Are you about to sell your home or thinking about it?
Before you go ahead and take the plunge you should do
whatever you can to prepare your house so that you get the
best possible price. If you make a systematic survey of
your property and follow it up with some simple cleaning,
repairs and alterations it can make a big difference. The
difference can add up to thousands of dollars so it pays to
pay attention to this preparatory work. Let's take a look
at what is involved in getting a home ready for sale.
There is an old expression "The first impression is the
last impression." So, put yourself in the place of a
prospective buyer and ask yourself what impression would
this buyer get if he or she looked at your house? Try to
keep the viewpoint of the buyer in mind and then correct
any item that would spoil the impression or put someone
off. This is the general idea, and now let's take a more
detailed survey of what has to be done.
As I said, "the first impression is the last impression,"
so it is good to begin with the exterior of the home
because this is what the potential buyer will see first.
Mow your lawn, trim the edges of the lawn and tidy up all
the landscaping around the house. Your house may look
beautiful but if it is framed by an untidy lawn and garden
people will get a bad first impression. In some cases they
may not even get to see your house because shrubs and
bushes are covering everything. So get out the lawnmower
and trimmers and get to work, or get your landscaping
service to give your yard a through tidying up.
When you are finished with the garden work, put away all
tools, garbage cans, hoses, toys and other materials. Put
them neatly into your tool shed or garage.
Continuing with the exterior of the home, make a survey of
important structural items. Are there any broken tiles or
shingles on your roof or siding? If so, fix them.
Similarly, make sure that the gutters are aligned properly
and the windows and door are clean and tidy. Paint your
front door if necessary.
What about your driveway? Does it need to be resurfaced or
resealed? If the answer is yes then get this work done, and
while you are at it make sure your patios, terraces or
decks are in good condition and tidy as well.
Once the outside is in good shape, walk into your home and
look around.
In your entrance foyer or hall be sure to place a bright
bulb. Paint the walls if they are looking worn. Clean the
windows, woodwork and carpeting and place some natural
scents throughout your home. Don't worry if you have to
spend some money on paint or cleaning, you will recuperate
it and more when you sell your house.
The living room is one of the key areas of any home and you
should make it look inviting by getting rid of worn
furniture or of extra furniture. Clear away magazines,
books and other objects that create a cluttered,
disorganized look. If the room is too dark, then add more
lamps and keep the curtains open.
Once you are satisfied with the living room, walk into your
kitchen and look around. Unless your appliances are new, it
would be a good idea to get your oven and stove
professionally cleaned. Clean all your other appliances
and wax or polish your floor. As in the living room, take
away magazines, appliances, and other objects that give a
cluttered look.
Another key area which comes under a lot of scrutiny is the
bathrooms. Clean them thoroughly and fix leaky faucets and
bad plumbing. The sinks, bathtubs, commodes, tiles and
shower curtains should be impeccably spotless. Place color
coordinated towels in the bathrooms and get them looking
like model bathrooms.
Do you have a family room? Make it look inviting by
cleaning it and removing extra objects that create that
messy look. If you have a fireplace be sure that it is
clean and tidy looking. If you have an unfinished basement,
see that the concrete floor is well-swept. Clean the water
heater and put strong bulbs in all light fixtures.
In your bedrooms the main thing is to make them appealing
by neatly arranging your clothing. Your closets will look
bigger if you remove your off-season clothing and store
them somewhere else. You are going to move anyway, so you
may as well get them packed up now. It may be more
difficult to straighten up your children's bedrooms, but
ask your kids to clean up their rooms and get them looking
neat and presentable.
If you have other areas that are not covered by this
survey, the same principles apply: Look at them as if you
are a prospective buyer and make the adjustments that will
create the best possible impression.
Don't be afraid to invest time or money in preparing your
house for sale. Remember, you have one chance to make a
good first impression and whatever effort you put into
improving the look of your home is likely to be returned to
you in the form of a higher selling price. So, if you are
serious about selling your home, roll up your sleeves and
get to work.
----------------------------------------------------
Hamed Mahmood Salehi is a Toronto Real Estate Broker. His
website
http://www.FindYourHomeValue.ca/
offers great
tips for home buyers and sellers, free home evaluation,
real estate news and information about Toronto home values.
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