Tips for Selling Your Home

Paint

Assume potential buyers will be looking at several houses before they choose which one to buy. If they’re looking at two homes – one that needs to be repainted and one that doesn’t – they might be more likely to buy the home that’s move-in ready. So go ahead and repaint the interior walls, using light, neutral colors.

You may need to repaint the exterior, too, if the paint is fading or peeling. Even if you don’t need to repaint the whole house, you might want to paint (or replace) the front door, and freshen up the surrounding trim. An inviting entrance creates a great first impression.

Update flooring

Few homeowners are thrilled about the prospect of replacing the flooring in a home they’re trying to sell. Yet, it could be the one thing that stands in the way of you getting a solid offer — especially if you have wall-to-wall carpeting, according to Leslie Piper, Realtor.com’s consumer housing specialist.

“A majority of home buyers in the marketplace really are looking for, or expecting to find, hardwood floors,” she said in a Marketwatch article.

When installing hardwoods, it’s important to take into consideration the price point of your home. If you’re living in a high-scale neighborhood, for example, buyers will likely expect classic hardwood floors like oak, hickory and walnut instead of more economical laminate flooring. On the other hand, engineered wood flooring, which is a composite of several layers of wood, could be a wise and less expensive choice than hardwoods for a starter home.

Hire a stager

Staging is the art of presenting a home in the best manner possible. Because staging can lead to a quicker sale and a higher asking price, many real estate agents will cover the cost of staging when they represent sellers. If your Realtor doesn’t cover that cost, expect to spend about $675 for professional staging of your entire home. And if that price is too steep, ask for a quote on staging just the living room.

Look for a stager with professional accreditation and a portfolio of previous staging jobs. Be prepared to put some or all of your most cherished possessions in storage, as a stager brings in other objects and furniture to create a more universally appealing environment. You may feel like you’re living in a showroom until your home sells, but it’s a good tradeoff if your home sells quickly.