Staging your home to sell. Small things make a big difference

When you are selling your home, you are also competing with other houses for sale in the area and price range. Staging your home to sellW can set it apart, or help it sell faster or for a higher price than asking. Keep reading.

People want to buy a house that looks cared for. They want to feel as though they are making a wise investment and that there will not be a lot of nasty “surprises” in the future. There are some simple things that you can do to make it look more appealing to buyers, which can potentially result in multiple offers, leading to a higher profit for you, the seller.

Plant some flowers or hire a landscaper to clean up the yard. Excessive yard work is a deterrent to many people. Walking onto a property that has overgrown hedges and trees can be daunting to people that have little or no experience with plants and can be interpreted as a large additional expense added to the cost of the home.

Power washing the outside of the house and the driveway is also a nice way to freshen up the exterior.  Install new house numbers or a new mailbox. The outside space is the first thing that the buyer is going to see.

Fix those little things. You know the things you never get around to fixing. The crooked or squeaking front door, replacing broken screens on windows, kitchen cupboard doors or doorknobs, the sticky utensil drawer, unfinished baseboards, replacing burned out light bulbs, broken doorbell, you know, the little things. A lot of little things can add up to big things in buyer’s heads.  Make a list. Organize yourself and be realistic about how long things take, or hire a handy person and hand over your list over to them.

Clean- it seems obvious but it is a very important thing. Running the vacuum through is a good start, but just the beginning. Clean spider webs, wash windows and the insides of appliances. Wipe away mold that may have built up inside the window frames. Wash or replace window coverings, Dust blinds and ceiling fans, Clean the inside of overhead light fixtures. Wipe down the walls, clean the corners, inside cupboards, under the sink, Touch up any marks on the walls or apply a fresh coat of paint.

Paint

This is a way to really freshen up your home; bright neutral colours make a room feel bigger and airy. Freshly painted baseboards look sharp. Painting the insides closets and cupboards can make a big difference and make something old look new again.

Furniture

Buyers like to see how you have set up the room so that they can either envision their own furniture in the room or think about buying new stuff before moving. Empty rooms make it difficult for them to imagine how their belongings will fit in or how they will set up the room. It may reduce their ability to imagine themselves in the home. Buy some healthy looking plants to add life and colour.

Upgrade

If you decide to upgrade a room, it could be as simple as the entranceway. To buyers, this is their first impression of the inside of the house. A fresh coat of paint, new light fixture and flooring could really give the right first impression.

The kitchen is also a very important area that can be upgraded; old appliances can also be interpreted as an additional expense that the buyer may have to incur in addition to the cost of the house.  Look at appliances that are easy to keep looking clean and new to reduce the amount of daily cleaning you have to do.

Declutter or Minimize

Clutter can be overwhelming to potential buyers. Don’t be afraid to tuck your collections of books, knick knacks, and collectibles out of sight and allow the potential buyer to envision their own stuff in it place. Even reducing clutter take an over stuffed bookshelf and put half of it away in boxes. This can also be applied to cleaning products or areas like closets and under the kitchen and bathroom sink. People look there. They do.

Written by Ali Penko, at the Valley Vibe. Port Alberni’s fast growing community and online magazine. The passion here at the Valley Vibe is to showcase the beautiful of our valley for all who live here, and travel through. Working together with many talented writers, we at the Valley Vibe love to explore, discover and uncover secret jewels about Port Alberni and Sproat Lake.