7 ways to Improve a Home Prior to Listing

We know the ultimate goal when placing your home on the market is to get it sold; however, there is opportunity to optimize its listing time and sales price when it has been presented intentionally. Approximately 85-95% of homes that are promoted desirably spend less time on the market and sale at a great price point when sellers utilize the professional recommendations from their Realtors. Our market experience with sellers and buyers allow us to assess your home and provide advice that could positively affect its sale and the ease of your process. Buyers that can experience your home in a way that will allow them to visualize themselves dwelling there is going to be an effective tool in getting your home sold quickly and at a price you’ll love. Here are some simple ways to prepare your home to be inviting and desirable to its next potential owners.

Pillows and Plush is a Must

The existence of a soft throw blanket in the common area of your home invites a buyer in more than you know. Allowing plush pillows of all shapes and sizes throughout your home will highlight its warmth and represent a welcoming presence therein. Items that can add texture and layers to the rooms in your home will help a buyer feel comfortable and connected to your home space.

Color Scheme is Important

We recommend having a color or interior design theme within the common areas of the home such as the living, dining, study and recreational spaces. Paint can be expensive and somewhat tedious, so colors can be set with pulling accents from interior design work that you already have within these common spaces. Bedrooms and baths can remain customized to their purpose, for example, its okay to have a unique color and pattern scheme for a nursery versus the primary suite. Color and design allow a buyer to physically connect with your home while bringing their own design ideas within the scope of what is presented. They may be looking for a beautifully pre-decorated nursery, but would like to see how they can make a few edits to the primary suite to make it intimately connective to their needs.

Assign a Name that Resonates

Buyers always want help in remembering homes that stand out when they are touring multiple homes on multiple days for multiple hours! Over the course of days, they find this process can be quite daunting especially when they’re often trying to remember the home they absolutely loved from the notes they jotted about it. Assigning a name to your home could be the very thing that sets the home apart from other homes they’re considering. Name association is an effective tool because it can produce nostalgia making your home seem just the right choice within their search. When choosing a name, consider the architecture, special features, location or neighborhood, and any fond memories to help create something meaningful and resounding.

Pre-Packing and Clear Surfaces Go Hand-in-Hand

Oftentimes, you may find yourself still residing within your home while it is on the market for sale. Clearing surfaces, when continuing to utilize your living space will reassure buyers, although you are still in the residence, that you are preparing for the move and it will be available for move-in soon.

Stage functional furniture

Leaving furniture within the spaces that will help buyers imagine their own design and style ideas is a great asset when selling your home. Buyers like to understand what the space can hold regarding furniture pieces and how to place them. If you have pieces that can remain with the home – this can prove to be valuable because rooms can appear to be smaller in size when they are void of furnishings. The functionality of the furnishings should be arranged so that they allow the buyer to visualize their belongings in the space and should not bulky, closely arranged, or so unique that they intimidate or discourage the buyer’s taste or aspiration for the spaces within the home.

Highlight the features of the home

There are unique qualities and details about a home that make it unique and appealing – your home has these aspects too! Think about what drew you to the home initially upon selecting or building it and be sure to highlight these same nuances so the next potential owner can also notice them as well. The intricacies that appealed to you may attract a similar buyer and draw them in to experience a similar appreciation.

It’s okay to be custom – but connective too!

When a space is so custom, it can alienate a buyer and delay your home’s potentiality to be sold easily and quickly. Items that are arranged in a way that encourage a new potential owners to see themselves inside the space of your home will help to sell your home with less fuss and hassle. For example, the presence of a baby grand piano that is accompanied with a leopard upholstered bench is likely to appeal to 1-2 buyers versus a black leather upholstered bench that would appeal to approximately 5-7 buyers simply because of its neutral ensemble. Potential buyers want to “see” themselves in the spaces your home provides so you must make the home’s features as neutral, inviting, and versatile as possible.