10 Tips To Sell Your House Fast!
10 Tips To Sell Your House Fast!
The current real estate market is as hot as the Coachella Valley weather report. Home prices have been on the rise and buyers are keeping a keen eye out for the best value for their hard earned dollars. So how do you get your home to stand out and sell fast in this market? Follow these 10 tips to help sell your house fast!
1. Paint The Exterior Of Your Home
A splash of new paint can dramatically change the curb appeal of your home if done right. Make sure you don't go too bold with the color as it could drive away potential buyers. What's the best color? Well, according to a survey conducted by the Rohm & Hass Paint Quality Institute, the most popular color choice for houses is White or Off-White. The second most popular option is Beige, tan or brown. Picking an option that is popular with buyers, but fits into your neighborhood is a great idea to add curb appeal and let buyers feel they are coming into a clean, loved home.
2. De-Clutter Your Home
A cramped and cluttered home is uninviting. Although you may cherish your belongings and find therapy in knowing where EVERYTHING is because its out in the open, you may want to get a storage unit while you transition through the sales process. Use the storage unit to hide away all your extras that may be cluttering up your house. This is also an excellent time to prepare to move. Pack old trinkets, trophies, photos, books, etc into boxes and haul them off to the storage unit to transition to your new home. Don't forget to take your personal items that really marks your territory in your home, which takes us to out next tip.....
3. Un-Personalize Your Home
You know that super cool and super nerdy Star Wars lamp you have sitting in your den? As awesome as it is to you, some Star Trek fan might walk through your house and be completely turned off to your home when he sees you have a Darth Vader poster and not a Spock clock. (I know, I know, you wouldn't want to sell your beloved old home to someone with such poor taste) However, your home should remain devoid of personal artifacts that does not allow the potential buyer to really envision your home as their home. You really want people coming through your home on walk throughs or open houses to be able to picture themselves living there. So, fill those boxes up with your overly personalized property and remove the personal touches from your house (such as pin walls in the master bedroom) and haul them off to that storage unit.
4. Don't Go Overboard On Upgrades
You don't need to completely remodel your kitchen to get it to sell fast. (Unless you have a REALLY bad kitchen.) Most of the time, the money you spend in large renovations won't come back to you immediately. You could spend $20,000 on a new kitchen and only end up adding $10,000 of additional value to your home. A much more efficient way is to repaint your cabinets, change the lighting and add or change the hardware for your cabinets and drawers. Change the appliances to stainless steel and for about $5,000 you can possibly add $8,000 of value to your home and sell it faster. Speaking of adding those appliances.....
5. Make Them An Offer They Can't Refuse
Covering the closing costs or buying a home warranty for your buyers are all good ways to close the deal, but most buyers expect those things these days. Make your house stand out. Tell them the stainless steel fridge comes with the house. Tell them the Flat screen tv on the wall comes as well. (Definitely specify that your collection of James Bond films do not come along.) This really piques the interest of the buyers and makes your home stand out among the other homes they have looked at.
6. Hide Your Pets
I know, I know, Your pet is the cutest and most adorable thing in the world right? Well, not to people that have pet allergies. The best idea for open house days is to take your pets to a pet hotel or groomers for the afternoon. Also, hide your litter boxes, puppy pads, and clean up any hair that may stick to potential buyers. You do not want to give them the feeling that your home isn't clean.
7. Make Sure Your Closets Are Half-Empty
People will snoop into your closets. They want to know how much storage space they can be getting, so make sure you clear space in your closets to show them your ample storage space. However, don't completely empty your closets either as that doesn't give them a vision of what it would look like to have their stuff in there.
8. Make A Youtube Walkthrough Video
Everyone is on YouTube and practically everyone googles the address of the homes they are interested in. Making a walkthrough video of your home and why your family loved it is a great way to show your home to potential customers and give them a feel about how awesome your house is before they ever step foot in it. Make sure you make your address the name of your video and highlight more than just your home. Highlight parks nearby, shopping centers, your favorite coffee shop, how great your neighborhood is, etc. Help them get excited about the possibility of living in your home.
9. Stage Your Home
Staging allows your potential buyers to envision how their furniture would look in your home. It helps them really visualize how living there would look and feel and when it comes to buying a home, it's all about the feeling. Don't forget the outside staging. Plant some new flowers that are in bloom, set up some patio furniture staged for a Sunday brunch, give your buyers that visualization that they are home already.
10. Lighting, Lighting, Lighting!
Take a look at the two images above. Notice how cramped and dark one is and how open and airy and bright the other is? Which one looks more inviting to you? Both appear to be nice homes, but I am willing to bet that the majority of you reading this picked the bright and open picture. Adding good lighting to your home and opening up windows to allow in natural light can really make a home more inviting. Trim back bushes and trees outside that may be blocking natural light from entering your windows and add more lighting that isn't over head. Doing these things will help you increase the atmosphere of the room and make your home more attractive and inviting to potential buyers.
These tips are just some of the many examples of things you can do personally to help your home sell faster. It's not just on your real estate agents shoulders to go out and get your house sold. Being prepared for open houses and always being ready for a walkthrough with these tips are a great way to help your agent sell your home fast. If you are currently purchasing a new home while selling your current home, you can contact one of our friendly and professional loan officers to assist you with some great financing options.
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