Prepping Your House For Sale

You’ve decided to list your house for sale. You’ve met with your real estate agent and signed a contract. Now you need to prepare your house to be sold. But what does that consist of? Preparing your house to be sold will depend on the condition of your home. It could be something as minor as a fresh coat of paint or as costly as re-roofing.

1. Let Go Of The Memories.

Prepping your house for sale means letting go of your treasured memories—memories that make it difficult for you to make a single change to the home. It means thinking in terms of what your buyers want and not in terms of what worked best for your family.

When my husband and I put our first house up for sale, the real estate agent asked me to repaint a very special wall. The wall had been hand painted by myself and my, then, 6 year old son and two year old daughter. In my eyes, it contained beautiful artwork and had received many compliments from both adults and children. But it was also something potential buyers had a problem with—would the artwork disappear with a fresh coat of paint or would they have to re-panel the wall?—and it was costing us potential sales. When I finally took the real estate agent’s advice and painted the wall, the house sold!

1. De-Clutter Your Home.

The more spacious and open your house appears, the more your potential buyers can visualize what their stuff will look like in your house. And that’s a good thing. You want buyers to think of your house as their home.

De-cluttering means going through your house, one room at a time, and removing excessive knick-knacks, making sure stray items are put back where they belong, straightening up bookshelves, putting kitchen items in storage instead of having them clutter the countertops, and making sure your cabinets and shelves aren’t overstuffed. Remember, the more open and spacious something looks, the bigger it looks.

I am known for placing kitchen appliances on our countertops—within easy reach. But potential buyers kept commenting about how little counter space our home had. The minute I packed up the kitchen appliances was the minute we began hearing more positive comments—comments which showed real interest.

1. Minimize Furnishings.

Potential buyers need to be able to move around your home with ease. They need to be able to see every nook and cranny of your home, and once again, they need to visualize where their belonging will go. But more importantly, they need to understand the purpose of each room. If you have a formal dining room, it needs to look like a dining room—not a child’s play area, not a home office, not a craft room. If your potential buyers have to squeeze past furniture to walk down your hallway or maneuver throughout your house, you need to put some of your furniture into storage.

When we were looking for our first home, we ran into many homes that looked both cluttered and small. They were so jam-packed with furniture and personal items that we, as buyers, couldn’t get a good feel for the structure and design of the house. This was often a turn off for my wife who needed a home that was open and spacious to feel content and happy.

1. Fix What’s Broken.

Nothing turns a potential buyer off more than discovering you want top dollar for a house in need of dire repairs. It doesn’t matter if your house needs 100 tiny repairs, or one major repair, buyers are looking for move-in ready homes—unless you’re willing to price your home under market value.

Take the time to:

• fix cracked foundations,
• repair loose and damaged shingles,
• address roof, ceiling, and wall leaks,
• replace leaky faucets,
• repaint chipped and peeling paint,
• repair or replace peeling wallpaper,
• remove stains from carpets,
• re-caulk bathrooms and kitchens,
• air out stinky attics and basements,
• replace hardware on sticky or broken cabinets,
• etc.

And don’t solve major problems with minor cosmetics cover-ups. If an issue warrants deeper, more expensive repairs, disclose those issues and lower the price or repair them and price fair market value.

I am one nit-picky home buyer. My husband often jokes that if the realtor can sell me a home, he can sell anyone a home. I walk through homes with a fine tooth comb. I’ll spot minor repairs, point them out, make a mental note, and then wonder why the owner didn’t make the necessary repairs before putting the house on the market. If I see what appears to be mold from a window air conditioner, I’ll wonder if there is mold deeper within the home. If I spot cracked tile in the bathroom, I’ll wonder if water from the bath or shower managed to seep into the walls. And those “thoughts” will cause me to turn down the home and move onto the next home.

1. Hire A Housekeeper.

A clean house smells good. A clean house feels good. A clean house leaves a good impression. Enough said.

I’ll never forget the one house we went into before purchasing our first home. It was priced fairly, had a good home inspection, but when we walked into the house it smelled horrible—dog and cat feces, and it looked horrible—clothes and toys all over the place. I wife walked in, scrunched up my nose, and walked right back outside. I looked my husband dead in the eyes and said, “I’ve had enough. Find me a brand new home or we’re not moving.” I was tired of overpriced homes that would cost a third of the price just to fix the repairs, and I was tired of walking into homes that looked filthy and smelled just as bad.

When prepping your house for sale, you need to keep your potential buyers in mind. Although you know they are buying a used home, your potential buyers are thinking in terms of “new home”. Take the time to make your house appear fresh and inviting, and you’ll find yourself with more solid leads and maybe even a bidding war!