When you’re selling your house, you want to get the most you can and get it sold as quickly as you can. Here are 19 simple tips to guarantee you get a speedy and profitable sale!
Make sure that everything that should be in a cupboard is tidied away. This means your cleaning supplies and your kid’s toys. Put those quirky ornaments on the mantelpiece into storage; I know you love them, but potential buyers probably don’t.
Consider removing or spacing any bulky furniture that makes the room feel small. The same goes for any heavily patterned rugs. It’s is often a good idea to remove these for the photographs. You want the space to feel as light and airy as possible.
Be careful not to go too far and leave the room bare. Prospective buyers are looking for a home, so show them your home is welcoming. If you have been using a spare bedroom for storage, then clear it out and make it look like a bedroom again. 81% of buyers say that staging a home helps them to imagine living there.
Make any minor repairs necessary – holes in walls, broken doorknobs, cracked tiles, torn or threadbare carpets. Re-seal around baths and sinks, touch up any peeling paint or wallpaper.
A poll showed that 63% of buyers were willing to pay a premium for a house if they didn’t have to do any work to it.
Clean everything until it sparkles, particularly kitchens and bathrooms. Get rid of limescale and mould, clean and repair tile grout and sealant.
Consider hiring a professional carpet cleaner, to present a clean and fresh smelling property.
Remove any odours, ask a friend to give you an honest opinion particularly if you have pets
The garden is often the first impression for a buyer. Tidy up the garden: cut bushes back, clean the patio area, and set up some furniture, don’t forget to cut the grass and if possible, stain/paint any woodwork such as gates and fences. Spending a few hundred pounds to increase your house’s kerb appeal has been shown to give 3-4 times back when sold.
As people visualise themselves using the garden, you increase your chances of selling.
In the winter this can often be difficult so consider some big planters with false flowers to add a little bit of colour, you can always take them with you.
The kitchen is usually the most valuable room in a house with 79% of buyers saying they would pay a premium for an updated kitchen.
You may not be able to install a new kitchen, but you can make sure it looks it’s best
Remove bulky appliances and declutter the surfaces. Only leave out things that will improve a buyer’s impression of the house, like a fruit bowl or some flowers. If you have room for a table and chairs, then this will help people to imagine living there.
Wall mirrors make a room look much bigger and lighter. Consider putting some up, especially in smaller rooms or hallways
Replace any broken light bulbs and ensure that you have lamps on in any dark corners. Making sure there is enough light will make rooms feel much larger and more inviting.
Sometimes it is a good idea to dress windows with blinds or curtains as naked windows often make a property feel impersonal.
Plants and flowers bring colour, life and light to a room; also, they smell wonderful, so does that fruit bowl on your kitchen counter.
Having an Air freshener to hand before a viewing attends is always a nice touch to neutralise any smells.
