Open house sign; Shutterstock ID 109717871; PO: Cat Overman; Job: blog post
There was once a time where an owner could simply put a sign in their yard and open their doors, and potential buyers would come flocking in with cash at the ready. However, as anybody who has tried to sell a home recently will tell you, those days are long gone with no signs of returning. Instead, sellers need to do everything they can just to get buyers in the door; And that is where this article can help.
Clean, and then clean some more. Cleaning your home is for more than just aesthetics. If a potential seller enters a home which isn’t clean, their immediate thought is that the owner doesn’t take good care of the home, including more major repairs and upkeep requirements.
Take care of small repairs beforehand. If you have to say the sentence ‘that will be fixed before settlement,’ then your house isn’t ready for viewing. Take a tour of your property and make a note of all the small instances of damage and wear, such as slight cracks or broken fixtures and tend to every single one.
Keep the experience light and inviting. When opening your home to potential buyers, it is important to make them feel as welcome as possible. Small gestures like a glass of fresh lemonade or hot chocolate along with some candy from the Groupon Coupons page for See’s can put buyers in a better space of mind.
Open up the house as early as you can prior to inspection. Try to get as much fresh air into, and flowing through, your home before your inspection. Alongside this, open up any curtains and blinds you have and give your house as much natural light as possible.
Don’t forget the yard. If your property includes a yard, then it is likely that one of the reasons people will attend is due to this fact. A day or two beforehand, give your lawn (both front and back) a general clean and weeding. Similar to the point regarding the fixing of small problems, buyers can perceive an unkempt garden as an indication of how the rest of the property has been treated.
In the current world of real estate, sellers can’t do enough to get buyers into the door and negotiating. In addition to these tips, speak with friends and family about their experiences and gain their advice.
