Listing a house for sale can be a thrilling next step in life, but it’s important to make sure you know everything before you do so. Not only are there some steps that should be followed to ensure that your home sells for what it’s worth, but you should also be careful to avoid many common mistakes that could cost you big time.
These are the top tips every seller should know before they list their home.
Some Updates Should Be Made First
If you’re eager to sell, and you’re hitting the seller closing costs calculator ready to find a buyer: think about what parts of your home will affect its value. This could be common things like a kitchen being out of date or windows being leaky, but bigger and more expensive mistakes can cost you a lot of money.
If your roof is due to be updated, your buyers will notice and want you to reduce the price of your home to compensate. Unfortunately, although this can be handy to do if you don’t have the time or immediate resources to take care of it: it’s cutting the property’s value down.
Instead, work to get any major replacements or repairs completed within five years of listing your home for sale. That means if it needs new siding or a new roof, it’s a good idea to swallow that cost upfront rather than have buyers struggle with considering whether they want to commit to a property that needs that amount of work.
The Market Will Affect Your Home’s Value
The market constantly fluctuates, in and out of buyers’ and sellers’ markets: and the difference between the two can cost you tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Get to know the local market, consider how long it’s been in this current state, and whether experts think it will change soon.
If you’re currently in a buyers’ market and you don’t want to risk selling your home for too little an amount, consider waiting six months to a year to see if things will change. Unfortunately, there’s no way to predict which market you’ll be in within the next year with complete accuracy.
Staging The Property Can Increase Its Value
Well-staged homes can increase in value and sell faster than homes that aren’t. Deep clean the property from ceiling to floorboard, and put a lot of attention into making sure that it’s attractive and suits what the modern buyer is interested in. If your furniture doesn’t fit this look, you can rent furniture from many staging companies that will cover this concern.
While staging, think about which parts of the home you want to accentuate. For more spacious areas, pull all furniture at least six inches away from the walls to add an illusion of extra room. To increase height in regions with shorter ceilings, use oversized tall curtains to draw peoples’ eyes upwards. Planning and careful strategy can help you!