If you have made the decision to sell your house or any investment property that you might have acquired in the past, you’re not alone. The process can be confusing, and there are many questions you might be asking yourself if you’re a first-time seller. One thing to be clear about is that selling a house goes beyond putting up a ‘for sale’ sign. From the minute you make the decision, there are many things to put in place to smoothen the process. A checklist can help guide you through the whole process and ensure you leave out nothing important. With that in mind, here’s the ultimate checklist to make the house more appealing.
Employ A Real Estate Agent
Once you make the final decision to sell your house, the first thing to do and should be at the top of your checklist is hiring a real estate agent. Never make the mistake of thinking you can do it all by yourself; the result is always a disaster. With the right real estate agent, your house sale will go smoothly and swiftly. Look out for an experienced real estate agent; they would assist you from listing your home to putting up the right price. They also have the right skills to promote your home to buyers and adequately negotiate on your behalf.
Declutter the Home
If making a bad impression is your goal, then cluttering up the place is the best way to do it. The first thing you need to do is make the house less personal; this gives potential buyers a blank canvas to create a mental picture and visualize themselves in the house. A decluttered house looks more spacious and will make a better impression on buyers. Make sure you take out personal items from the house and clear out the storage areas to make space.
Clean Up Thoroughly
This is quite important in every checklist; there is a need to thoroughly clean the house before inviting potential buyers. The best way to do this is to leave the house exactly as you would love to find it. No one wants a dusty, dirty house, and your potential buyers are not any different. If you find the work tedious, there are professional cleaning services to handle it efficiently. Create a separate cleaning checklist to make sure no part of the house is left untouched. Clean the bathrooms and kitchen, wipe the countertops clean, mop floors and pavements, clean up the cabinet, polish your sink fixtures, clean around the refrigerator, and many more. Your cleaning needs to be thorough to ensure your buyers have no reason to be disappointed.
Carry out Maintenance
After you’ve lived in a house for some time, it’s easy to get used to postponing maintenance issues in the house. When it’s time to sell a house, you need to make sure your house is in stellar condition. A properly maintained house attracts better asking prices, and this is what you want. Focus on vital repairs and improvements like leaky faucets, damaged flooring, loose cabinets, plumbing issues, faulty heat, and other maintenance issues.
Provide A Curb Appeal
The first view of buyers counts, and you can improve their first impression by adding a curb appeal. This is sure to attract their attention as they pull up to your home and set you up for a good asking price. If your house’s curb looks plain and unappealing, buyers might not be interested in making an offer. You can trim the bushes, carry out lawn maintenance, try out landscaping, paint the exterior, replace gutters or even add greenery to your home.
Prepare the Home for Staging
You need to stage your home for prospective buyers after cleaning up and decluttering the space. This makes the house even more appealing to prospective buyers who would be coming to take a look. You need to make sure that key rooms look attractive, and just as you’re adding curb appeal, the inside of your home also makes a great impression. If your home is well-staged, it will sell even more quickly and for a good price. You can remove damaged furniture, add new attractive rugs, add modern accessories and greeneries to stage the home perfectly for viewing.
Reference
https://www.mashvisor.com/blog/the-ultimate-checklist-for-selling-a-house/
