A step-by-step guide to preparing your home for sale in order to achieve the best possible price.
Unless you are the Marie Kondo or Bobby Berk’s of this world, there is undoubtedly at least a dozen things that you can do to spruce up your property before taking it to market to ensure you get the best out of your sale.
Here’s our top 5:
1. Tidy room, tidy mind
It might sound obvious but making sure that your property is clean and tidy is the absolute minimum that you should do when taking a property to market. Ruthless decluttering creates a sensation of space – something all buyers are keen to see. You’ll need to have professional photographs taken and then of course arrange viewings. A home needs to look well maintained, and that includes the outside space too!
2. Journey further
You don’t get a second chance at a first impression and you want to make sure viewers (and agents!) want to go inside the property to view the rest. Keep the outside space clear from debris – make sure bins are out of view where possible (and not over-flowing), grass is cut, and windows frames and doors are cleaned. All of these external elements are evidence that property owners take pride in their home and look after it – a sizeable tick in the box for prospective buyers and a positive start before entering a property.
3. Home is where the heart is
Despite you perhaps holding many fond memories in a property, these are yours to cherish and you need to remember the focus is on the prospective buyers. Not everyone is able to visualise living in a different property or see their own items in situ. Help them out. Keep family photos to a minimum and help buyers see how they can fit in the space – use mirrors as a clever way to tangibly let potential buyers see themselves in the property. Mirrors are also a great feature to open up a darker space by enhancing light and creating a feeling of greater space.
4. The Holy Trinity
Hallways, kitchens and bathrooms. Proven to be the real money makers of a property. Invest your time, energy and money into these spaces and they will elevate your sale. It’s proven that a well-staged hallway can sell a home – it’s the first part of a home you step into every day, so you need to make people fall in love with it. General rule of thumb is keep things light bright and airy where possible, including paint colours, lighting and even doors. If you have a dark hallway with low ceilings, you can transform the space by sticking to light colour paint, glazed doors and uplighting to create a sensation of a lighter and larger entranceway.
Kitchens are generally the hub of a home, it is essential to ensure that these are kept as clutter free and clean as possible. At the end of the day this is where food preparation and potentially meals are eaten so you want people to feel comfortable and know that it’s a safe place to do so. Not only this but it’s where the biggest and most expensive appliances are situated so having a modern and low maintenance kitchen is always a tick for buyers as it can mean less work and costs for them if they were to buy the property.
Last of all are bathrooms – cleanliness and functionality are the top two considerations to prioritise here. It is essential that a bathroom is kept spotless ahead of a viewing – absolutely no one will appreciate walking into another person’s home with towels on the floor, dirty mirrors or unkept sanitary ware. Even if it’s old, keep it clean – the impression is far better!
5. Farewell to furry friends
If pets are in the home, keep the evidence of their presence to an absolute minimum or, ideally, remove it entirely. It can be a deal breaker for some people. Tidy food bowls and litter trays away, wash the areas where they usually sit and remove any signs of pet hair from the property – hoover and refresh all bedding. Depending on the time of year too – opening a few windows and having a few air fresheners or diffusers open will keep the property smelling and feeling fresh!
The main thing to note when looking to sell your property is that, of course, everyone is different and your property won’t always appeal to everyone however you can certainly prepare and make a couple of changes and enhancements to at least give yourself a good chance of achieving the best possible price.
Style sells – if you’re unsure about how best to style a space or room in your property, you can always hire a professional stager, or even do some research yourself. There are plenty of property and design programs available now that can provide plenty of inspiration and ideas.
Tiptop tidy. You can’t deny that a property that is well cared for and kept clean and tidy will sell better than a property that is unkempt and cluttered. Do yourself a favour and keep the place clean and clutter-free.