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Golden Corridor | ROX! Magazine
R E A L E S T A T E ROX
SPRING FORWARD to Selling Your Home Contributed by Staff Reports
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he first day of spring has officially passed and summer is not too far off. If you are thinking of listing your home for sale, here are a few tips to maximize your sale price. • CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN – nothing takes money off faster in the minds of buyers than a dirty house. A thorough, deep cleaning will create a positive impression in the minds of those who look at your home. Pay attention to the details: dust and clean the baseboards, remove cobwebs, have the carpets professionally cleaned and the tile grout steamed. Don’t forget to wash the windows so they sparkle. • DE-CLUTTER and DE-PERSONALIZE - while you love your collection of every Beanie Baby ever made, the potential buyer may not be able to see past the three room display. Pack up unnecessary personal items and store the boxes out of sight, preferably in a storage facility. To make rooms appear larger, store unused furniture, especially oversized, ornate pieces. A few photos of family on the wall are much better than most of the wall covered in family photos. • CONSIDER HIRING A PROFESSIONAL HOME STAGER – a consultation with a
professional stager or interior designer can take your home from bland to WOW for minimal cost. Most work with your existing furnishings and can offer suggestions on inexpensive decorating ideas to improve that first impression. • LET THERE BE LIGHT – open the blinds and let the sun shine in! Natural light brightens rooms and makes the rooms more spacious • PAINT, the MAGICAL FIX – a new coat of paint, in a neutral shade is a relatively inexpensive way of improving the appearance of the home. Avoid bold, personal color choices. While you love your RED kitchen, some people can’t imagine living in vivid Technicolor. • FIX THE PROBLEMS – before you list your home, go through and repair or replace all the things you have been putting off. A long list of broken items screams NEGLECT to the buyers. Their home inspector will find these problems and more. Don’t forget to get your HVAC system serviced. Consider purchasing a home warranty with seller coverage. This way, if anything covered breaks before the home is sold, you’re covered. An added bonus, the warranty is transferrable to the buyer!
• FRESHEN THE LANDSCAPING – reseed the thin patches of grass, spray the weeds and trim the trees and shrubs back from the jungle. If your backyard is a blank slate (i.e. bare dirt), at least make it a clean blank slate. Remove all weeds and trash. Don’t forget to pick up after your pets! A few colorful plants near the entrance make great curb appeal. Fix any leaking sprinklers. While cleaning and minor repairs will boost your resale value, not all improvement projects are worth the cost. Your real estate professional can share with you information on comparable sales in your area. Some upgrades such as granite or tile flooring, while desired, may not increase the resale value of your home. But not having them in other neighborhoods could actually hurt your ability to sell. A good suggestion when thinking of listing your home, take a drive and visit a few open houses in your area and see what your competition looks like. Listen to your real estate professional’s suggestions. They preview lots of homes and hear the comments from buyers. Use this information to your advantage and make your home the buyer’s first choice.