Are you under pressure to put your Needham home up for sale? Find out how to sell your home fast in this post.
When you're facing a difficult situation like financial hardship, bankruptcy, divorce, or simply moving away because of a career change or needing a large space for your growing family, you may be feeling the pressure to sell your current home.
Selling a home can be a nerve-wracking experience, especially if it is your first time. Even experienced sellers still feel some level of anxiety when it comes to parting with their home.
In today's competitive market, having a beautiful home is not enough. Your home must stand out, be more appealing, more attractive, and better priced over other Needham homes for sale in MA.
This means putting more time and effort into the selling process, but when you are already under so much emotional pressure, how will you manage to move your home out of the market faster over the other homes for sale?
I am here to tell you it can be done. There are homes that have been sold within two to three weeks of its listing.
If you're wondering how they did it, here are the best-kept secrets to selling your home fast.
Secure the help of the best real estate agent
You need a great - no, the best - real estate agent in Needham. Your real estate agent is your best tool in selling your home.
Hire the wrong one and your home will stay on the market for months. Hire the best one and you'll have someone committed to selling your home fast and for the right price.
How do you know which one to hire? Find a reputable local agent who is well-experienced and with a solid online presence.
Hire an agent who works full time in the real estate business for more than five years, and one who works in the Needham market, like me Sheila Moylan.
2. You will be entitled to my professional advice regarding how to price your home right.
Your home's price is the most significant factor that determines the success or failure of your home selling process. When your property is priced right, you let more potential buyers for your home. I have priced so many homes so you can be assured that I have mastered the process of pricing your property right.
3. You are entitled to my professional advice regarding how to best maximize your home to make it more appealing to buyers.
I've been working with buyers for years. I know what buyers want. I can walk into your home and suggest areas where you can improve your property so that buyers will find it more attractive.
4. You will gain a team of professionals to help market your property extensively, both online and offline.
Did you know that 95% of home buyers first search the Internet when looking for a home? If your home is not listed on any of the Internet real estate platforms, nor properly marketed on any of the social media platforms, your home for sale won’t be found.
5. You’ll have a professional real estate adviser and trained negotiator that will take your side and back you up when it comes to price negotiations.
6. I can make your home selling process easier, faster, and convenient.
Visit here https://www.WestwoodHomesForSaleInMA.com/testimonials/to find out for yourself what my previous clients thought of my performance.
Boost that curb appeal
First impressions last. In real estate, the first few seconds are crucial. You only have one chance to create a good impression.
In those few seconds, a buyer decides whether he likes the house or not. That’s why it is extremely important that your home has a great curb appeal.
How do you improve your home's curb appeal? Here are some budget-friendly suggestions that will elevate the look of your home to make buyers fall in love.
Take care of your lawn. Lawns are a major component of the front yard so make sure to keep your lawn in good condition. Mowing, raking, and edging can create a beautiful lawn.
Plant some shrubs and flowers. A home looks more beautiful when the garden has some color. Adding shrubs and flowers make the house look more inviting.
Clean the walkway, steps, porch, and front door. You can either power wash or brush them. Cleaning them helps them look newer and is also a great prep for painting.
Paint or refinish the front door. The front door may be small in size compared to the lawn, trees, porch, and bushes, but because it serves as the entrance to the house, it draws the buyer's eye.
Paint the porch if necessary. If your home has a front porch and it’s looking dinghy and worn out, cleaning and painting it can improve its overall look and enhance your home's curb appeal.
Depersonalize
Photos, awards, books, etc, all these items should be removed and placed in boxes.
You want to help the buyer picture themselves living in the house, and that can be difficult when you have a huge portrait of yourself hanging in the living room.
Clean everything!
Buyers love clean homes.
Clean homes are appealing, attractive, and more importantly, ready to be used and won't require much work for the buyers. If you want your home to sell fast and bring top dollar, you need to start the cleaning process.
Cleaning for home selling takes much more effort than your regular weekend cleanup. It can be time-consuming but worth the effort you'll put into it.
Cleaning is one of the cost-effective ways to get your Needham house sale ready and won't cost you a few dollars because you most likely have all the materials needed in your kitchen.
Here’s how you do it.
- First, get rid of the clutter.
This is easier said than done especially if you still have no new place to move your things into.
Your home is most likely to be filled with mementos, furniture, clothes, etc, which have all piled up especially if you've been living in that house for a long time.
One of the best solutions that worked for many home sellers is to hire a storage unit.
Transfer most of your unused items and belongings to a storage facility. Keep only the ones you are regularly using, and this goes for kitchen furniture, chairs, gadgets, clothes, books, collections, etc.
Once you've cleared the house of many of your personal items and displays, it is time to clean.
- Second, prepare a cleaning schedule for each room of the house.
Doing this gives you enough time to deep clean the room without occupying most of the day.
Cleaning takes about an hour to two hours, depending on how large the room is, and how occupied it is.
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Third, prioritize cleaning rooms that are most visited like the living room, kitchen, master's bedroom, and bathroom.
These rooms are the ones buyers really check out, so make sure to do a good job in cleaning everything.
Take your time to clean each room from top to bottom and corners to corners. Swipe all the drawers and cabinets, vacuum under the bed, and organize displays.
Don't forget to clean the windows, top of the ceiling fans, and underneath the cabinets.
Kitchen Cleaning Tips
They say the kitchen is the heart of the home. It plays a huge part in many buyers decision to buy the house or not. When cleaning your kitchen here are some things to remember:
- Wash all dishes, pots, and pans and put them away.
- Remove all knick-knacks and other clutter on the counters, then wipe the counter clean.
- Wipe down all surfaces including appliances, cabinet doors, refrigerator, etc
- Clean the stovetop, including the burners and hood.
- Clean the refrigerator too. Throw expired food away - some nosy buyers check inside to showcase an organized refrigerator content.
Bathroom Cleaning Tips
Pay attention to your bathroom. This is the part of the house that buyers get to test and use during showings.
- Clear the bathroom counter of any clutter and personal items like hygiene kit, makeup, etc.
- Thoroughly clean all surface areas of the bathroom, making sure that you get rid of mold, mildew, and surface stains.
- Clean inside the cabinets. Throw away old towels and replace them with fresh new towels.
Fix minor repair issues
In preparing your home to sell, you might be tempted to have many things fixed. Why pour out your money on repairs that will have little returns? It is more practical to spend your money on minor fixes.
Identify the repairs your house needs. Here’s a list of things of minor repairs you can do in your home:
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Repair any cracks in the walls and ceilings
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Fix leaky plumbing
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Replace any broken windows
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Replace broken appliances
Paint it!
As I’ve mentioned before, first impressions matter. Painting is the best way to update your home’s look without breaking the bank.
A home that’s clean, well-kept and properly maintained will attract more buyers than homes that are not.
Here are a few more benefits of painting your home:
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Most buyers prefer move-in ready homes, so if you have your house painted, it means they won’t have to do it anymore which is a great bonus to them.
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A paint job increases the home’s value more than the cost of the actual paint.
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A newly-painted house looks great on photos, which is crucial in marketing.
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A painted home shows pride of ownership. It shows that the previous owner took care of the property, inspiring confidence in the buyer.
When choosing the color of paint, go for neutral colors. Your favorite color may be a vibrant red, but when it’s time to sell your property, neutral colors work best. These colors look great on the eyes and can work well with any kind of decor you want.
Paint both the exterior and interior of the house. When choosing the color of paint, go for colors buyers love, not colors you like. Neutral-toned colors are proven to be buyer favorite, so choose along those color line.
Colors like creamy white, light grey tones, dove gray, and light beige are the best colors for living rooms.
For kitchens, some lovely colors to choose from are light sage, light olive, and creamy beige.
Bedrooms look best in light blues and greens or tan colors.
For home exteriors, shades of whites, beige, and muted greens or blues look amazing.
Let the light in
Dark homes can look cold and depressing. Most buyers prefer light-filled homes as they seem warmer and inviting. A well-lit home looks more open and spacious.
Get more light in your house by opening the windows.
If your curtains are dark and heavy, replace them with something light so that light can easily filter in.
Remove any furniture or appliances that cover the windows so nothing is blocking the light.
Also, update your light fixtures. New light fixtures are brighter and will give you longer usage. If possible, use LED bulbs because they are more environmentally-friendly and a lot brighter.
Staging
When you want buyers to fall in love with your Needham property, stage it!
According to the staged home's website, staged homes average six days on the market versus 48 days for unstaged ones. The National Association of Realtors NAR reports that 96% of buyers agents say that staging has an effect on the buyer's view of the home.
Staging makes it easy for the buyers to visualize the house as their future home. It also enhances the visual appeal of the room and helps create amazing marketing photos.
Here are some staging tips you can do :
Remove excess items and furniture. Showcase space and create a better traffic flow by retaining only the most important pieces in the room.
Group furniture together. Arrange your couches and chairs in a conversational group.
Artwork at eye level. If you are to hang paintings on the wall, hang them on eye level. One to two pieces are enough, you don’t need to fill the whole wall.
Hang a mirror. The mirror is a great way to reflect light and space. In a small space, it makes the room look larger.
Now that you know the secrets to selling your Needham real estate property fast, it’s time to roll your sleeves and get to work.
Call me, Sheila Moylan at (781) 559-4057 today.
