Top tips for making your home look good before selling

Top tips for making your home look good before selling

Top tips for making your home look good before selling

When selling your home first impressions count. Making your home look welcoming and well-loved can make a world of different to your selling prospects. Below are some helpful hints and tips, organised by room, to help you get your house looking its best ready to be sold. Making your home appeal to the right type of buyer will help it to sell quicker and for the best price.

 

Overview

  1. Outside: The garden and Kerb Appeal

  2. Inside: General tips

  3. Inside: The Kitchen and Dining Room

  4. Inside: Bathroom

  5. Inside: Living Spaces

  6. Inside: Bedroom

  7. Conclusion

  8. What Busy Lives! can do to support you with this.

 

Outside – The Garden and Kerb Appeal

 

When buyers arrive to view your property the first thing, they will see is the outside of your home, so making the outside look good is important and thankfully, it is easy to do. These simple steps will ensure your outside spaces are looking their best.

  • Mow the lawn and trim any hedges, bushes and trees.
  • Put bins out of sight. If you don’t have somewhere to hide them consider building a hiding place for them or invest in a couple of large plants to hide them.
  • Make your garden secluded and secure. People like their privacy and if potential buyers have children or pets they will want any garden areas to be secure. This can be achieved by putting up appropriately sized fencing or hedges. Just remember not to make the place look like a prison or dark and dingy.

As well as improving the garden boosting your home’s kerb appeal (the outside appearance) is important, and easy, to do.

  • Clean the windows.
  • Make sure the house number is visible. There is nothing more annoying than buyers being unable to find your house for a viewing!
  • If it’s winter and getting dark early leave an outside light on or put a lamp in one of the front windows. This will make your house look homely and it will also be easier to spot by potential buyers.


Inside – General hints and tips

 

When selling your home ‘staging’ it, the way newly built properties are staged allows potential buyers to envision themselves living in your home.

If your house screams of you then some buyers may struggle to picture themselves living in ‘your’ home whereas a neutral looking home is easier to envision being filled with the buyers belongings.

Here are some general hints and tips to get your home ready for buyers.

  • Make sure everywhere is clean and tidy.
  • Set the table. This will appeal to buyers with families or who like to entertain guests.
  • Turn on lights. Lamps can disguise dark corners and make your home look more inviting.
  • While you may love your dog, no one wants to buy a house that smells like one. Spray air freshener before a viewing or buy some plug-in air fresheners. Some homemade baking smells coming from the kitchen always work well for me.
  • Check the temperature. If it’s warm open some windows or if it is cold turn on the heating. A house that feels too hot or cold can be very off putting for buyers.
  • Hide the clutter. Put away knick-knacks and small pieces of furniture to make rooms look bigger.
  • Repurposed rooms. If you are using your spare bedroom as a home office try and revert it back to a bedroom. Sometimes buyers can find it hard to imagine an office serving as a bedroom so showing them will avoid this potential problem.
  • If you have any damp get an expert in to find the root cause of the problem and get it resolved.
  • Let in the light. Open curtains and blinds to let the light it. Mirrors can also make rooms look bigger and reflect light.
  • Make it neutral. It is very unlikely the buyer of your home will have the same tastes as you. While you may love your technicolour wallpaper buyers may find it unattractive. Repaper walls in simple designs and repaint brightly coloured walls with neutral colours if necessary.

 

Inside – The Kitchen and Dining room

 

Known as the heart of the home the kitchen is one of the biggest deciding factors when it comes to buyers. Replacing a kitchen can a costly and you may not get your money back however these tips will help you give your kitchen a new look without breaking the bank.

  • Replace worktops if worn. This cheaper than buying a whole new kitchen and often a new worktop or counter can completely change the look of your kitchen. Also, keep your worktops clear – buyers like to see how much space they will have.
  • Paint / replace cupboard doors if needed. Again this is cheaper than buying a new kitchen. A quick lick of paint can do wonders and really refresh your kitchen. Go for a neutral colour (white works best) to keep things looking clean and light. Make sure all your cupboards and doors open and close smoothly.
  • If you have old fashioned or broken tiles in your kitchen replace them with a plain tile to give your kitchen a new feel.
  • Most of the time a deep clean can make old floors look like new but if your flooring is cracked or worn then replacing the flooring can help you sell. Once again chose something neutral and easy to clean.
  • Make sure you give your kitchen a deep clean and empty the bin before any viewings. Remembers buyers will often want to look in your cupboards to see how much storage space they will have. Keep your cupboards neat and organised. If your cupboards are fit-to-burst full it may make buyers believe there is not enough storage space.

Whether your dining room is part of the kitchen or separate it is important to make it feel like a welcoming place.

  • Set the table before any viewings and if you really want to impress put a vase of flowers or a bowl of fruit on the table to give that homely feel.
  • No one wants to eat in the dark. Make sure your dining area is suitably lit. If you don’t have overhead lighting put a lamp nearby to eradicate any shadows.

 

 

Inside – The Bathroom

 

After the kitchen, the bathroom is one of the most important rooms to buyers. Keeping your bathroom clean, functional, and modern can be one of the more expensive things to do, so it is important to think about this before starting any improvements. Ultimately the most important thing for the bathroom is to make it functional and really clean.

  • Replaced dated or damaged suite with a basic white suite.
  • Remove carpets and replace with easy-to-clean flooring like tiles or laminate.
  • Bath or shower? If your bathroom is small, then the decision of bath or shower is made for you however if your bathroom is large it may be worth considering putting in a bath and a shower. If you are selling a family home, then this can be a big deciding factor for buyers as they will want a bath for children.
  • Using a grouting pen on stained grout will refresh your bathroom. The same goes for any sealant that is discoloured or peeling.
  • Shower curtain. Replacing an old or bright shower curtain with a new one or putting in a glass shower screen will give a classy look.
  • Put any bottles or toiletries away in cupboards.
  • Ensure your bathroom as a mirror and a medicine cabinet – often medicine cabinets will come with a mirrored door.
  • Add a little personality will fluffy towels in neutral colours and a pretty soap dish maybe a scented candle or green plant.

 

 

Inside – The Living Room

The living room is the place where you entertain guest and where families will spend time together. Help attract buyers by:

  • Stick to the rule less is more. Keep the room uncluttered and neat. Remove small items of furniture to create space.
  • Give the room a welcoming vibe. This is can be achieved quite easily with a vase of flowers and a few ‘coffee-table books’

 

 

Inside – Bedrooms

The bedroom is the place to relax, get ready for the day and sleep. Storage space and the bed are the most important factors when it comes to bedrooms.

  • Keep your rooms neutral, clean and uncluttered.
  • Make the bed the focal point of the room. If you have a double room always try and put a double bed in it – sometimes buyers can struggle to picture a double bed fitting in a room unless there is already one in it.
  • Less furniture is always better. If possible, remove unnecessary furniture.
  • As with the kitchen, buyers will most likely want to look inside any fitted wardrobes so keep them neat. If your clothes look like they’re crammed in it will give the impression that there is not enough storage space.
  • With children’s bedrooms, make sure to put toys away and keep the walls as uncluttered as possible.
  • Make sure all the beds are made. Adding a few decorative cushions can give a splash of colour as well as making your bed look inviting.

 

 

Conclusion

When it comes to making your house look good ready to be sold the main thing to do it make it look clean and neutral, like a blank canvas the buyer can see themselves painting in their own style. Before making any costly improvements, it is good to think about your selling price. Most of the time a few simple things can change the look of your home and several items are things you can then take with you to your new home.

Whenever you sell a house it is important to think about your potential buyers. Is your home ideal for families, young people, the elderly? Whoever your house is best suited to will give you some idea as to how to stage it. Families will want space and facilities for children. Young people will most likely want a modern feel while the elderly may be looking for easy access. Making your home appeal to the right type of buyer will help it to sell quicker and for the best price.

 

 

How Busy Lives! can support you with this

Busy Lives! was created when I left a busy career that left me time poor and not able to give sufficient priority to what really mattered to me. I now provide a wide range of business support for people in that position.

 

I am happy to help by:

Coming and organising your rooms and storage before prospective buyers come to tour your home.

Connect you with a great Gardening Services business to do the outside of your property to make it look fantastic.

Let you help you gain precious time back. Ring Busy Lives! 07565 722 031

Drop me a message on LinkedIn / Messenger on Facebook

Or Email: karen@busylivesnottingham.co.uk

 

 

 

 

 

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