Steps to Selling a Home

Find a Great Real Estate Agent to Price your House Correctly

Think you can sell your home yourself, and pocket the cash you would otherwise pay an agent? It can be tempting, especially in a hot market. Resist this urge! Correct pricing, staging, preparation, negotiating and closing a home sale transaction is very complicated in today’s world. Statistics show many sellers who try to sell on their own get less money for their homes. Going it alone could be leading you to sacrifice both money and time. Determining a listing price is the most important component to consider when putting your house up for sale. In arriving at this figure, we will evaluate the market and set a realistic price based on demand, as well as the condition and location of the house. Rest assured, your Executive agent has the skills & knowledge to help you price to achieve your selling goals.

Consider your Curb Appeal

Make sure the first thing a prospective buyer sees of your home entices them to want to see more. Yes, for better or worse, buyers do tend to judge a book by its cover. By investing some effort in relatively easy fixes like planting colorful flowers and repainting your front door, the outside of your house can beckon them to come on in.

De-clutter your Living Areas

Less is definitely more when it comes to getting your house ready to show. Do a clean sweep of counters, windowsills, tables, and all other visible areas, and then tackle behind closed doors: closets, drawers, and cupboards—since virtually nothing is off-limits for curious buyers. And if the house is overflowing with stuff, they might worry that the house won’t have ample space for their own belongings. Take the excess and donate or pack it up for a storage space. The bonus to taking care of this now? It is one less chore you’ll have to do when it’s actually time to move.

Depersonalize your Space

The next step on your declutter list? You want to remove any distractions so the buyers can visualize themselves and their family living in the house. This includes personal items and family photos, as well as bold artwork and furniture that might make your home less appealing to buyers in general. The goal is to create a blank canvas on which house hunters can project their own visions of living and loving it there.

Repaint with Neutral Colors

You might love your orange accent wall, but if orange is your potential buyer’s least favorite color, this could be a turnoff. You’ll be pretty safe with a neutral color because it's rare that someone hates it. The other benefit is that a light color allows buyers to envision what the walls would look like with the color of their choice. Your Executive agent can provide you with a list of the best staging colors.

Touchup any scuffmarks

Even if you’re not doing a full-on repainting project, pay special attention to scrubbing and touching up baseboards, walls, and doors to make the house sparkle and look cared-for. While you’re at it, fix any loose handles and add some plants; green is good, because plants create a more welcoming environment. You might also want to consider a bouquet of flowers or bowl of fruit on the kitchen counter or dining table.

Clean, clean, clean

And then clean some more! You want your house to look spotless. Take special care with the bathroom, making sure tile, counters, shower and floors shine. Conduct a smell test; foul odors, even slight ones, can be a deal breaker. The problem is that you might not even notice them. Ask an unbiased third party in to try to detect any pet smells or lingering odors from your kitchen. For pervasive smells, you’ll need to do some deep cleaning; most buyers are on to “masking techniques” such as candles or plug-in room deodorizers.

Hide valuables

From art to jewelry, make sure that your treasures are out of sight, locked up or stored offsite.

Consider Staging

Does your house scream 1989? Nothing invigorates a house like some new furnishings or just a perfectly chosen mirror. The key is getting your home staged by a professional. Home stagers will evaluate the items and belongings in your house to determine what elements might raise the bar. They may recommend you buy or rent some items, or may reorganize your knickknacks and bookshelves in a whole new (better) way. Your Executive agent can recommend a stager.