TIPS ON SELLING YOUR PROPERTY
The statistics are that we form our visual first impressions within 7 seconds so it is important to present your property to its best potential.
Start with the outside of your property have a good look and see your property from a buyers point of view. Walk up and down your road and take in all the other properties, what properties stand out more than others and why. Instant improvements can help a sale; a nice fresh coat of paint on your door cleaning the windows generally making your property look loved.
If you have a front garden and path leading to your front door, invest in a few flowers, place them in a pots or hanging baskets to brighten up the area (This is a good idea when you take your pictures for your advert) attend to the path, sweep up outside your property, cut the grass. Let your perspective buyers see that your house has been looked after! remember you can take all the flowers to your new property so you can’t lose.
The next step is the property itself, once again its first impressions that count
- Does the front doorbell work
- If it has a doorknocker, is it sturdy and polished
- Does the door open smoothly and quietly
Check to see what will come into the view of a potential purchaser the moment they walk in your door, remember
you see this everyday and it is easy to become over familiar with the first impression.
If your property does not look good from the front, people will just browse when they drive past and may
not even bother approaching the front door.
If you do not follow our guide you are leaving yourself open to a much lower offer than what your property
is actually worth. People want to buy your house and move straight in and relax, do it all for them,
it is well worth going that extra mile.
The Entrance
Make sure that the property is clean and bright. Leave as many lights on as you can, you want the property
to appear as bright as possible, it is advisable to remove excess personal belongings from all areas as a lot
of people cannot really take in the size of the rooms if they are filled completely with furniture and belongings
if need be put some of these items into storage, try not to have to many family photos on the walls either,
as these can be very distracting to buyers who will end up looking at all the photos instead of the house.
Are the floorboards squeaking on your every move, is the carpet moving a little, make sure you deal with all
this now before purchasers see it. When you are showing people around your house, always introduce them to the
room and let them go into the room first, this way they get full impact of the size and decoration rather than
you standing in the way. All the rooms must be in tip top condition.
The Living Room
We suggest softer lighting for the front room; some nice tall floor standing lampshades can give a fantastic effect. The carpet needs to be 100% clean, either call in a professional carpet cleaning company, or you can hire the equipment from your local hire shop. Remember that you need a day or so for the carpet to dry thoroughly.
All unnecessary items should be removed from the floor to give the impression of space. If you can when you clean the carpets, you can get your sofa and chairs done at the same time. If the chairs are a little scruffy you can cover them with a neutral coloured throw.
Stand in your own front room and look round and see for yourself what catches your eye, maybe you can enhance on this or if it need be, store it away. Make sure that there is no paint on any of the electrical sockets or light switches in the house. You can remove this with a filling blade or scraper. Check for fingerprint marks around the sockets as well, you can normally remove these with a cloth.
The Dinning Room
Lay the table as though you are expecting important guests as in a way you are, remember the next people that
come in that door maybe buying your house, set the table with your best plates, really lay it on.
Some nice candles will really help as well; this will make the room look fantastic. Make it so potential
buyers will want to sit and have their meals here in the future.
The Kitchen
The kitchen is the heart of the property. Stand back and study your kitchen, is it full of pots and pans that you never use, blenders and mixers that are redundant. If the answer is yes, box them up and put them in the loft or out of the way. Remove all items from your work surface and your sink; clean the surface and all taps and splash backs. Clean out your cupboards and see what you can do without; buyers will be looking to see what storage space they have available, and you need to show them that you have plenty.
Add some more colour to your kitchen by introducing some fresh flowers , little things really do make
a difference. Clean the windows inside and out and wash the floor. If you have wall units with lighting
underneath switch them on. Offer your buyers a drink and put a fresh pot of coffee on or even better,
have it on just before they come round so as soon as they come in the front door they can smell the aroma.
If you have a cottage or a more traditional style property the smell of freshly baked or baking bread adds
to that family feeling in the kitchen.
Bathroom
If your bathroom is small, it is a good idea to decorate it in light colours or all in white,
if you have a towel rail then hang some towels on it, and choose a nice coloured toilet roll to
decorate the room, again some flowers can do the trick.
Upstairs
If your property is a house, walk up your stairs and check for any creaking noises. Again, clean the
handrail and polish, remove family photos that you may have hanging up and replace them with various
prints this makes the property less personnel to you and therefore broadens its appeal to possible
purchasers, once again you do not want possible purchasers imagining someone else living in the house,
the aim is for them to start picturing themselves living there.
Bedrooms
Everyone wants to have a nice bedroom especially a large one, so if you have any large wardrobes that
are taking up to much space or light remove them you want your house to look like a home but also give
the impression that every room is spacious.
Outside
If you have lawns make sure they are neatly mown and all the verges are trimmed. Remove dead flower heads,
if you can fork the soil to generate some air and body into the soil, it really does make the flowers stand out more.
If you have decking make sure that it is not damaged in anyway and if possible, give it a fresh coat of preservative;
make sure it is clean and moss free if need be jet wash it, decking is a good selling point in the garden.
Ponds need to be attended and kept clean by removing all weeds. Pathways and stones need to be kept clean from weeds
once again jet wash any paths will really bring them back to life, as you want to give your property an overall
first class appearance.
If you have a garage statistics show that people now use the garage as a workshop or work area rather than to store
a car, once again make this as presentable as possible keeping all tools and equipment neat and tidy.