By: Amanda Ferrari, Bend Realtor
Does the process of putting your home on the market feel daunting and overwhelming? By focusing your time and energy on these 5 steps, you will be able to sell your home for the most amount of money in the least amount of time.
Step #1: Create Curb Appeal-
The buyer's first impression of your home is critical. If your home is lacking in landscaping, it can be worth your time and money to add a pop of color with some flowers and shrubs. If you have vegetation around your home, you will want to be sure that it is not touching your house. You will want to trim back plants, shrubs, and trees as needed so your property appears neat and well maintained.
Something you may not realize is that when a buyer is looking at your house the realtor will need to use the blue tooth on their phone to open the lockbox and unlock your door. This can take 30 seconds or more. During this time the buyers are standing out on your porch and what they can see from your porch makes a strong first impression. Make sure the porch is tidy and consider adding freshening up your front door with some fresh paint.
Step #2: De-personalize your space
We all have different styles, and although you love your decorations, prospective buyers may not. They want to be able to imagine their stuff in your home. I suggest boxing up items that you will not be needing to use over the next couple of months. For example, clear off your kitchen countertops, clear out your closet, and take down photos. This will also make your home feel more spacious.
Step #3: Consider interior paint Updating your walls with a fresh coat of paint will go a long way and is worth the investment. Be sure to stick with neutral colors. We are seeing a shift away from grey and toward more beige tones. To be safe, I recommend an off-white.
Step #4: Clean and polish
This is something you can do yourself, but if you are exhausted from everything else, this might be a good time to hire a professional cleaner. Your real estate agent should be able to connect you with someone they know and trust. You want your home to be the cleanest it has ever been when your professional photos are taken.
Once your home is listed you will want to minimize messes so plan simple meals or treat yourself to meals out. With kids and pets, this can be especially challenging. We use to have our kids watch a movie in the car when we were doing a last-minute clean before a showing.
Step #5 Make repairs
The majority of home buyers want to move into a house that is turn-key. They don’t want to have to spend time and money fixing it up after they move in. I’m not saying to remodel, I am suggesting you make repairs if something is not working.
You don’t want potential buyers to see that something is broken and start to wonder what else has been neglected. For example, it is worth your efforts to replace damaged window screens, repair walls, and make sure light fixtures are working properly. Additionally, these repairs will come up on the home inspection and so you might as well conquer them sooner than later.
By following these 5 steps you will be able to sell your home in less time and for more money. I hope you found this information helpful! Please reach out if you need help with prepping your Bend home for sale, I would love to help!