Whether you are trying to sell your house on your own or use a real estate agent, there’s a lot of work required from you.
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You want to get your home ready to sell and to show off. You’ll probably be spending a lot of time doing open house showings, and there’s a lot of work that goes into making your house show ready.
Here are some tips that will help you if you’ve never tried to sell your home before or if you’ve been trying to sell it and are struggling to make a sale.
Fix the Fixtures and Appliances
Anything that’s going to be left with the house when you sell it should be in good working order. So, if you’re not leaving the fridge behind, you don’t have to make sure the ice maker is working. However, if the stove will be left with the house, it should be cleaned and functioning properly.
Check all the fixtures throughout the house to make sure that they’re in good working order. If you’re having to show off your house and tell potential buyers that the bathroom faucet just needs to be wiggled a few times or the toilet handle has to be held down to function properly, you may lose a few buyers right then and there. Not many people are not looking to come into a home that has a lot of problems, and some of the easiest problems to find are with the different fixtures and appliances in your home.
Repair the Systems
The interested buyers that will be looking a little more closely at your home are going to check the plumbing, electrical systems, and HVAC. They may want to try all the switches, look in the vents, and simply make sure everything is working like it should. These are going to be the lengthiest and involved home showings, but they are also the ones that are most likely to pay off with a sale.
You want those interested buyers to stay interested and to know that they’re getting a home that’s not a fixer upper.
That doesn’t mean everything about your house has to be perfect and that you have to remodel all the rooms to make them look current and fresh, but you should ensure that all the systems in the home are functioning well. Any faulty system is likely to cost you a sale, and it’s worth the extra effort to get those longstanding problems fixed and to check for issues you might not have noticed before.
Clean Like Never Before
You may be perfectly happy with how clean your home looks, but that doesn’t mean someone who is interested in buying it well have the same standards of cleanliness. Some of them may want a higher level of clean in the home, and you’ve got to be ready to accommodate them.
You will improve your home’s resale value by getting it spotlessly cleaned. Maybe you’ve tried scrubbing out some of those stains and brightening the tiles in the bathroom to no avail. It may be time to call in some domestic help to do the work for you, having professionals take care of this part of preparing your home while you work on other aspects.
If you’re serious about selling your home, you’ll keep it clean at all times, ready for interested
buyers to come in and peruse your house. That can feel like a lot of work, but once you’ve done that initial deep clean, keeping it clean is not as difficult. That’s going to mean wiping down counters and washing up the dishes as soon as they’re dirty, sweeping floors every single day, dusting on a regular basis, and doing other house chores routinely to keep things looking pristine.
Look for Leaks
One thing a lot of home buyers will ask about is a condition of the roof. They may not want to go up and look at the roof, but they will probably inspect from below as well as they can. This means they’ll be looking at the ceiling for evidence of cracks and leaks as well as water spots.
They might want to go up in the attic and looked at the underside of the roof.
They’ll probably check throughout the house for leaks as well. If you have a basement, then they want to inspect for signs of water coming in there or check out the laundry room to see if water may be leaking somewhere. When you have a leak in your home and the water starts to pool, that can create unpleasant smells, as mold tends to grow in those areas. You may not be able to see the water leaks, but you can smell the mold after it gets bad enough. Do a sniff test in rooms where water might get in or there might be leaks to see if you need to get rid of some mold and handle some water issues.
Deal with the Pests
Imagine you are showing the house off to someone and things are going well until suddenly they spot a cockroach skittering across the floor. Do you think they are really be interested in your house then? No one wants to come into a home and deal with pest problem right away. If you have rats, mice, cockroaches, bed bugs, termites, or even ants in the home, these can really deter potential buyers.
Do whatever it takes to get rid of the pest, including cleaning them up yourself, spraying for bugs and other pests, and even hiring exterminators to deal with the problem. You don’t want any pests showing up when it’s time for a house showing.
Closing Thoughts
Showing off your house can be a lot of stress or it can be easy and breezy, depending on the kind of work you put into your home. Follow this checklist and you’ll be well on your way to making your home presentable and show worthy.