Even in a seller’s market with low inventory and high buyer demand, home sellers in the Berkshires shouldn’t overlook the importance of preparing their homes for listing on the market. Once you make the decision to sell your home, your goal is to get the right offer as soon as possible. These seven tips for prepping your home for sale can be accomplished in a relatively short amount of time with the help and guidance of your Stone House Properties agent.
1. Declutter Top to Bottom
Home buyers want to see space when they view a home. Rooms look larger with fewer objects and less furniture. Resist the urge to place items in closets and storage areas. Buyers want to see empty storage spaces rather than years of accumulated belongings.
Feeling overwhelmed at the mere idea of decluttering? Use these tips to make the task more manageable.
- Declutter one room or area at a time.
- Do not leave out the garage, attic, or basement! Start early in these areas and allow yourself extra time.
- Decluttering includes depersonalizing. Pack away family photos, bulletin boards, memorabilia, awards, and diplomas. Since you’ve decided to move, count this step toward packing up the house.
- Pare down the number of furnishings in your rooms. Buyers should be able to move freely through the house.
- Clear tabletops, bookcases, and counters.
2. Repaint Rooms in Neutral Tones
Painting is one of the least expensive ways to brighten and update your home. But when you’re prepping your home for the market, focus on neutral colors. Neutral colors appeal to the broadest range of buyers and work with many different furniture styles. Neutral colors will also make home interiors look best in online photos, which is usually the first way a home buyer will view the home. Your Stone House Properties agent is an excellent resource for helping you choose a neutral palette once you’ve decided to sell your house.
3. Make Necessary Repairs
The operative word in this step is “necessary.” What repairs should you make to best position your home for a successful sale? Generally these include small repairs like fixing leaky faucets, squeaky doors, and loose cabinet hinges. Buyers may wonder what else in the home is under par when they see a leaky faucet or cabinets that don’t close correctly. Necessary repairs also include addressing any code violations that will negatively impact a home inspection.
Your Stone House Properties agent is one of the best resources for advice on what to repair. Their advice might include:
- refinishing hardwood floors, especially if you’ve lived in your home for many years
- making sure appliances are in good working order
- making sure cabinet doors and drawers open and close smoothly
- replacing broken or missing grout
- making electrical repairs
- fixing leaks around faucets and toilets
4. Update Lighting with New Bulbs
New and more powerful lightbulbs can make rooms look not only brighter but larger. Lightbulbs can add warmth to north-facing rooms that receive less sunlight and to bathrooms with no windows. Remember to check the bulbs in exterior lighting, too.
Indoors and out, if your home has lighting fixtures that look dated, ask your agent if it’s worth the investment to replace them. If lighting fixtures do not work, however, you’ll likely need to include them on your list of necessary repairs.
5. Create a Work from Home Space
We all know that many companies sent their employees home to work when the coronavirus pandemic began in 2020. Studies show that remote work will continue. According to a report by Upwork, 36.2 million Americans will be working from home in 2025, which is an increase of 87% percent from pre-pandemic levels.
Home sellers in the Berkshires can make their homes look more attractive to buyers by creating a workspace. If your home has a bonus room or an extra bedroom, consider furnishing it with items that define a work from home space, such as a table or desk and task lighting.
6. Stage Your Home
The National Association of Realtors® 2021 Profile of Home Staging reported that 82 percent of buyers’ agents said staging a home made it easier for buyers to visualize the property as their future home.
Staging a home can help a property sell faster and for more money, the report also showed. Thirty-one percent of sellers’ agents surveyed in the NAR report said that staging greatly decreased the time the home was on the market. Twenty-three percent of sellers’ agents polled said that home staging resulted in an increase of 1 to 5 percent of the dollar value offered by buyers, compared to similar homes.
According to sellers’ agents, the most common rooms that were staged were the living room, kitchen, primary bedroom, and dining room. Again, your Stone House Properties agent is one of the best resources for advice about staging your home.
7. Optimize Your Listing with Professional Photos
With today’s emphasis on how TV shows have impacted home buying and selling, many home buyers have higher expectations of how a home should look. And according to the National Association of REALTORS®, 97 percent of buyers in 2020 searched for their homes online. Put those two factors together and the importance of high-quality listing photos has never been more important. Photos taken by a professional that are well-lit and well-framed give your home the best chance of selling success.
Are you ready to take the next step in selling your home? Make selling with Stone House Properties one of your objectives. Contact us today to get started!
