How to prepare your house for sale

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17 Sep How to prepare your house for sale

Welcome to Part two of our How to Sell Your House blog series. In part one we took a look at how timing when to go to market can be the difference between getting a quick sale at the right price and not.

Part of our responsibility as the leading independent estate agents in Colnbrook and the surrounding areas is to ensure that our clients have the right advice to make informed decisions about their property options. This latest edition in our blog series looks at how best to prepare your property before going to market.

If you would like to speak to a member of our team about your property options please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us on 01753 683000 or email us.

Preparing your property

First impressions really do count so you need to ensure that you prepare your home for sale. Making sure that your property is appropriately prepared for the estate agent to photograph is one thing, but ensuring it is shown to its full glory during viewings is something else.

Targeting

Consider who your target market is. What type of person/people will your type of property appeal to? What type of buyer do you think will be most interested in your property? The trick is to make your home appeal to your target market without alienating other types of buyers.

Disassociate yourself

Disassociate yourself from your property as much as possible and put yourself in the shoes of a potential buyer. How would it look if you were seeing it for the very first time? What impression would you leave with? Some agents suggest that removing personal items such as photographs and ornaments help potential buyers to imagine living in the property. We think that personal touches make a property feel homely and loved. A balance between the two will usually work best.

De-clutter

Over time you tend to accumulate belongings. Whether it’s clothing, footwear, old tech, books or toys, these things clutter up the space and can have your home feeling claustrophobic and messy. Take this opportunity to clear out all the clutter that has built up while you have been living at your property.

Be ruthless, start by throwing away unwanted items and storing away ornaments. The key is to make space and show your home off in all its glory. That means fewer ornaments, tidying away of pet paraphernalia, removal of stray toys and general fall out from living in the house.

Clean

We’re talking spotless here. Make sure your house is as clean as it’s ever been. Clean walls, carpets, sofas, windows and all surfaces. Focus particularly on cleaning the bathroom and kitchen as grime can build up quickly in those areas. Make sure you dust, polish, remove any lime scale and tackle the tile grout. This will all help your home look lighter, brighter and oddly enough, bigger!

Tackle the DIY

Remember that DIY you’ve been putting off? Now is the time to get it done. Make sure any partially finished projects are completed and that everything is finished to a good standard. It could include something as trivial as replacing broken light bulbs, repairing paint chips, giving the front door or walls a fresh lick of paint, or dealing with creaking hinges, dripping taps or cracked tiles.

Spruce up the interior

Whatever you do, don’t start a major renovation or development. Instead, simply freshen up the interior. Make your home look light, airy and warm. You can paint parts of walls or doors that are looking tired, hang mirrors up to give the feeling of space and strategically place extra lighting, such as a lamp, in corners. You would be amazed at what a lick of paint can do to a property and prospective buyers often like to see a blank canvass to help them imagine making their mark on the property.

External areas

Don’t forget kerb appeal. Make sure you tidy up the outside of your property, the garden and driveway too. Wash the windows, repair damaged fences, cut the grass, trim the flowerbeds and clear any pathways. Throw away dead plants and empty pots. Store away tools and other garden equipment, such as hoses.

Contact Us

Remember, as the leading independent estate agents in Colnbrook and the surrounding areas we are location experts and are always happy to talk you through your property options. You can contact us on 01753 683000 or email us. You can also follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

image: r.classen