By doing a few minor jobs around your home, it is possible to make it more attractive to potential buyers. And the more attractive it is, the better your chances of receiving the offer you want. We’ve prepared a few tips to help you sell your current home quickly and easily.
When you want to make a great impression for, say, a job interview, you do all you can to ensure you look and feel at your best before you arrive. That way you're in the best possible place to land that job.
When it comes to selling your house, it makes sense to give it some attention too, so it makes the best possible impression on its viewers.
Giving your house ‘kerb appeal’ means people are more likely to want it even before they have set foot on your welcome mat. If a potential buyer thinks ‘wow’ when they arrive outside your house, you’re off to an excellent start. If everything else is in order, there is a great chance they’ll consider making you an offer.
Let there be light…
Keep the wow factor alive by ensuring your home is spick and span. It’s amazing what a difference clean windows make to interior spaces. The added benefit is that spotless glass allows more light to pour into your rooms. This should be incentive enough for you to ensure carpets are fluffy-clean, surfaces glisten and any marks are erased from walls and soft furnishings.
Even having the windows open for an hour or so before your viewers arrive will dispel any stale odours and allow a breath of fresh air to waft through your home.
Box it or bin it
That paperwork lying around on the dining room table. Those suitcases on top of the wardrobe. That leaning tower of pizza boxes…
These things take up space, gather dust and look untidy, at least to those who don’t have to live with them. Viewers want to see as much of your home as possible. They can’t do this if it contains what they see as clutter.
Put into storage anything you want to keep but can live without for a while. You don’t have to bin everything you don’t want. Sell, recycle or give those items to a local charity shop. This way, you’ll be helping others as well as helping your house look more appealing.
Paint-entrance
Sometimes, a vacuum cleaner and feather duster just aren’t enough. If your walls are looking worse for wear, it’s time to invest in a pot of paint or two.
Bear in mind that viewers want to visualise themselves living in your home. So, don’t worry about the colours you like: repaint it for their benefit. Don’t be tempted to splash bright colours onto your walls. Your idea of refreshingly vibrant may be your viewers’ idea of unbearably garish. Neutral, light-coloured walls – think beige, off-white and soft greys, etc. – will allow features like fireplaces, door and picture frames to really stand out.
Quick fixes
Does your doorbell work? Are any of your windows cracked? Do you have leaky gutters?
Mend these seemingly insubstantial things. They do make a difference. Many small jobs can be done in a day or less. Make sure all your lightbulbs work, for example. Tighten screws that allow things to wobble or rattle. Sew the fallen hem on your curtains. Putting your house in order means viewers can focus on the things they like rather than the pesky jobs that would need doing if they moved in.
Doing these small things means you could be on your way to a new Redrow home in no time at all.
See more tips and watch our film on how to move into a new Redrow home here.