Putting Your Property On The Market
If you intend to put your property on the market soon, read on for some useful tips…
Get ready for marketing action
House selling and home buying is sometimes a highly pressured, stressful business, punctuated by long periods of waiting where nothing seems to be happening. Do what you can to speed up the eventual sale of your property by using the quiet time to get prepared. Before you welcome potential buyers into your home, marshal all the facts about your property and the wider area. Have this information at your fingertips, so you can answer every question quickly and comprehensively. You should know, for example, everything from when you last replaced your central heating boiler to how easy it is to walk to the nearest and best primary school…
Choose a firm of solicitors to conduct the legal side of things at an early stage. Even before you have a buyer and possible dates for conveyancing, you can bring them up to speed so they are ready for action when that all-important offer comes in.
Have all the paperwork applicable to your home to hand: the gas and electricity certificates, the council tax award letter and guarantees for work that has been done in your home. Finally, prepare honest yet tactful answers to potentially awkward questions that may crop up about negative aspects of the home or the neighbourhood.
Balance in all things in a challenging market
When home-staging a property yourself, don’t go to the ultimate extreme and paint everything magnolia or white, leaving no trace of you or your family to be seen. It’s okay to leave some traces of individuality. After all, a blank canvas is all very well, but you are wanting to sell on an emotional level as well as a practical one.
Look to designer magazines and new show homes to get an idea of the chic and stylish colours being used to sell houses today. Put together a palette of different yet complementary shades and hues which run together throughout the home, matching but never clashing. Use stronger colours with a light touch, and in small doses, through adding small rugs and cushions to sofas.
Remove family portraits, which make it hard for viewers to see beyond, and add uncontroversial yet classy pictures which tone well with the walls – no nudity or political statements here! Likewise, accessorise with modern, ornamental details like fresh flowers and small yet tasteful abstract sculptures and vases. Reserve your stuffed animal or toby jug collection for your own new home.
Moreover, make sure all of the essential repairs are handled first. It won’t matter how nice your property is if you have structural damage or something wrong with your drains. If the buyer has a survey done and finds trenchless sewer replacement is needed, and you haven’t carried this out, they will either look elsewhere or request a big price reduction.
Finally, cast a critical eye over bathrooms and kitchens. Hide away half-used bottles of detergent or cleaning materials, mops and cleaning sponges. Use them often, but your viewers don’t need to be presented with them!
