38 Free Or Inexpensive Tips

38 Free Or Inexpensive
Tips To Prepare Your Home For Sale

Provided by Jay Burnham, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

Outdoors

1. Spruce up all around the house. Keep lawn and shrubbery trimmed and free of bicycles and other clutter. Keep the garden beds weeded and mulched.

2. Keep the garage doors down at all times.

3. Put a flower pot on the front step and keep it watered and trimmed.

4. Fill potholes in your driveway and tidy up walkways.

5. Clean off your outdoor furniture; remove any rust (or toss out the rusted item)

6. Clear out the garage of everything but cars. if yours has become a two car attic, throw out the excess.

7. Straighten gutters, the TV antenna, the fence--and other things that sag.

8. Fix doorbells, tighten loose doorknobs, and oil squeaking hinges.

9. Repair broken windows and shutters.

10. Clean all the cobwebs from around the front door, Make sure all outdoor lighting (especially front porch) is clean and shiny, replace if necessary. It is especially important that the entrance to your home make a good first impression on prospective buyers, this sets the tone for the whole showing.

11. Check your mailbox. Is it straight and upright? Neatly trimmed around?

12. Before you start indoors walk across the street in front of your house and look back (like a buyer will see it) Does it present an appealing appearance?

Indoors

13. Clean everything in and out of sight. Shampoo rugs and wax floors. Wash or brush walls. Wash windows and clean blinds and draperies.

14. Weed clutter out of closets and cupboards. Neatly arranged closets and cupboards give the impression of ample storage, jam packed and overflowing ones give the impression of not enough room.

15. Create space by storing some of the furniture you've found useful (bureaus, bookcases, storage chests, oversized chairs) but which makes a crowded impression.

16. Place the remaining furniture so that traffic can flow easily from room to room.

17. Unless you're a skilled artist, scale down your personal art work (portraits, landscapes), posters, signs, and family photos, especially in teenagers' rooms. Create a feeling of spaciousness.

18. Keep shades and draperies open, to admit as much light as possible, but screen out unappealing views.

19. Let your kitchen look warm and welcoming, not a hectic workplace. Keep your sink shining and free of dirty dishes at all times.

20 Organize cupboards.

21. Clean all appliances including the ones you don't intend to leave with the house.

22. Keep counter tops clear, but not empty (as if unused); adorn them with your most attractive canisters.

23. Completely degrease your oven. Let the kitchen smell fresh and fragrant (with cinnamon warming in the clean oven, if you have time).

24. Remove debris (dust, flies, moths, etc.) from all light fixtures.

25.Keep bathrooms scrubbed, tidy and equipped with fresh soap and neatly hung towels (matching, if possible)

26. Get rid of all stains and install new washers on dripping faucets.

27. Feature (with lighting or furniture arrangement) your home's best characteristics (a fireplace, a picture window, a balcony, ceiling beams, a kitchen eating area, etc.).

28. If you've repainted (preferably in safe neutral tones), add bold splashes of color (with your brightest throw pillows, crockery, pictures, etc.

29. Place plants in strategic spots in any room--the bigger the more glamorous, if space permits.

31. Light the whole house, especially dark corners and hallways.

32. Hang mirrors where they will reflect outdoor light--as well as make a room look larger.

33. Clean out ALL your closets and organize them. Pack away and store out of season clothes. Get rid of extra hangars. Straighten up your shoes (consider some inexpensive shoe racks from a discount store like K-Mart or Wal-Mart)

34. Wash ALL your windows inside and out, keep blinds and shades open as much as possible to let in lots of light.

35. Check where ceilings meet wall and clean all cobwebs, this is commonly overlooked area when cleaning along with tops of tall furniture items such as hutches, entertainment centers, etc.

36. If you have a pet make sure there are no odors. You may not notice odors since you live with you pet every day; have a neutral third part give your home a "sniff" test for objectionable odors that may turn buyers off.

37. Also, when buyers come to visit, keep your pet under control, or better yet, get a friend or neighbor to "pet sit" for you while the buyers are looking.

38. Call Jay Burnham. He would be glad to prepare a FREE report on what you should do to make your home more appealing to prospective buyers (no cost or obligation). Just call him or email at the numbers below.

JAY BURNHAM, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
PREVIEWS International® Property Specialist
54 Dodge Street
Beverly, MA 01915
978.233.2828

Designations Earned: CRB, CRS, GRI, RECS, SRES