Preparing Your Home for Sale in 3 Steps

One of the biggest misconceptions about listing and selling your home, especially in a busy seller’s market, is that homeowners can simply make a snap decision and then list and sell their home in a matter of days.

Maybe this is true for some homeowners, but the truth is that if you want to get top dollar for your home, you should invest some time in properly preparing it for sale. This could take weeks or even a couple of months in some cases.

Although that might not be the answer you wanted to hear, the truth is that taking the extra time to properly prepare your home could help you in the long run either with higher offers or fewer conditions. Long story short–it’s worth it.

Here’s a closer look at some of the main things you should think about when preparing your home for sale in advance:

1. To Stage or Not to Stage

Many sellers ask us if they can’t just sell an empty home. And the answer is yes, you could do that. But really, you wouldn’t want to. Vacant rooms look smaller than staged rooms. And think about it this way, you aren’t just selling a property, you’re selling the idea of a property. You want prospective buyers to really see themselves in your home. They need to picture what their life will look like living in your home.

It’s not just about putting more stuff into your house, it’s about creating a space that is welcoming and inviting. It shows the full potential of your home and utilizes design principles to draw the eye toward your home’s best features.

Does Staging Require a Lot of Effort?

In some cases, yes. But the most important thing to remember if you are unsure about the effort that goes into staging is that a staged home almost always sells for more money than an unstaged home–on average 10% more. On a home valued at $500,000, that adds up to $50,000 in your pocket just from staging alone. In almost every case, the return on investment is so high with staging, that it almost doesn’t make sense not to stage.

If you’re still unsure about staging, you can also read some of our past blogs about it:

What about DIY staging?

Maybe you have an eye for design or you feel like you’re up-to-date on the latest interior trends. Maybe you already have amazing furniture and an immaculately decorated home. Couldn’t you just move some chairs around and stage it yourself?

Not really. Working with a professional is always the way to go. Professional stagers, like the ones on staff at GoWylde, are experienced at creating flow and movement through a room, we use design principles as well as selling and marketing best practices to showcase the best parts of your home while downplaying some of the less desirable features.

2. A Picture Really is Worth 1,000 Words

Especially in a seller’s market, like we’re in right now, many people may think that cell phone pictures are perfectly fine to use for a listing. We disagree.

In most cases, the pictures and video of your home are going to be a buyer’s first impression of your property. So it needs to shine.

Professional photography is the standard nowadays for listings, and if your property has sub-par images, buyers will simply scroll past and not bother to look further.

So we can agree that images are important. But there’s one thing you probably haven’t thought about when it comes to photographing your home. The season.

Hands-down, the best time of year to photograph your home is during the summer. You want the leaves to be lush, the grass to be green, the lawn to be manicured. Even if you are planning to sell in the fall, winter, or spring, you should have some images of what the property looks like in the summer.

3. Should You Renovate?

Selling your home is stressful enough as it is without having to plan a whole renovation at the same time. If you’re planning to sell in the future, try to space out some renovations and repairs, so it’s easier to manage both from the project side of things and the budget side. For example, planning to sell in the winter or spring? You should start your repairs and renovations now.

What repairs have the best ROI?

When you work with a professional real estate team, they will look at your property with an honest lens and tell you exactly what they think about certain aspects. They’ll recommend repairs and give you a general idea of the ROI on each repair. However, in general, some of the best repairs and renovations for the strongest ROI have been items such as:

Painting
Flooring
Minor kitchen renovations
Minor bathroom renovations
Mulching gardens and soft scaping the front yard to improve curb appeal

Many of these renovations allow sellers to recoup most of the costs associated, so in many cases, they are worth it if you want a faster, more lucrative sale.

Wondering if you should renovate your home or sell it as-is? Read our blog to find out here.

But don’t wait ‘til the last minute.

As with everything, repairs and renovations take time. You don’t want to plan renovations to take place while you’re doing open houses and showings. Ideally, everything should be complete by the time you list your home.

That’s why it’s important to give yourself lots of time to get things done. Leave room for contractor delays and prepare for the unexpected.

Whether you’re thinking about selling your home now or later, GoWylde Real Estate is your trusted source in the Guelph and Tri-Cities area. Download our complete seller’s guide here to learn more about getting your home ready to sell fast.

Preparing Your Home for Sale in 3 Steps