Your house is most likely always going to be your biggest financial asset so if you’re thinking of selling, it make sense to make a few minor improvements to get the best price possible for it.
One of the jobs I always wanted to do pre-little’s was working as an estate agent. With my property obsession, I thought that nosing around other people’s houses would have been fun. Nowadays I’m probably a bit less naive than I once was & realise the majority of properties that estate agents have the job of selling aren’t ones you’d necessarily want to nose around.
That being said, my many hours/days/weeks/months spent stalking Rightmove (still a daily thing…), watching property programs & reading articles probably makes me pretty clued up SO. Perhaps I should become another Phil Spencer ‘Secret Agent’ & tell people what they are doing wrong or how to improve houses in order to sell & get the most money possible.
What you basically want to achieve is the largest amount of money in the shortest amount of time when putting a house on the market. The first few weeks are absolutely crucial so make sure that first impressions count!
One of the best tips I’ve read regarding this is from Amanda Caley of Property Reviver with the ‘5 D’s’ which I’m going to focus on during this blog post & feel hit the nail on the head.
1. Declutter –
I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve said the word ‘declutter’ on this little blog of mine. The number 1 reason that people want to move house is because they’ve outgrown their existing house so it’s your job to make your home seem as large & spacious as possible. If they view your home & see you struggling with where to put everything, they’ll start to worry that in a couple of years they’ll be doing the same.
Clutter also instantly makes spaces seem so much smaller so go by one of my favourite quotes by William Morris of ‘Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be useful’. If you can’t bear to get rid of it for good then put it in storage but just make sure it’s gone for estate agent photo’s & viewings.
Have a read of my blog post ‘The Art Of Decluttering’ for some helpful hints & tips.
2. Depersonalise –
As lovely as all those family photos are that cover 99% of your walls, it unfortunately won’t sell your house. People want to imagine themselves living in that house so the less personal it is & the more neutral it is…the better. Also consider your decor, if neon paint colours are your thing then consider toning them down a bit to appeal to the wider audience.
This also helps you to mentally ‘let go’ & physically ‘move out’ when the time does come to exchange/complete & move out of the place you once called home.
3. Deep clean –
Nobody wants to walk into a home & see dirty dishes on the side from last night’s dinner. Spend some time cleaning the house & maintain this for every viewing (use my ‘How To Always Have A Tidy Home’ blog post to keep it in check)….yes its hard work but it’ll take no time at all if you show how much pride you take in your home.
Also make sure the house smells nice. Nobody wants to be hit by strong cooking smells or animal odour when they step inside the front door so buy plug in air fresheners to scatter around & turn these on an hour before viewing.
Now go get those rubber gloves on & get scrubbing!
4. Dress –
Although ‘dressing’ a house shouldn’t in theory make a difference as all decorative items obviously don’t stay at the house when sold, you’ll be surprised how a beautifully presented house appeals to potential buyers, sometimes even over room sizes & so on.
Invest in some gorgeous items to give your rooms the ‘wow’ factor such as cushions, rugs, bedding, lighting & accessories. Also a great excuse to buy yourself some fresh blooms. I wrote a blog post on my top tips for accessorising your home which may help with this.
The main aim when it comes to dressing or staging a home is to allow others to visualise themselves living in that space so think neutral rather than your own taste if too individual.
5. DIY –
Unless people are specifically looking for a ‘doer-upper’, they probably aren’t going to move in to a house & expect to fix problems left behind. If you aren’t DIY savvy then hire a handyman for a couple of days to tackle the jobs that will potentially put off buyers such as fixing leaky taps, mouldy silicone, re-grouting, filling holes & so on.
Also consider giving rooms a fresh coat of neutral paint to make it look bright & spacious.
My top tip is to stand back & take a picture of each room in your house. Now REALLY look at that photo…& I mean REALLY. Try to imagine yourself as a potential buyer & remain as impartial as possible.
Now try to fix said problems BEFORE the estate agent comes to take photos. Remember that the pictures the agent takes will be the first impression potential buyers will see so it’s SO important to get them right. Within a few seconds, someone that could potentially fall in love with your property may decide that it isn’t even worth viewing.
Love, Charlotte x