Preparing Your Home To Sell Well

This page contains very valuable information that can help you achieve the sale of your home faster, easier and more profitably. Whether your house is in Clearwater Florida or one of the many other communities in the Tampa Bay area High Point Realty can help you sell your residential property for more.

Before putting your house on the market, you need to make it appealing and welcoming. We want you to get the best price you can in the current market.

Call us at 866-691-0827 and we will come right out to help you view your home with the critical eyes of a potential buyer. We will help you prepare your house to get the best price possible.

The Basic Rule: Fix It Before Selling It

Unless you are selling an as-is "fixer-upper", if something is broken, fix it before you try to sell it.

In most market conditions, the cost of repairing or replacing anything that is broken, cracked, peeling, leaking, stained, smelly or just plain ugly will be amply covered by the value you will add to your selling price.

Curb Appeal: The View From the Street

Before anyone actually visits a house, they usually go "real estate window shopping." When potential buyers drive by and "take a look" the first thing they judge is your home's "curb appeal".

Your curb appeal should be as attractive as you can make it, and can add hundreds or thousands of dollars to your final selling price!

Lawns and gardens: The outside of your home should be clean and tidy looking. Lawns should be weeded, mown and edged; hedges, trees and shrubbery should be pruned and trimmed; flower beds should be weeded and planted with flowers in bloom if possible, and dead leaves raked up everywhere.

Roof and gutters: The roof should be free and clear from obstructions and moss, and look solid and leak-free. Buyers are very wary of poor roofing! A patched and leaky-looking roof should be replaced if possible before you market your home. The boost in the price you get will usually pay for work. The gutters also should be cleaned and neatly hung.

Windows: The windows should appear clean and free from obstructions such as overgrown bushes or trees.

Siding and trim: Make sure the siding and trim is clean, and freshly painted if needed. And your front door is the welcoming entrance to someone else's new home! So make sure it is invitingly clean and sturdy.

Garage: If you garage has been a catch-all space, you might make enough money to cover all the expenses of preparing your home just by having your own garage/yard sale, not to mention finding your own lost treasures. Besides, if you're thinking of selling it's a good idea to trim down your possessions to have fewer to move when the time comes.

Welcome Home: The View From Inside

Houses that show well and command the best prices are bright, clean and fresh-smelling. A coat of paint, some new wallpaper, some plants and pictures can make a huge difference!

Odors: A fresh smelling home is much more attractive than one where pet odors or last night's french onion soup still lingers. The first impression as people walk into the front door should not be it's particular smell. If you do have pets you might consider getting your carpets cleaned professionally. Some companies offer deals periodically, often for less than $100 for multiple rooms. Scented burning candles can add a welcoming warmth but should be of a pleasant clean odor.

Bathrooms: Have nothing on counter tops except a plant or some decorative item. Personal grooming items like shavers, toothpaste and brushes, combs and hair brushes should be stowed away.

Kitchen: Remove all your small electric appliances like your blender, toaster or mini grills. If your stove has round electric elements or gas stove metal pot supporters you might consider replacing the spill catchers underneath as they can get pretty grimy over time.

Living areas: In the living room, den, the rec room or lanai, plants make an attractive filler in an otherwise empty corner. Local second hand furniture shops often sell them. You can get a tree, a large leaf floor plant and some table top plants for less than $50.

Bedrooms: Bedrooms must be neat and picked up, beds made and clothes put away. And remember, buyers are going to want to peek into your closets, too. Try to make them as neat as the room!

Walls: Believe it or not, even freshly painted bare walls can be a turn off. But it's easy to find paintings, wall hangings or artistic decorations in second hand shops or garage sales to dress up your bare walls. Of course it goes without saying that your walls and trim should all be freshly painted or papered to look as new as they can.

Lighting: It's a good idea to turn on the lights in the house, and open your shades and curtains. Brightness is more inviting and shows you aren't hiding faults in the shadows.