If you’ve been thinking about selling your home, there are a few ways that you can help your house attract serious buyers. I'm happy to share my seven important tips that help to put your house in the spotlight.

1. Fix what’s broken

Buyers are generally looking for move-in ready home, so making needed repairs to your home is key. Take a walk around your house, inside and out, as if you are a buyer.  Make a list of the items that jump out at you.  If there are repairs needed that you can easily fix, whether it be chipping paint or a broken fence post, try to fix them before you list your house. If an update is in order, remember that you will get the most return with updates to your kitchen and bathrooms.

2. staging

Let me provide complimentary staging or consultation for your property.  It’s important for buyers to imagine themselves living in your home.  One way to achieve this is to "stage" the home with furnishings and decor that are neutral to a larger group of home shoppers.  Often, by utilizing smaller pieces of furniture, it allows a buyer to imagine the potential of a space, or even what their own furniture will look like in a room.  This is most easily accomplished if the home is vacant however, it may be achieved on a smaller scale by removing personal photos, clearing kitchen and bathroom countertops and reducing keepsakes and memorobilia.  

3. professional photography sells homes!

As your agent, I will recommend, hire and cover the cost for a professional photographer to photograph your home. Photos are one of the most important ways that you can draw in potential buyers. If someone is looking for a new home, they’ll typically take a look at real estate websites before setting up showings or attending open houses. Because so many shoppers look online before they decide to explore a house in person, it’s important that your pictures look great. Highlighting the best areas of your home and sharing them on the Multiple Listing Service, Real Estate Sites and on Social Media brings buyers! 

4. Reduce clutter

It can seem difficult to clear keepsakes as you prepare your house for sale.  But clearing the clutter gives a prospective buyer the opportunity to imagine their own life in the house.  So it's important to carefully pack your sentimental items and give the things that you don't want to move to your next home to a charity.  When buyers are touring, they may look in places that you least expect!  Clean out beneath your beds, tidy the closets and the cupboards in the kitchen and bathrooms. Even if you can’t get rid of all of your home’s clutter, try to at least minimize the amount of things you have on shelves and on counters to present a clean, neat appearance to buyers. 

5. Advertise, advertise, advertise

A big focus when selling a home is Marketing. Remember that buyers may not drive by your house and see the “For Sale” sign in your yard. Rather, they’ll find your house online. I will list your house on the NMLS and share it through our Coldwell Banker Bain portal, to assure it appears on all hundreds of major real estate websites.  In addition, advertisements will appear  on the most popular and viewed Social Media sites for the best results. 

6. Price correctly for the mark et

The number one mistake Sellers make is pricing their home too high.  When a house is priced too high, it can sit on the market for an extended period of time and will drop off potential buyers radar.  The home may become "Stigmatized" meaning people may think that there is something wrong with the house.  To avoid this situation, I will monitor the market in the weeks leading up to your listing date.  By watching the market data, together we can determine the "sweet spot" for pricing your home, ensuring a successful outcome.