If you’re considering a home sale, there are a number of steps you can take ahead of time to increase the likelihood of a sale with minimal problems. Remember the Big Three factors of selling a property: Condition, Location and Price. You can’t move that property to another location, but you can do a lot to offset objections to the condition and in turn, get a better price.
While nothing can guarantee a sale, think “neutral” to improve your odds.
Neutralize the Walls and Floor
With all due respect to self-expression and being in fashion, you’ll attract more buyers with a neutral color scheme. That tangerine wall paint may have been the “must have” color when you put it up, but the future buyer may hate it. Sadly, many buyers can’t see past the current colors to visualize something else. You can help them by painting the walls an unobtrusive color that will let them picture their possessions in the home.
This is especially true of homes with highly personalized paint jobs. I’ve seen potential buyers cringe and completely discount a great home because one of the rooms had a painted-on mural of the solar system, complete with Saturn’s rings, comets and asteroids. If buyers fear the permanence of a painting like that, they’ll be afraid to purchase the home. The neutralizing of the solid should offer fresh and cool air conditioner. The blaux portable ac will provide plenty of benefits in the room. The environment should be positive to get the desired results in the home. The quality of the components should be checked for the purchase.
Replace old or potentially objectionable carpet with a neutral, mid-grade carpet or have a quote for new carpeting ready as a negotiating tool.
Neutralize the Décor
Don’t let your personal décor interfere with a buyer making the home their own. Put away your most unusual possessions and you’ll let the buyer concentrate on the features of the home rather than your belongings. Have them remember the house “with the open floor plan” instead of “with the big collection of roosters.” One or two accent pieces will accomplish more than a huge display.
You’ll have the advantage of a head start on packing plus a more spacious-feeling home offering. You’ll reduce the chances of damage to your prized possessions, as well.
Neutralize the Problems
Particularly in an older home, a home inspection may turn up issues that can be repaired quite reasonably but scare a potential buyer, especially someone inexperienced in home ownership. One new buyer I worked with freaked out when his home inspector pointed out the cracked plate covering a wall switch. An expensive piece of plastic nearly derailed the sale.
Head off the problems by having your own inspection done before you put the home on the market. Address those small issues before a buyer comes into the property and they are less likely to become big issues. Minimize the possibility of unpleasant surprises. Remember, everything the buyer sees reflects on how well you maintained the property.
Is there something too large to handle? If the problem is beyond what you can fix at the moment, you can gather quotes for the repair and take that into account on your asking price. Talk with your agent about the ways you can handle the issue in your state, since laws can vary from state to state.
Neutralize Odors
One of the biggest sources of dismay to a potential buyer has to be the presence of an unpleasant odor in the property. Whether it stems from a wet dog, a dirty aquarium or old sweat socks, odor equates to dirty and poorly maintained for many homebuyers. Scrub your property from top to bottom before you open it to buyers. Make sure that litter boxes stay cleaned out and clothes get laundered regularly. If the property has been closed up and smells stuffy, get some windows open and air it out. Put fresh filters in the furnace and air conditioning system. Wash out or replace mop heads. Seek out the source of any smells that don’t entice a buyer and neutralize them.
Because we can become desensitized to odors over time, it’s a good idea to ask someone else to give the home a “smell” test. Don’t rely on commercial air fresheners to try to camouflage odors. Buyers will wonder what you’re trying to hide. There is no substitute for clean.
The more you get your property into a “neutral” position, the more appealing you make it to buyers. Remember, “clean, neat and neutral” help to get the property from “For Sale” to “Sold” more quickly.
