What You Might Not Know to Look For At an Open House
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Whether you are newly listing your home or are in the process of re-listing following the holiday season, read below for a few smart selling tips for 2014 that can help achieve your selling goals in a competitive market.
1. Make Your Property Standout
Differentiating your home from neighboring homes (in an aesthetically pleasing manner) will make your property standout and potentially add value. Consider landscaping, an addition to enhance an already existing amenity (such as a gated patio or deck for a swimming pool), or even a new roof.
Keep in mind that practicality is essential! Make sure to do some research before spending a lot on something that might not have much of a return. If you already have custom or remarkable features, make sure to inform your agent so that it can be included with any marketing or listing information.
2. Don’t Underestimate Curb Appeal
You can have the most devastatingly beautiful interior or backyard space, but if the exterior of the home is not up to snuff, it’s an instant turn-off to a buyer. The first impression of a home can make or break your smart selling appeal so make sure the home has been freshly painted, the landscaping is maintained, and that it either blends in or doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb compared with the rest of the neighborhood.
3. “Move-In” Condition = Desirable
While the appearance of a home is essential, having the home in as close to “move-in” condition as possible is also extremely important. This means doing whatever you can as the seller to make sure everything is up to code and in working order, from small elements such as locks and door handles working properly, to bigger elements like plumbing and electrical fixtures. A home can be hard to resist when a buyer knows they can move right in with a minimal amount of items on their “to-do” list.
4. The Price is Right
Settling on the right price to list your home for is not always an easy feat. You have to take into consideration what comparable properties in the area are selling/listed for, as well as how your home stacks up to these figures. Compare elements such as square footage and amenities.
Working with an agent that you trust is key, due to several reasons, and trusting them to help determine a proper listing price is a huge one. Your agent should have a very good idea of what your property is worth and what similar properties in the market are being listed for.
If you have made substantial improvements then it wouldn’t make sense to price lower…however, you do want to price the home fairly. Do your own research, as well. This way when you are working on a listing agreement with your agent, there won’t be any surprises on is an appropriate price.
5. Consider Hiring a Stager
Potential buyers touring your home WILL attempt to imagine themselves living there. Hiring a stager will help you reduce clutter and rearrange furniture and décor to make rooms appear larger and more appealing to the buyer. Staging fees can range depending on if you just require basic staging or more involved staging (renting furniture, artwork, etc).
It is a common belief in the real estate industry that working with a stager does help sell a home more often than not, so it is definitely worth looking into. Any good agent will have at least a couple of quality stagers that they can refer, which is a great place to start when it comes to smart selling.
Regardless of whether it’s a buyer’s market or a seller’s market, a motivated seller should keep these tips in mind when attempting to list their property. Great curb appeal, a custom feature that also adds value to the home, beautiful landscaping, a clutter-free environment, move-in ready conditions, and a fair price will put a seller well on their way to finding their buyer.
In the market to purchase? Check out some of our featured listings such as Meadowood Lane, Gehricke Road, Sobre Vista, Ehlers Lane, or White Sulphur Springs!
