The Prep Steps for a Seller

While the buyer prepares by financial planning, saving, and thinking a lot about what they want, in many cases the Sellers will have to do a bit more actual work to prepare for a sale. If you have been in the home for more than 5 years, you may need to consider some updates or repairs to make your home marketable and competitive. If you are anything like me, in five years you may have unwittingly accumulated a lot of stuff. Stuff you don’t really need.  For Part One of the Seller process, I will talk about the things you should consider as a Seller before placing your home on the market.

Step One: Meet with an Agent

You can meet with several agents to consider which you prefer to work with, like interviews for a job – which is what this is. At a listing appointment a Licensed Realtor will come to your home to get to know you, tour the property, discuss your goals, expectations, and what your home is worth in the current market. It is a good idea to discuss these things with an agent because they are informed on what is happening and current Home Sales trends. It is important to understand that the market dictates what your home is worth, not a Realtor. It is about what value the buyer sees in the property. Since we have lived in our homes and made memories there, it is often difficult for us to take an objective look at the home and make comparisons without letting our emotions get involved. When you are working with an agent, they can review the comparable properties in the area with you and answer your questions regarding the marketable value of your home.

They may be the expert, but don’t be bullied. If you don’t understand something, ask!  Don’t sign anything until you have decided who you want to work with. You should like your Agent, trust them, and you should  able to reach them during important phases of the process. Everyone has a different style, and it is important that you choose someone that you can work with. Some are big dreamers, big talkers, and dazzle with promises of high market values – but be sure you are paying attention to what comparisons they make, the tools they intend to use and the way that they do business. Ask questions and decide what qualities you are looking for in the agent you want to work with. Tenacious? Honest? Sympathetic? Aggressive? Engaging? Serious?  Easy Going? Understanding?

Realtors can also make helpful suggestions on how you can best show your home. There may be some minor repairs that need to be done. Some of your bold décor choices maybe something you love, but are just not for everyone, so it may be suggested that the bright orange accent wall in one room is repainted to a more neutral or trendy color- like the current “Greige”- before you list. Your Realtor will do a walk through of your home and, at your request, make some suggestions on what you can do before you list to put your home in the best position for Sale.

Step 2 – Prepare Your home

Here are some things to consider:

Go Through All Your Stuff - Make things easier on yourself by first getting rid of anything you don’t NEED. We try to do a Goodwill run about twice a year.  Clean out your wardrobe, if you haven’t worn it in the last year, are you ever going to wear it? Really?! Come on, really? No, you won’t – but someone else might! Shoes you bought but kind of hurt your feet? Get rid of them! Don’t stop at your clothes this time. Go through everything! Think about it this way, either get rid of it now, or later you will have to pack it, move it, then find a new place to hide it in your new home. Need some inspiration? watch a single episode of Hoarders- then get to work.

INSPECT your home- Tackle that honey-do list. All those little things you’ve been meaning to do but never got around to? Buyers will notice them, and they’ll detract from the value of your home. Don’t nickle and dime yourself into a lower price range. Set aside a weekend to tighten those loose doorknobs, fix that leaky faucet and paint over the scuffs from when you first moved in your sofa. Do a faux “renovation.” Little tweaks can make a big difference in the overall feel of a room. Kitchen a little outdated? Replace the fixtures, faucets, and hinges. For a bigger impact, paint your cabinets.  Family room furniture lived in or dated? Throw some slipcovers over it. Make repairs. To get the best price for your home, you want it to be in the best condition possible. Take care of major defects like broken windows or a leaky roof that could discourage buyers. You can discuss these items with your Realtor. If budget is a concern, decide which items you want to invest in the repair costs and which you can let go- which will offer the greatest return in value. Depending on inspections, some may be requested later in the process anyway, so it would be beneficial to stay ahead of those to keep the advantage in negotiations later.

Declutter and Clean

Remove clutter and depersonalize – Small messes and collections of clutter are not only distracting, but it also makes buyers think that the home doesn’t have enough storage. Why is that sitting out, doesn’t it have a place it should be? Piles of shoes from the entry? They should be in a closet. Buyers want to envision their belongings in your home. If you have a lot of personalized décor, you can clean up by renting a storage unit for knickknacks, photos, extra furniture, and other personal items. For smaller collections, a simple storage bin tucked into the garage will do. If the garage isn’t packed full of stuff already! Get rid of personal items. Buyers want to be able to envision themselves in your home, so remove anything overly personal, like family photos in the hallway or your kids’ artwork on the fridge. These items fall into clutter as well – remember surfaces should be clear! This includes counter tops, and fridges. Organize your closets. Storage space is a huge selling point, and if your closets are stuffed to the brim, buyers will think you don’t have enough of it. Invest in some boxes, dividers and other solutions that will help you make your stuff look more organized and remove extra items you don’t need immediately (you can stow them away until you move). Have you ever watched a home renovation show on HGTV and they show you the closets in the reveal? There are like 10 items of clothing in there. TOTAL. 4 Hanging shirts, 3 folded sweaters, a couple pair of shoes and a vase of fresh flowers. Of course, it is not realistic, but it looks GREAT!

Clean, clean, clean. Dust on top of the fireplace mantle and fan blades, polish your appliances and faucets, and give the windows a thorough washing-inside and out. Hate cleaning? Hire a professional service for a one time clean. A small investment for a major difference, and less manual labor for you. Don’t forget to Sweep the garage, basement, and any other unfinished surfaces, and clean INSIDE appliances like Microwave, oven, dishwasher. Buyers will open EVERYTHING.  Pay attention to smells. For those of you who know me, you understand how important this is to me. I think the first thing I comment on is how something smells. It is certainly the first thing I notice. Smell plays such an important role in memory, mood, and emotion. There are certain smells that all humans find repugnant, largely because they warn us of danger, the smell of smoke, for example, or of rotten food. Thanks to their sense of smell, a buyer could find a home repulsive due to an unpleasant smell and thanks to the olfactory connection to memory, they are unlikely to forget that unpleasant correlation. Think about what you experience when you walk into Starbucks, Home Depot, or Restoration Hardware. You want your home to SMELL comforting, inviting, relaxing -not overwhelming. Different smells appeal to different people, but there are certainly strong scents to avoid. I love my dogs, but I do not like when I walk into a house and I can tell by the smell that a dog lives there.  Put the litter box in the garage!  Try keeping windows open, air circulating and scents light and neutral – like clean cotton, lemon, or lavender. Light herbal or floral fragrances work well – baked goods also bring lovely memories to mind as buyers tour your home, but when it comes to food, be careful! Don’t cook bacon the day of a showing. Sure, it tastes great, but the smell is strong and lingers for a long time. You don’t want your home to smell like a restaurant- you want it to smell like a home. A Clean Home.

Evaluate Décor and Arrangement

·       Repaint the walls neutral colors. As much as you love your dramatic red dining room, it could turn off a good portion of your buyers. Repainting your rooms in neutral tones like tans and whites that allow buyers to focus on the spaces themselves will better showcase the home, and the fresh paint can also bring a subtle scent that triggers a subconscious “new” feeling to the buyers. Just be careful with the scent portion – let the home air out before showings after painting. No need to make anyone pass out from fumes.

·       Keep the décor simple. To help buyers imagine themselves in your space, get rid of any art or other décor that might turn off people with different tastes. A classic landscape painting. Totally fine. Your zebra print leather couch? Might want to slipcover that for showings.

·       Get rid of bulky furniture. Your furniture should fit the scale of the room, so get rid of any extra or oversized items that could make your space look smaller than it really is. Be Careful! You still want each room to have a purpose. A random empty room makes it look like the house is incorrectly proportioned. If you are removing items, take into consideration how the rest of the furniture is placed. Large room? Keep the furniture away from the walls.

·       Give each room a purpose. That spare room you’ve been using as an office / guest room /dumping ground won’t help sell your home unless you show buyers how they can use it themselves. So, pick a use (office, guest room, crafts room) and clearly stage the space to showcase that purpose.

·       Turn the living room into conversation central. Help buyers picture themselves relaxing with family and guests by grouping your furniture into arrangements that inspire conversation.

·       Keep the flow going. The last thing you want is people bumping into furniture as they tour your home; it disrupts their focus and makes your space look cramped. Do a dry run as though you’re seeing your home for the first time and tweak anything that interrupts the “flow.”

·       Turn the bathroom into a spa. Create the feel of a relaxing, luxurious spa. Stack a few pretty washcloths tied with ribbon, add some scented candles and faux plants, and buy bathmats and towels in coordinating tones such as light green, blue and white. A little fancy soap dish with decorative soaps can contribute to the look as well as the SMELL. Put away all your personal items! Clear counters and organize drawers and cabinets.

Don’t forget about the exterior! This is the FIRST thing buyers will see. Many won’t visit the home, or perhaps even view interior photos if they don’t like the exterior of the home. Look up your address online. – PHOTOS. Professional grade photos of the home – Exterior and interior need to be included before the listing is even ‘coming soon’. When you google your home, the image that shows up is what people will rely on if you do not provide an updated photo. They could dismiss your listing without ever actually seeing your actual home. Online sites like Zillow and Redfin can have inaccuracies. Your agent should monitor these as well, but if you notice an error on any sites where your home is listed, notify your agent or the site directly. Replace the house numbers so buyers can easily find and identify your home.

Boost the curb appeal.  Trim your shrubs, weed your flower beds, fix any peeling paint, and keep the walkway clear. Just adding a row of potted plants along the walkway or a cheerful wreath to your front door can make a big difference. Potted plants are an investment you can take with you! Pressure wash your roof to remove unsightly dirt and mold and clean out the gutters.

Check your driveway and sidewalk in front of your house for bumps and cracks

Buy a new welcome mat. Let buyers know they're invited into your home.

 Focus on the area around the front door. The impact a door can have on a home cannot be overstated.

 Gather warranties for appliances and any recent documentation on the home. Any renovations recently done, new roof, replaced HVAC, installation of new appliances, or any insect treatments. All of this information can be shared in the listing and having the documentation to back it up always helps!

Step 3 – Meet with your Agent again to re-evaluate the updates you made to your home and sign your listing agreement at the Right Price, get some Professional Photos taken and get ready to start Showing your home!

The little things remember before each showing –

Keep On It – Showings could be scheduled last minute. During this phase, keep the house as tidy as possible.

Close the toilet! When it comes to both showing and photographing your home, this little trick can make a surprising difference. Not only is it kind of gross to have it open, but if you put any stock in Feng Shui, open toilets are also the biggest drain of positive energy in the home- so close those up!

Make it smell good! Remember the tips we talked about – go outside, then walk through the house to check for anything that smells off. Don’t leave candles burning! If you have a showing, burn the candles in advance and blow them out 30 minutes before they arrive to give the aroma time to disperse around the house and the smoke from extinguishing to dissipate.

Let there be light! Open all the windows to let in natural light and add floor or table lamps to areas that are dim. A bright, cheery room looks bigger and more inviting. ** Remember this when taking photos, or having photos taken. Take photos during the DAY. Photos of home when it is dark outside can be creepy and unsettling.

When your home is priced right – it will sell fast!