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Outdoors
- Be sure your lawn and
shrubbery is kept well-trimmed at all times. Consider removing overgrown trees
and shrubs that hide the house from the street.
- Keep the garage doors down at
all times.
- For a touch of color, have
seasonal flowers growing in beds and containers.
- Make sure your driveway is in
good repair. Pressure wash concrete drives and walks to remove stains and car
drippings, and put a fresh coat of sealer on asphalt drives.
- Make sure patios and decks
are clean and in good repair. Replace any rotten wood and nail down loose
boards on decking or steps; pressure wash if needed.
- Garage sale time! Clear out
everything you don't intend to keep and tidy up what's staying. Make sure
garage doors and openers are in proper working order.
- Check all railings and
fencing to make sure they're in good repair and freshly painted.
- Pay special attention to the
area around your front door; make sure your doorbell works, clean all cobwebs,
leaves, and other debris that may have accumulated there. Give the front door a
fresh coat of paint if needed; paint is one of the most cost effective fix up
items you can do.
- Check for broken windows or
leaking seals on thermopane windows; replace if necessary.
- Clean all the cobwebs from
around the front door. Make sure all outdoor lighting (especially front porch)
is clean and shiny; replace if necessary. It is especially important that the
entrance to your home makes a good first impression on prospective buyers. This
sets the tone for the whole showing.
- Check your mailbox. Is it
straight and upright? Neatly trimmed around?
- Before you start indoors walk
across the street in front of your house and look back (like a buyer will see
it). Does it present an appealing appearance?
Indoors
- Start by walking through the
house and making a list. Do your carpets need shampooing? Floors need a fresh
coat of wax? Dust all ceiling fans (especially the blades) and wash light
fixtures.
- When you move, you're going
to have to pack anyway, so go through all your closets and pack up everything
you don't need for the next couple of months. A closet with only a few neatly
arranged items creates an impression of abundant storage space.
- Thin out overcrowded rooms.
Ever notice model homes' sparse furnishings? They make the rooms look larger.
Consider renting a storage facility to store excess lamps, tables, and large
items that eat up space in a room.
- Go through and pack up most
of your family pictures and collections of model ships, stamps, quilts, or
anything that might cause a buyer to stop and look at your collections of stuff
instead of your house.
- Check all light fixtures to
make sure all the bulbs burn. Use the largest wattage bulb that you safely can
to give off more light.
- Wash all your windows and
make sure window treatments are clean and in good repair. Keep the window
coverings open whenever possible to let in more light.
- With a good degreaser, wipe
down everything in the kitchen so it feels clean to the touch. Clean your stove
and oven; replace stove eye pans if needed.
- Go through your kitchen
cabinets and pantry to make sure they're neat and tidy; give any food that you
don't plan to use right away to the local food pantry.
- Make sure your sinks are
clean at all times and free of dirty dishes and utensils.
- Remove all excess items from
your counters to give the impression of lots of work surface.
- Pleasing aromas add to the
appealing atmosphere you're trying to establish for your buyers; consider
keeping a saucepan of potpourri on the stove to give off an appealing scent.
- Clean all light switch places
by taking them off and washing with soap and water; replace if necessary.
- Make sure the bathrooms are
spotless at all times with fresh towels, decorative soaps, and all fixtures are
shiny, scrubbed, and in good repair.
- Check all faucets and shower
heads to make sure they're spotless and free of leaks and drips.
- Repaint interior rooms if
needed with neutral colors.
- Don't forget your ceilings
either; years of living in a home with cooking, smoking, and other everyday
activities can stain ceilings. Paint ages; repaint if needed.
- Don't have large,
space-eating house plants sitting around; give them away or ask a neighbor to
store them until you move.
- The more light you can get
into a room, the bigger and more spacious the room will appear. When you leave
for a showing, turn on lights in rooms that are normally darker than you would
like and make sure the window coverings are open to admit outside light.
- An old decorator trick to
bring in more light as well as make rooms appear larger are mirrors, both
hanging on a wall or on a stand.
- Pack away and store out of
season clothes. Get rid of extra hangars. Straighten up your shoes (consider
some inexpensive shoe racks from a discount store like K-Mart or Wal-Mart).
- When painting don't forget
the interiors of closets and the closets doors; make sure all closet and
interior doors open and close correctly.
- Check where ceilings meet
walls and clean all cobwebs, this is a commonly overlooked area when cleaning,
along with tops of tall furniture items such as hutches, entertainment centers,
etc.
- If you have a pet, make sure
there are no odors. You may not notice odors since you live with your pet every
day, so have a neutral third party give your home a "sniff test" for
objectionable odors that may turn buyers off.
- Also, when buyers come to
visit, keep your pet under control, or better yet, get a friend or neighbor to
watch it for you while the buyers are looking.
- It's important that you leave
the house for all showings. Buyers feel less inhibited if you're not around and
will usually take a closer look in closets and in kitchen cabinets, as well as
voice any objections that your agent can then deal with. If the buyers won't
make comments because you're following them around pointing things out then
your agent can't deal with any potential problems that may hinder making an
offer.
- If you have several vehicles,
make sure the spot closest to the door buyers enter through is empty for them.
- Freshly baked or even store
bought cookies & little snacks along with an appropriate beverage (hot in
winter, cold in summer) along with a sign saying "Please Sit Down and Enjoy a
Treat While You're Here" will make your home more memorable even if they don't
take anything. Remember little things can go a long way towards getting your
home sold quickly for the best price.
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