Tips For Preparing Your Property

Don’t be mistaken ~ you do want your property to sell fast. Selling within the first 30 days prevents ‘market fatigue’ and negative emotions surrounding the value. Buyers who do not want to miss out will offer early and usually at above market values.

1. Do not over-improve your home just to go on the market

Talk to your agent about good value spending to prepare your home for sale. It may be a little paint work or an external house wash. Little things that don’t cost a lot can often make a difference of thousands of dollars whether that be in the sale price or in the length of time on the market. Be very careful doing full bathroom or kitchen renovations just to sell. You may not recoup your money.

2. Remove the clutter

It is imperative that ALL the clutter is removed. This allows potential buyers to visualize themselves in the home and gives them a sense of their own space.

What to you is an everyday useful item or family portraits of loved ones, to others is filling the room and decreasing space. This might even mean removing some items of furniture.  Put away the family photos and personal ornaments. You will be amazed how different a room can look with a plain wall (maybe one feature painting) and nothing on the table tops except a large flower arrangement or a particular ornament. A book case looks surprisingly better not stuffed with books. Just a few on each shelf. Pack them into boxes ready for your move.

3. Curb side appeal

‘You only get one chance to make a first impression’. An external house wash costs a couple of hundred dollars and makes your property look fresh and cared for. A coat of neutral coloured paint on the front fence, a new letterbox, pressure clean the paths, mow the lawns and trim the hedges, even a couple of pots of flowers or herbs at the entry ~ these are little touches that entice buyers to enjoy your home.

4. Compliance

Ensure you have compliant smoke detectors, electrical safety switches and pool fencing. If there is any damage to part of the property, call a handyman in to fix it. Most buyers will have a thorough building and pest inspection done prior to committing unconditionally to the purchase. Prevention is better than cure. Damage to the property or faults will be picked up and at this stage buyers will often ask for an unreasonable price reduction (for fear of the unknown costs to them in the future) or will pull out of the contract under these terms.

Talk to your agent about having a building and pest inspection done prior to going on the market.

5. Price it right

Regardless of what you paid, what renovations you have done and how much you love your home, this is where you have to put your ‘Buyers Hat’ on. They have not lived in your home and they are not emotionally attached to it. They are comparing it to other homes on the market and what they can get for their dollar. That’s it! They have choices.

I know this is not what you want to hear, however don’t despair.

Talk to your agent about realistic pricing. Sell without a price to gauge what the market thinks your home is worth. Price your home to be in line with recent comparable sales in the area and the competition on the market at the time. Pricing you home properly will bring in multiple inspections and competitive offers ~ in any market, this is what will bring you the premium market price for your property.

6. Take another week

Taking a couple of extra weeks to get all the above right can make thousands of dollars difference to your result.