect boxes - you're moving! Make sure they can still see that you have a garage & more than just boxes can fit in there.
Don't have a garage?
Check with family or close friends who do have garages, ask if you can store boxes in their garages temporarily. Perhaps you give them some rent for taking up room in their space or make trades, offer to babysit their kids when needed in return or to watch their pets when they go out of town. Another option is getting a storage unit temporarily.
Make repairs before going on the market.
Yes, most buyers will get a home inspection & will probably ask you to fix the items but if there are known items in need of repair - go ahead & fix them. When a buyer spots just one item in need of repair they begin to look more critically at the house. It suddenly is not a "move in ready" house but a house that "needs work" even if it's something minor, that's an item that would go on their "to do" list and moving already comes with a long enough "to do" list. Items needing repair might scare off a buyer from making an offer at all. There's also a good chance they are going to ask you to fix it after the home inspection so be pro-active and get it done now.
Be flexible with showings.
Often you have at least overnight notice before a showing but occasionally a buyer changes their mind & it's a last minute showing request. Be flexible. As a seller showings are an inconvenience but you can not sell your home unless you allow it to be shown when its convenient to the buyer. Keep in mind that the buyer is also taking time off of work or out of their lives to see your house, they also had to make arrangements to do that showing. The buyer's agent too had to make special arrangements to make the showings line up & timed. There's a reason for their day & time request, try to work with it.
Hide the animals.
I'm one of the biggest animal lovers there is. When it comes to showing off your house to a potential buyer though, you do not want them to know a animal lives there. Fold up their crates & tuck them and any animal beds under your bed where they are out of site. Hide their toys & food/water bowls. Hide any leashes. Most importantly - remove the animal(s) from the home before the showing. Take them on a drive or a trip to the park during the showing. If you can't leave work to get them, ask a dependable neighbor if your animal can hang out with them or in their fenced yard during the showing.
When a prospective buyer knows an animal lives in a house they get critical and start looking for pet damage or pet odors. They wonder if the pet has had accidents in the house. Eliminate these potential buyer red flags by hiding your furry family members during showings.
Want more tips on how to impress a buyer? Thinking about buying a home yourself or getting your home on the market to sell? Give us a call at 910-679-6525. We'd love the opportunity to help and to earn your business.
Brittany Allen