Selling your house can be an exciting time. You’re hoping to get the highest price, and you want your house to sell quickly. To expedite the process and eliminate stress and anxiety, you should carefully consider a few things before you stake the “For Sale” sign on the lawn.

Do Your Research

Do your due diligence in finding the right real estate agent. Your realtor should specialize in the type of property you’re selling, and should be familiar with your area. You should have a good rapport with your agent and be able to communicate comfortably. Research realtors in your area, and avoid working with a real estate agent who is part-time, or who is a friend or relative. Give Mark and Debra a call at 662-893-3232 to find out how they intend to market your property.

Price to Sell

Price your property properly. Debra can help you understand comparative pricing by evaluating similar homes for sale in your neighborhood.  Your home is only worth what buyers are willing to pay, and you may not extract from it what you’ve invested. Keep in mind that your asking price may not necessarily be your selling price. Potential buyers have the right to submit bids lower than your initial asking price, and you may be in a position where you must accept the best offer, even if it does not match your asking price. Additionally, your asking price may be reduced over time. The longer your house sits on the market, the more often you may be considering price reductions. To increase the potential offers on your home, you should have your house properly staged, and you may consider including a home warranty.

Consider Home Warranties

You can purchase a home warranty from a home warranty company. A home warranty is designed to protect the structure and certain major systems and appliances such as roofing, plumbing, and electrical work. When an item in your home is faulty, you place a call to the home warranty company. The home warranty company selects a pre-qualified professional contractor to assess and repair the problem areas at a reduced cost to you. When you include a home warranty in the sale of your home, it may garner higher offers as buyers feel more secure. A home warranty may also prove beneficial during the home inspection process.

Stage Your Home

Staging your home means preparing the home for viewing and sale. Staging a home includes de-cluttering. Remove bulky furniture. Re-arrange existing furniture into comfortable conversation areas. Furniture may be more appealing situated away from the walls. When you arrange furniture away from the walls, the area seems larger. Take down any personal pictures, awards, or trophies. You want potential buyers to be able to envision themselves in the house without feeling like they’re encroaching on your space. Keep walls, draperies, floors, and accessories in warm neutral colors, even if this means you have to paint. If floors are in need of repairs, repair or replace them, as well as any other broken or damaged items. Potential buyers prefer a move-in-ready experience without imagining a list of to-do projects and tasks.

Don’t forget the outside of your home when you’re staging a house to sell. Curb appeal is what draws potential buyers in, so make sure the exterior of your home is in good order, trim bushes and trees, make sure lawn furniture is clean and comfortably arranged, and that there are no toys or lawn ornaments scattered about the yard.

Pay Attention to Details

You may receive multiple offers on your house, commonly referred to as a bidding war. Look carefully into the details of each offer. Some buyers make offers that may include more money while other offers have easier terms or more appealing closing dates. For example, one offer may be contingent on the sale of the buyer’s existing home. Mark and Debra will help you understand each offer and guide you in making the right choice.

Once you’ve spoken to Mark and Debra at 901-239-6041, staged and repaired your home for sale, and understand the variables in incoming offers, you’re ready to successfully sell your home.

Congratulations on deciding to sell your home. You’re probably anxious about your upcoming move and are ready to embrace your future. Before you anchor that beloved “For Sale” sign in the front yard, there are some things you can do to guarantee a more inspiring environment for potential buyers and possibly increase bids for higher values. Staging the house you’re selling is one of the most important things you can do in raising the ante on future offers. Staging a home means neutralizing the area so that it’s no longer personal to you and is welcoming to potential buyers. Here are some helpful hints for home staging.

De-Clutter the House

You’ll want to de-clutter your environment. De-clutter not only means eliminating anything you consider to be junk, but it also means reducing the amount of items that are visible during your open house or walk-throughs. Clean out closets and get rid of any clothes that you haven’t worn in a long time. If clothing items are seasonal and you don’t intend to wear them for a while, go ahead and pack them rather than leave them in the closet. Toys, crafts, and miscellaneous tidbits that have found a comfortable resting place seemingly unnoticed in your space should now be discarded, packed, or properly placed in subtle ways. De-cluttering also involves removing some of the furniture if necessary. Areas look smaller with bulky furnishings, so simplify if you can. Don’t be afraid to re-arrange furniture into conversational groupings away from the walls.

Remove Personal Items

Remove any personal items. Although you may adore the large canvas portrait of your household members above the fireplace mantle, potential buyers want to envision their pictures on the wall rather than feeling like they’re encroaching on your territory. You may be in love with your collection of skunk figurines on the shelves, but people walking through your environment may not appreciate skunks the way you do. Trophies, pictures, collectibles, and anything personal to you should now be put away for safe keeping until moving day.

Deep Clean the House With personal items removed and the space de-cluttered, it’s time for deep cleaning. Everything should sparkle and shine, free of dust build-up, stains, or unsightly grunge. Cleaning helps you determine where things just got a bit dirty, or where things might need to be repaired or replaced. If there are stains on the carpet, you may wish to have the carpets cleaned or replaced. Sellers do sometimes offer carpet allowances in their contracts, but buyers are more attracted to a move-in-ready environment than they are to a discount on their bottom line.

Fix It and Make It Neutral

If there are holes in the walls or magic marker sketches you can’t sponge off, painting the walls may be necessary. Try to arrange it so that walls, carpets, drapes, and other fixtures are in warm neutral colors. You might have found that bold burgundy feature wall to be attractive, but neutrals are more appealing to potential buyers. Keep blinds and windows open, adding light to the room and show off any scenic views. Remove any obstacles from sightlines. Make any necessary repairs to major items such as roofing, heating and air units, hot water heaters, or major appliances. These things could be discovered in the home inspection process and cause frustrating delays.

Pay Attention to the Outside

The outside of your house-for-sale is as important as the inside when it comes to staging. Potential buyers are attracted to curb appeal. Drivers by should find your house appealing. Staging the outside of your home includes fixing any broken fixtures such as porch planks or shutters, replacing any broken siding, painting, and landscaping. Clear your yard of overgrown shrubs, tall grass, bikes, toys, or lawn ornaments. Barbecue areas, patio furniture, and outside elements should be clean, tidy, and inviting.

Staging a home doesn’t need to be complicated. However, if you feel overwhelmed in your staging process, there are professional staging companies available for hire, or you can get helpful tips from Mark and Debra.

Moving is an exciting time of change. You can eliminate stress, increase value, and create an enjoyable experience by properly preparing your home for sale. Remove clutter, clean inside and out, make any necessary repairs, and create inviting curb appeal. Then, you can trust your real estate agents, Mark and Debra, to do the help sell your home. Give them a call today at 901-239-6041.