After months of looking, you’ve found a new house. It’s got everything you’ve ever wanted, but before you can move in, you’re going to have to sell your old place.
Getting your house ready to go on the market is a lot easier said than done. You’re going to have to spend some time fixing up the place. If you fail to declutter and depersonalize, it will be difficult for any buyer to envision themselves in the home.
We’ve got a checklist for selling a house that will help you get started on the process. Keep reading to learn everything you need to do.
Hire a Real Estate Agent
It can be tempting to skip out on hiring a real estate agent and sell your house all on your own. After all, if you do it that way, you’ll be able to pocket all the money instead of paying an expensive commission.
The thing is, going that route almost always leads to the seller spending out more money, and it will take a lot longer to get rid of the property.
Our advice is to narrow your pick down to two or three realtors and give them a call. If they rub you the wrong way during your conversation, you don’t have to hire them.
If you’re having trouble finding realtors to interview, talk to your family and friends that have sold a house recently. They might be able to give you a few names you can work with.
Decide on a Listing Price
The next step is deciding how much you want to list your house for. Doing so is a little trickier than you may think. If you set the bar too high, nobody will be willing to fork over the cash for it.
At the same time, you still want to make a profit, so you can’t set the bar too low. Our recommendation is to head to a realtor’s website and look up houses in your area that are similar to yours. That will give you an idea of where to put your price point.
Consider Your Curb Appeal
When it comes to how to sell a house, first impressions are everything. If your plants are overgrown, and you have a ton of leaves on the ground, it’s not going to impress buyers.
Do yourself a favor and paint your front door, and plant a few colorful flowers in the yard. You would be surprised at how much life these little fixes can breathe back into your home.
If you’re not sure where to begin when it comes to upping your curb appeal, talk to your real estate agent. They’ll most likely be able to throw a few good ideas your way.
Declutter and Depersonalize
If your closets and drawers are overflowing with stuff, it will make your house look junky. That will detract from all the good things that your place has to offer.
In fact, it will make your house appear smaller than normal. Potential buyers might avoid putting in an offer because they’re scared it won’t provide enough room for their things. No matter how much they like your place, they won’t want to take out a mortgage and rent a storage unit at the same time.
After you’re finished decluttering the place, it’s time to depersonalize it. You want the buyers to visualize themselves in the space. They can’t do that if it’s full of your furniture.
If you’ve already bought a new house, you can hire professional movers to transport your things out of the old place. If you haven’t bought a house yet, you can rent out a storage unit.
Repaint Your Walls
You’ve got a beautiful purple focal wall in your living room. It’s always done wonders to brighten the place up. Even so, you’ll need to add painting over it to your home sellers checklist.
Think about it this way. What if you walked into a potential house and saw a wall painted in your least favorite color. It would be a huge distraction.
To this end, paint all your walls a neutral color. That will allow buyers to decide what they want the walls to look like when they move in.
Make Repairs
When buyers walk into your home and see broken cabinet handles and missing lightbulbs, their first thought is going to be, “what else is broken?”
Buyers don’t want to have to pay extra money to fix things that you could have repaired. Besides, giving your home a little TLC will show that the house was well taken care of, which will make people more willing to put in an offer.
Clean
The last step is to clean. The place needs to be spotless before you let buyers walk around in it. Strange odors won’t do you any favors.
Scrub all your floors and countertops. If you think that you’ve cleaned enough, clean again. When you’re done, have someone come in to do a smell test.
You might have gone nose blind to the smells in your place. A friend who’s only over every now and again will be able to point out what you miss.
Your Checklist for Selling a House
One of the hardest parts of moving is getting rid of your old home. If you don’t follow a proper checklist for selling a house, it won’t be easy for you to impress potential buyers.
Do a little decluttering, depersonalize the place, clean, and don’t forget to paint the walls. For more tips that will help you get your home ready for staging, visit the Lifestyle section of our blog.
