At Cloud Estates, we’re experts in bringing homes to market, finding buyers for properties of all types. However, we can often achieve higher selling prices if homeowners work with us to maximise the appeal of their properties...
View your home like a stranger
The weeks before a property listing goes live represent a unique opportunity. You want buyers to fall in love with your home, and yet it’s easy to spoil those all-important first impressions. Start the process of preparing your home for sale by standing outside and surveying everything with a critical eye. Are there weeds growing out of the paving stones, mould below the windowsills or bald patches across the lawn? Many prospective viewers will do a drive-by before making an appointment, and signs of neglect could deter them from booking an appointment. Red flags include tumbledown sheds, unmowed grass and badly maintained boundary walls/fences.
Once you’re confident your property’s kerb appeal has been maximised, give the interior the same critical treatment, room by room. Clutter is a guaranteed turn-off – shoes beside the front door, cereal boxes on the worktops and toiletries along the bath. The implication is that your home lacks storage – and if you’ve outgrown it, so might potential purchasers. Preparing your home for sale is the ideal time to donate old clothes, toys and books to charity. Streamline the contents of your kitchen cupboards and wardrobes (viewers sometimes open them!) and find a hidden home for paperwork and keys. Your loft, garage and airing cupboard don’t need to be immaculate, but they should look presentable. If they’re not, hire a skip and have a clearout.
Mistletoe and wine
Preparing your home for sale involves tackling those little DIY jobs – oiling door hinges so they don’t squeak, replacing blown lightbulbs and filling holes in the ceiling where you hung mistletoe last Christmas. You might have fond memories of the party when you spilled red wine on the carpet, but a stranger will just see an ugly stain. Far better to tackle these problems pre-emptively. You don’t have to redecorate every room, but the property needs to look fresh and well-maintained.
When your home’s for sale, it’s yours and yet not yours. You need to live in it, but you shouldn’t throw parties or cook whiffy food. A viewer could knock on your door at any time if there’s a board outside, though we’ll always try to arrange official viewings at convenient times. It’s often advisable to box up hobby equipment or collections, minimise the toiletries on display in bathrooms, and pack ornaments ready for moving. Take down any football paraphernalia, too; a Sunderland fan won’t be impressed by a giant poster of St James’s Park, for instance. It won’t cost you a sale, but it creates negative connotations, especially when people are viewing photos online.
If you’d like more advice on preparing your home for sale, give Cloud Estates a call for some personalised property marketing advice.
