If you’re considering selling your home in Macomb County, check out the ten things you can do right now to make the whole process easier.
10 Things to Do NOW if You’re Thinking About Selling Your Home
your real estate agent will walk through a series of tasks you should complete to make it easier to sell your home. However, you can get a head start if you:
- Find your dream team
- Boost your home’s curb appeal
- Declutter
- Depersonalize
- Clean
- Go for neutral colors
- Make repairs
- Bring in live plants
- Give every room a purpose
- Invest in the right lighting
Scroll down for a closer look at each.
Task #1 to Sell Your Home: Find Your Dream Team
The most successful real estate deals are built by a high-quality team of professionals. First and foremost, you need a real estate agent you can trust to put your best interests first every step of the way. From there, you may need to add other professionals to the mix, such as a general contractor to make repairs, a painter, and possibly even a professional home stager.
Task #2 to Sell Your Home: Boost Your Home’s Curb Appeal
Prospective buyers will begin forming an impression of your home before they even walk through the front door. That means you need to make sure that your home’s exterior looks fantastic. You boost curb appeal by:
- Cutting the grass
- Power-washing your driveway
- Making sure all your windows sparkle
- Investing in a new mailbox and new house numbers, if necessary
- Adding seating to your front porch
- Freshening up flower beds and grooming plants in your front yard
Task #3 to Sell Your Home: Declutter
buyers want to see that they’ll have enough room to store all their belongings in your home. That means you need to remove some of your belongings so your space doesn’t appear cluttered.
A good rule of thumb is to take out anything that you haven’t used in six months or more. Additionally, you should remove furnishings that are too big for the rooms that they’re in. You don’t have to get rid of these items; instead, you can put them in a storage unit until you move into your new home.
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Task #4 to Sell Your Home: Depersonalize
You want buyers to be able to visualize themselves living in your home, but that’s tough for them to do when the home is clearly yours. Depersonalize your decor by taking down family photos and replacing them with more generic art.
You should also remove kitschy sayings from the walls, as well as any collections you have on display or anything that a prospective buyer might deem controversial (such as religious or political decor).
Task #5 to Sell Your Home: Clean
Your home needs to be cleaned from top to bottom before you put it on the market. For many people, the best solution is to hire a professional cleaning team. That way, the home is deep-cleaned and ready to show; all you need to do is maintain what the experts have done while your home is on the market.
If hiring a professional cleaning team isn’t in the cards for you, that’s okay; just make sure you don’t miss anything important while you’re scouring your space.
Task #6 to Sell Your Home: Go for Neutral Colors
If you have accent walls painted in bold colors, or if you have kids rooms with special paint schemes, now is the time to go neutral. Don’t risk turning buyers off over a simple cosmetic issue! Talk to your real estate agent about the best paint colors to use or air on the side of caution and choose simple shades (but not plain white).
Task #7 to Sell Your Home: Make Repairs
If your home needs any repairs, make them before you list it for sale. The reason behind this is simple: Most buyers hire a home inspector after making an offer on a home. Any issues that the home inspector uncovers become negotiation points for buyers. In some cases, buyers will ask you to make the repairs at your own expense; in other cases, buyers will ask for a credit or ask you to lower your sales price for the home. If you make all of the repairs now, you don’t need to worry about negotiating small points with buyers later.
Task #8 to Sell Your Home: Bring in Live Plants
Live plants are great for making a space feel like home, so add some before your real estate agent takes your listing photos. If you’re not the best gardener, don’t worry – there are several plants that are extremely easy to care for, such as peace lilies and mother-in-law’s tongue, that buyers love.
Task #9 to Sell Your Home: Give Every Room a Purpose
Every room in your home should have a distinct purpose. That way, buyers can use their imaginations to envision themselves living there. If you have a catch-all room that serves as a guest bedroom, workout space and home office, pick one purpose and stick with it. And if you have a spare room, talk to your real estate agent about what buyers are looking for; then, you can stage the space the right way to encourage buyers to make an offer.
Task #10 to Sell Your Home: Invest in the Right Lighting
Buyers like to see well-lit, bright spaces – and even more importantly, brightly lit rooms appear larger than dim ones do. If you have dark corners, consider adding floor lamps. Additionally, if you have a light fixture that seems to siphon light rather than cast it all over the room, think about replacing it. You can head to your favorite home improvement store to find great deals on modern light fixtures and lamps.
Pro Tip: If you have heavy drapes blocking out natural light in any of your rooms, replace them with lighter pieces.
Are You Buying or Selling a Home in Macomb County?
If you’re ready to find out how much your home is worth, call us at 586-648-1728 or get in touch with us online now. We’ll give you a free home valuation – no strings attached!
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