First Impressions Can be Everything, Just Like Meeting a Person for the First Time.
The instant you pull up to a house, from the way that the front door is situated to the color of the lawn and everything in between, curb appeal is what draws you in, and the rest of the house is what you make of it. Have you ever done a pivet turn from walking up to start a conversation with someone and when you get close enough, you notice, that maybe they smell as if they haven’t bathed in six weeks, if not ever… Maybe you took a step back because they ate what seems to be an entire onion and didn’t bother to pop in a piece of double-mint? Do you linger on and persist in the conversation? Chances are the answer is no. If someone or something gives you the emotional or sensational- get out of here, or this isn’t for me vibe… you are more than likely going to be making a move away from it, instead of trying to linger a little longer.
The same thing goes for a house when you are looking to buy. Upon your first encounter with a home, the house is dingy, unkempt and event smelly… you, as the buyer are going to head for the hills- also known as the house down the block that has the more appealing draw. It might sound superficial, but the statistics are out there. Homes that are prepared for the market, for example, have had the landscaping lovingly maintained, and the interior of the property de-cluttered sell in less than 30 days 94.6% of the time when staged professionally.
Sellers, be aware: homes that are not well taken care of, or aren’t prepared for the market tend to have longer days on market and even fetch less cash from the buyer because the feeling from the buyer is that if the home looks like this now, how has the seller been taking care of it the whole time?
Sellers can do a few things to make their home more attractive when preparing their home for sale.
My top picks to get you started preparing your home for sale:
- Prepare the exterior of the home. Get on the fresh coat of paint, spruce up the landscaping and stay ahead of that inspector.
- De-clutter. Minimize your stuff- pack what you can, and keep your home tidy-tidy-tidy.
- Stage your home. If you have to use your own furniture that is fine, but hiring a stager will help you optimize your space and even a fresh coat of paint indoors if you can is optimal.
- Eliminate any household odors.If you had pets or a smoker in the home, get rid of any indication of these things by professionally cleaning and abating odors. This is a huge factor that some sellers forget about, but buyers don’t.
- Prepare yourself emotionally. Selling your home is an emotional process; know that comments and remarks about the home are not a reflection of you, but what potential buyers say can be taken as feedback to bring you top dollar.
Once you have everything ready by prepping your home for sale, then the marketing time should come. Never put your home on the market until it is ready, or you are just setting yourself up for failure and really asking to lose valuable time on market and dollars in your pocket.
