Innisfail Blog

PREPARING YOUR HOME FOR SALE

Thinking about selling? Don’t know how to go about it? You may need to start with a few simple steps. Talk to your local Raine & Horne agency and see how they can help you in selling your home.

In the mean time let us offer a few tips to help you get your home Sale Ready!

We know preparing your home for sale can be a daunting and stressful process, but with some handy tips and some planning you will have your home prepared in no time.
We would like to offer you 12 tips that could help make the process easier for you in the preparation of your home.

Declutter
Experience shows us that we collect many belongings over time, we tend to realise how much we have collected when it comes time to move. By decluttering, this is the first step in preparing your home. Go to each room and remove anything that you do not need. Store it, keep it, pack it or donate it. This will not only make your rooms look tidier but also bigger and as a bonus it will help you in the moving process.
Patch & Paint Walls
Overtime paint fades and can flake so it is amazing what a good paint job will do to improve the look and feel of a property in to you and a potential buyers as well. Depending if you can budget it for the property, start with a good clean and remove any marks on walls throughout your home. Take care in remembering deep marks, dents or holes in any walls that require attention - get these repaired and patch up with some paint, or better yet paint the walls to give the place a fresh look. Try to keep to neutral colours such as creams and whites, when painting your home.
A Deep Clean
When showing your home its important to present your property as clean & tidy as possible. Anything that may not be cleaned regularly such as windows, doors, air vents, cupboards, the outside walls of the property, and gutters should be given a thorough Keep your eyes peeled for those pesky cobwebs and dust collecting fans. Buyers will develop opinions on how well the property is maintained and this can affect the offer process.
Carpets & Floors
Badly stained carpets? Get these professionally cleaned or have them replaced. We would recommend getting quotes for both services to ensure the best option for you.
Are your Timber floors scratched? They may need sanding back or they may just need a good polish.
Ensure any tiles or vinyl flooring if free from stains as well - see if you can get these clean or have a professional quote for the job. It is important to show that the floors are maintained after all it is what we stand on and have our furniture on.
Maintenance
It is important to keep up the maintenance of your home, even when it is for sale. Many buyers will open and close things and make comments on small things such as cracked fan switches and power points, rusted fans, door handles that aren't functional, light bulbs that aren’t working etc. As you go through each room, be picky and see if you can notice anything that needs work. Even check you windows are opening perfectly and latching shut properly. Make a list ask your handy man or if you don’t have one ask your agent if they can recommend someone to you.
Outside
The outside needs just as much attention as the inside of your property. Clean up any weeds in gardens, trim back some trees, mow the lawn, sweep the patio, polish the deck, plant flowers to add colour to the property if it is lacking. This is all effective in getting a buyer to decide on making an offer for the property. The first 8 seconds of looking at a property a buyer can decide whether or not they like the home.
Door Handles
You may have an older home that needs a quick spruce to bring it up to date with the times. Exterior and Interior door handles may just do the trick. Replacing the handles on Entry doors, back doors, cupboards can be a low cost and make effective difference to the property.
One Room at a time
This tip is exactly as it sounds - focus is important to make your home look its best, so its important to spend time on one room, at a time. Ensure its clean, tidy, remove anything unnecessary from the room and leave a lot of open space. Remember that the goal is to make your home look as spacious and as comfortable as possible before moving on to your next room. The rest of the house will follow when taking it one step at a time.
Put your Personal Belongings away
We all love our photos being on display but you may not want to keep belongings such as these in sight of buyers. Anything that fits this description should be moved off the property or well out of prying eyes.
If you have kids then they probably have a lot of toys. It may be a good idea to hide these away or donate any they don’t play with any more. This could be a good chance to get a head start on packing their rooms up ready for the move.
Keeping cupboards & drawers clean
Take the time to keep your drawers and cupboards that are part of the property clean and tidy. You can be sure buyers at inspections will want to ensure the doors are working and also how much space is inside.
Lighting
Before every inspection,you want to be able to present your home as warm, light and inviting as possible. You will need to turn on your lights throughout the home, open blinds & curtains to make the home more attractive.
Make your home smell nice
We all hate bad smells and there can be nothing more off putting especially to a potential buyer. It may be an idea to put air fresheners throughout the house to help your home smell lovely. Avoid cooking foods with strong odours and stay on top of pet smells throughout the sale of your home.

Styling your home is an important part of preparing your home for sale. It is necessary to have your home look its best for photos and for anyone viewing the property. If you need any further assistance in the sale of your home or would like a free appraisal on what your property is worth in the current market give Chloe from Raine & Horne Innisfail a call today