THE GUIDE TO SELLING YOUR HOME
Step 8 - Preparing your Property for Sale
FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT! To maximize the value of your house, you want someone to fall in love with it, so make sure your house looks fantastic. Here are some suggestions for low cost improvements and repairs you might consider, before your first inspection.
Inside your home
- Do a complete spring clean, removing all the junk from your house. Store it in a friend's house, or give it to charity. Keep your house clean and tidy for inspections
- A fresh coat of paint can make a big difference: choose light colours to brighten up dingy rooms. Also, clean up dirty or damaged wallpaper, tiles, ceilings and so on
- Make sure all the fixtures and fittings are in good working order, and clean. That means chipped door handles, torn fly screens, broken window latches, dirty light switches, dripping taps, and so on
- Polish your wooden and tiled floors and have your carpets professionally cleaned
- Make sure your bathroom, laundry and kitchen are spotless
- Repair your heating, air-conditioning and plumbing, or any other appliances that are to be included in the sale
Outside your home
- You want to give the impression of a healthy, luxuriant, colourful garden. If there is time, plant some flowers and reseed the lawn. If not, consider hiring or borrowing flowers and shrubs, especially for the entrance to your home
- Make sure the plants you do have are kept healthy and neat. Put down fertilizer and mulch, weed your garden beds, and prune the shrubs and trees. Make sure the whole garden is generously watered
- Keep your lawn mown and raked, and make sure your driveway and paths are swept
- Thoroughly clean the outside of the house, including its guttering and windows
- Clean up your garage and garden shed
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