No matter how prepared you are, selling your home will be a stressful and emotional experience. Getting the best offer when selling a house is all about making your home stand out — while spending as little additional time and money as possible.
Selling your home can feel scary, especially if you’re a first-time home seller because you want to make sure you get the best deal for your home. This is where our tips to maximize your home’s sale price will help you.
1. Repaint Your Walls
This may seem like a lot of work, but this will go a long way in making it easier for buyers to decide whether they want to buy your home or not. When a potential buyer steps into your home, most buyers will be thinking of your space as a canvas where they can imagine themselves in the future.
Because of this, you would do best to avoid painting your walls in bright colors. Instead, go for classic colors. Everyone has their own tastes, so painting your walls in neutral colors is the safest option.
2. Tidy Up Your Home
Before even putting your home up for sale, tidy up, and keep all of your personal belongings. When buyers go through your door, buyers aren’t thinking of the house as your property. They go inside to know if they can see themselves living there in the future.
When you show your home to potential buyers, keep small items and all clutter out of sight. This will allow them to imagine their own belongings filling up the space. Also, don’t forget the outside of your home. The first thing buyers see is your house’s curb appeal, and if it’s not up to par, they may decide not to go in at all.
3. Decide Whether Or Not To Update
You may think that because you’re moving out soon, taking steps to update the home is unimportant. But the thing is, most homebuyers are out in the market looking for a house that has been taken care of. Buyers want to be assured that the investment will be worth it.
Small kitchen and bathroom updates will always be able to increase the selling potential of your home. If your home has wallpapers, updating those and the lighting can make the whole space look newer, fresher, and more livable. Updating countertops can also add value to your kitchen and bathrooms.
4. Work With An Expert
Most homeowners will sell their house once or only a few times in their life. Unless you’re a real estate professional or investor, help and guidance from a professional will help you out a lot.
Finding the right agent can have a significant impact on your selling experience. If you find the right one, it will be much easier for you to time your sale, set the right price, and prepare for listing and showings. Although a professional real estate agent’s services aren’t free — they usually cost 5-6% of your home’s sale price — the right one will be worth it.
5. Time Your Sale Appropriately
The time of the year that you list your home can affect how long you’ll have to wait to sell at the price you’d like. Experts say that the best time to list your home on the market is in the early spring.
Doing your research on what’s going on in the housing market is another crucial factor for you to consider. But aside from that, you also need to take into account what’s happening in your life.
Suppose you’ve just recently retired and are looking to downsize to more affordable housing, waiting until spring might not make sense. Similarly, a growing family or a job transfer are other things that might make it impractical for you to wait until spring. So at the end of the day, the best time to sell your home is when you need to sell.
To get the best deal and make the most money when you sell your home, don’t take shortcuts. Although some things may seem irrelevant or like too much work, every small thing will be noticed by potential buyers as they scrutinize their future investment. In the end, all of your hard work will pay off as long as you don’t cut corners.
