Tips on Preparing Your Home to Attract Buyers

In today’s softer residential real estate market, extra special attention must be given to preparing a home for show to potential buyers. When it’s a buyer’s market, sellers have to work a little harder to show their property to its best advantage.

Here are some tips on how to quickly and easily prepare a home to attract buyers:

1. Carefully consider the home’s curbside appeal - what the person sees from the curb. The potential buyer’s first impression is often the most important one because it determines whether he or she wants to view the property!
2. Sprucing up the landscape, especially in the front yard, is easy and inexpensive. Add colorful flowering plants. Water and fertilize grass well so that it is green and lush. Make sure lawn, bushes and trees are well-trimmed.
3. The front door should be in excellent condition. This is the home’s primary symbol; it reflects the home’s general condition and gives an impression that affects one’s experience with the rest of the house.
4. Give both the exterior and the interior of the home a fresh coat of paint where applicable. More than anything else, this will suggest newness and freshness.
5. Repair leaky faucets, loose knobs and handles, crooked cabinet doors . . . anything that may give the wrong impression of the home’s overall condition.
6. Make sure shelves and counters are neat and empty as possible. The current trend is a clean, sleek look. Remove all objects and papers that make a room appear cluttered.
7. Remove extraneous furniture, especially furniture that blocks traffic patterns. The emptier a room is, the more spacious it looks.
8. When showing property, be sure to open all blinds and drapes so the room looks bright and cheerful. If necessary, turn on lights to brighten a dark space.

The following more costly and time-consuming improvements create greater appeal and frequently add value to the selling price of a home:

1. Additional fireplaces. This will add to the value of the property plus an average of 38 percent.
2. A new bathroom will reap the cost of the room plus 27 percent upon selling the property.
3. Remodeled kitchen, especially "gourmet" or "chef’s" kitchen.
4. French windows or doors. New floors and carpeting.

The addition of a swimming pool is usually not worth the investment. It is estimated that a pool will result in a 67 percent loss of its initial cost. Also, many buyers do not want the security or maintenance problems that come with a pool.

In general, stick to cosmetic or visible improvements. Structural or foundation work, new plumbing, or heating and air conditioning systems are not effective in selling your house. Of course, if this kind of work is required, it must be revealed to the potential buyer.

Finally, make sure the potential buyers understand what items are included in the home’s selling price. The house may be shown with such items as chandeliers, drapes, mirrors, garage door openers and appliances that the seller may not want to part with. It could become a roadblock to making a successful sale if the seller and buyer engage in a test of wills over whether an item should stay or go.

With your home ready to be shown, you can now determine your asking price. This is done by:

1. Inviting at least three local real estate agents to give you their listing presentations. Each should include a written "comparative market analysis" which shows recent sale prices of nearby homes. Remember that most sellers set their asking prices 5 to 10 percent above the price they are willing to accept.
2. Hiring a professional appraiser. Ask your banker for recommendations of several appraisers who are known to local mortgage lenders. Obtaining a professional appraisal is important if your home is in some way unique - if it has a design or features unlike others in the area, such as a room addition.

When deciding on a real estate agent to represent your property, call the seller references you have obtained from the agents you have interviewed. Ask if they were pleased with the way their sales were handled. You will soon have a feeling for which agent is right for you.
 

last updated July, 2004