How to Prepare Your Home

There are a lot of details to take care of before you list your home and show it to prospective buyers. To help you prepare yourself and your home, check out these four basis stages of preparing:

Prepare yourself

Repair and replace

Declutter and clean

Stage

Now’s the time to roll up your sleeves and start repairing, improving and staging your home to make it buyer-ready!

Prepare Yourself

It’s no surprise that preparing your home (repairing, improving and staging) is at the top of the to-do list when selling on your own. However, preparing yourself psychologically for the process ahead is really the first step. If you are not ready, chances of your sale proceeding in a smooth fashion greatly diminish.

Keep Your Emotions in Check

Many sellers are surprised by the emotions that surface as they pack up and say goodbye to their homes. It helps to focus on the end goal: finding the right buyer and closing the deal. Think of the process as selling a house, not your home. It will become easier to look at your property objectively as you remove personal items and start staging to attract buyers. When you start showing your home, potential buyers may be overly critical. Try your best to react to those types of comments in a neutral fashion. Remember, you can leverage those insights as negotiating tactics or use the feedback to improve your listing.

Research and Hire a Lawyer or Conveyancer

Just because you’re selling by owner doesn’t mean you’re on your own. Even sellers who hire real estate agents rely on lawyers.  Educate yourself about the sales process and line up a solicitor or conveyancer. You will want someone to review the eventual sales contract but also you need someone to ensure you don’t run afoul of any legal requirements. 

Do Your Homework

• Start to assemble key documents, such as:
• Floor Plan for the house (if you have one)
• Contractor receipts for home improvements
• Permits for home improvements
• Rates and Utility costs

Repair and Replace

This is the time to fix all those little items that you’ve had on your “to do” list for years. Have a latch that doesn’t work, a leaky toilet, or an electrical outlet that doesn’t work? It might seem small, but potential buyers may see them as a sign that the home hasn’t been properly maintained. This means more work for them if they buy it.

Pre-Sale Home Inspections

Walk your entire property inside and out and identify problem areas that should be repaired or upgraded. Then, prioritize those fixes within your budget and the time frame you have established for selling. You can also get a pre-sale home inspection done to help you identify major problems before you list your home. Many buyers will hire a home inspector to evaluate your property before the sale is finalized. Having one done prior to listing could help you get ahead.

The Work That’s Worth It

There is a big difference between making minor and inexpensive “polishes” and “touch-ups” to your house and doing extensive and costly renovations. Putting new knobs on cabinets and a fresh coat of neutral paint in the living room is much different than installing a new kitchen. In preparing your home for the market, be careful about how much money you spend. Buyers will be impressed by a brand-new roof, but they aren’t likely to give you enough extra money to pay for it. Consider the costs and benefits of upgrades before you hire any contractors. For repairs that are beyond your reach right now, consider getting a written estimate or two on the cost of the repair.  Typically, buyers often estimate a much higher amount (and will want to subtract that from the agreed upon price) than repairs actually cost.

Declutter and Clean

Decluttering involves removing the items in a space so it’s less cluttered and more functional. Home staging involves transforming each room into an attractive “vignette” that appeals to a wide range of prospective buyers. Spend some time evaluating the inside of your home; then make and execute a plan to declutter and stage before you’re ready to show your home. First, declutter to minimize or eliminate distractions that could otherwise take away their focus on the things that really matter. For example, your kid’s soccer trophies may look impressive as you sit in your family room but really are just going to be in the way of a potential buyer visualizing the potential of the space. Our advice: pack them away. Decluttering can be tricky. You’re still living in your house so you need your stuff. Decluttering is not converting your house to a campground. It is selectively pruning anything that distracts buyers from seeing what they are getting with your house. Toss or sell anything you aren’t planning on taking with you. Clear out wardrobes.  You might be a pack rat but overstuffed closets send a signal to buyers that the house doesn’t have enough storage. Garages, , basements, storage areas and laundry rooms all need similar treatment. Use an online checklist to help you declutter room-by-room and outside your home.

Clean, Clean and Clean Again

Don’t underestimate the importance of cleaning while you are decluttering and staging. Really scrub and polish every single area from top to bottom, ferreting out dust and dirt in every crevice. When you’re cleaning the windows, don’t forget the sills, space between the window, and the screen. Pay special attention to bathrooms, especially grout. Use a cleaner formulated for this job. Regrout, or replace broken tiles. Scrub and polish woodwork. Don’t forget to look up. Remove cobwebs and dust mouldings, replace burnt-out light bulbs, dust existing bulbs and polish light fixtures. Doing a thorough job ahead of time will make keeping the house in show-ready shape a breeze later. As you declutter and clean, start planning your next task in the home preparation process: staging. Simply put, staging is the art of helping the buyer envision living in your home. This idea is to make the house inviting and welcoming so that buyers see past your furniture and mementoes and envision themselves owning and enjoying the house.

Staging Your Home

Staging is one of the most powerful ways to make buyers want to buy your home. It can be as simple as cleaning, removing extraneous items and repainting. Or it can require a clean sweep that involves storing belongings off-site, redecorating, and even renting furniture and art to make your place show well. Here are the basics of staging each room in your house, including your outdoor spaces.

Focus on Functionality

Nobody is fooled by clever staging that camouflages worn-out appliances and systems. If your appliances are more than 10 years old, they might look outdated, even if they are perfectly functional. Tour a few open houses in your area to see what’s commanding top price and consider upgrading to match them. Focus on the basics: a high-quality stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, and solid faucet. Don’t get carried away with gimmicky add-ons such as built-in espresso makers, which are costly and have limited appeal.

Watch Where You Walk

Take a good look at the floors to see what you think needs to be done. Maybe a simple cleaning is all that’s in order, but worn wood floors might need to be professionally redone. At least call in a professional to see what they suggest. Also, check with your local hardware store to see what products are available if you just need to revive a small section of floor that has had heavy traffic. Shampoo carpets yourself or have them professionally cleaned. Consider replacing any that are excessively worn. Most importantly, clean carpets help ensure the home is free of odours.

Make It Inviting

Staging helps potential buyers envision your house as theirs. To do that, they need to see the details of your house. Your goal in staging is to entice visitors to linger in each room so they can absorb its features and see its benefits.

Consider the view from each doorway. How can you encourage visitors

to step in each room? A small scenario often works, such as an

arrangement of an easy chair and lamp that is partly visible from the

door.

Fresh flowers only partially visible from the door will entice visitors to

enter the room.

Make sure seating is arranged so it is open to visitors, not with backs

to them, which can discourage them from entering the room.

If your furniture is badly outdated or worn, consider storing it and

bringing in a few bright, clean rental pieces.

Decide What Items Need to be Removed

A key ingredient of successful staging is to rid your home of personal items and create as much open space as possible. Placing extra furniture in storage is a great way to free up space while you’re showing your home.

Here’s a tip you might not have thought of. Walk from room to room in your house with one or two other people. This allows you to replicate the experience of guiding potential buyers through your home. Note which rooms seem crowded when three people are standing in them. Ask each other what makes the rooms seem crowded and then remove those items. Be sure to take note of any ideas on how to make the room seem more spacious.

Consider Hiring a Professional Stager

Another option that may be helpful is to hire a professional stager to stage your house. If you have already moved, hiring a stager to fill the void in your home by arranging rented furniture is critical since an empty house always shows better with furniture.

Checklist: Preparing Your Home to Sell

• Assess the physical state of your home
• Decide what to fix or upgrade
• Make home improvements to add value to your home
• Increase your curb appeal from the street to the backyard
• Declutter and stage inside and outside to prepare your home for photos and showings.