10 Tips for Selling Your Home

By Callie Strother, Social Media Coordinator, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

Just because the weather is getting cooler it doesn’t mean you should put your home selling needs on hold. Fall is the perfect time to put your home up for sale and the buyers are still out there. The number of homes sold during the month of September in the Triad area increased around 10.5% from the previous year and it isn’t showing any signs of stopping. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices has some helpful tips to share with you today that will help ensure success in the home-selling process any time of the year!

10. Make sure you update.
Shag carpet, printed wallpaper and bold paint colors. Choosing to not upgrade the interior of your home is a major weak spot for future offers. If you aren’t in the position to upgrade your home, be prepared to offer a decorative allowance or to drop the price accordingly.

9. Be ready for showings.
Always ensure that your home is in showing condition so that you can give the go ahead at a moment’s notice. Using a centralized showing service would also ensure that you can respond as quickly as possible to a request for showing. Remember, if your house isn’t being viewed by anyone, you won’t be selling it anytime soon.

8. Seller interference.
Enlist the help of a real estate agent.  We tend to think that our homes are the most beautiful and want to overshare our opinions with those who come for a showing. Let your real estate agent do their job and take a back seat during this critical part of the selling process.

7. Get rid of smells. 
If you smoke or own animals, you need to make sure that your home is thoroughly cleaned before a showing. Tobacco smoke sticks to furniture, tapestry and paint. So repaint your home, clean the drapes and get the carpets and furniture cleaned. No matter how gorgeous your home is, if it smells like Fluffy or a cigar shop, you won’t be getting any offers.

6. Declutter.
Not all of us can be perfectly clean and organized, but if you are showing your home then you need to try your best. Removing clutter from the main living areas can open up a home and improve the cleanliness factor. When someone views a home they want to be able to picture themselves living there, so the less of your personal belongings filing up the office and the breakfast nook, the better.

5. Increase your curb appeal. 
First impressions are the most important part of relationship building and that holds true for real estate. If someone isn’t attracted to the outside of a home, what is going to convince them to see the inside? Make sure you spend that extra time and money to trim the bushes, plant some flowers and power wash the front porch. That extra time spent is worth so much more than your home sitting on the market for extra days. You never get a second first impression.

4. Do a deep clean.
It should go without saying that if your home is dirty, it won’t be appealing. It doesn’t have to be sterile, but the home should never show remnants of this morning’s breakfast and yesterday’s muddy soccer cleats. Having to keep your home in tip top shape for showings is a huge inconvenience, but the less time your home is on the market the less time you have to spend cleaning every day.

3. Make repairs.
Your home should be in sound condition, if not for safety than for appearance. Anything that you try to let slide during the selling process will more than likely be found during the final inspection, so save you and your future home buyers some headaches and take the time to ensure that all necessary repairs have been made.

2. Location.
Unfortunately, we aren’t all able to live in gated communities or in the best school district. But if your home is in a high traffic/high crime area, don’t price it like it is in Green Acres. Be realistic to the location and desire of your home so you can price accordingly.

1. Price.
Keep up with current market trends in your area so that you don’t shoot yourself in the foot with a bad price. Get a conservative appraisal instead of pricing with high hopes. No one will ever buy their dream home if the price isn’t
right.

Sponsored by Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices