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SELLING A HOME -
Improving Your Home’s Salability (continued)
b. Look at the paint on your walls, siding and trim. If it is in good shape but dirty or mildewed, have it cleaned. It does not cost much and will significantly improve appearance. If the paint is in poor shape, a more major expenditure will most likely be necessary to have the house painted. Keep in mind, the potential buyer will see a poor paint job and will either dismiss your house as a potential purchase, or take into account a new paint job when negotiating the purchase price. You are going to pay for it one way or another, so you might as well enhance your chance of selling your house at a good price by “biting the bullet” up front, if at all possible. Fortunately, often a house’s exterior paint can be improved tremendously by only painting the trim. Consider this to save money.
c. If areas of your exterior trim, siding or roof are in bad shape, and have rotted or deteriorated, consider spending the money to have this repaired. It will cost some money, but a local tradesman can do the work for a reasonable amount. If you do not replace rotting or damaged trim or siding, or deteriorated roofing shingles, your chance for a successful sale is severely limited. And do not forget the garage doors. If they are in poor shape consider replacing them. Also, make sure exterior hardware on the doors, etc. is working and presentable. If not, consider replacing the hardware.
d. Improving the landscaping around your home can make a big difference and cost
very little. If your lawn is in bad shape, consider re-
e. Finally, if you have trash and unused items siting around your yard, clean it up. There is no bigger turn off to a potential buyer than a “junk yard” image as they pull in the driveway for a showing.
2. Here are some thoughts on how to improve the interior appearance of your home, often at minimal effort and cost. Also, look under the “Interior Home Care” heading of the “Household” section for more tips on maintaining your home’s exterior.
a. Look at the interior walls, ceilings, floors, carpets and trim to see how they
can be improved in appearance. Often, a good cleaning is all that is required. Perhaps
some spot painting can be done to make a large improvement. If the carpet or floors
are a mess, clean them or make replacements as needed. Or consider painting some
walls and trim that are in bad shape, if necessary. And do not forget about caulking
and fixing seams and joints in the walls and trim to eliminate expansion cracks and
holes that have developed over time. If you have white trim, you can easily caulk
any cracks that have developed and will not even need to re-
b. Make sure your house is clean. Just go through and clean everything thoroughly.
Even with good housekeepers, dirt and grime tend to build up over time and detract
significantly from the appearance of the home. Don’t forget to clean your lighting
fixtures. And make sure the built-
c. Make sure your HVAC systems and other systems in the house are working properly. If not, it will turn off potential buyers. And, in any case, you will have to fix these types of problems before you can close on a sale.
d. Do not ignore the condition of cellars, crawl spaces and attics. Clean them out as much as possible and make sure there are no issues to be addressed, such as moisture, mildew or mold problems. Make sure the problems are corrected before they become an issue with a potential buyer.
3. When you have an appointment to show your home, make sure everything is as presentable as possible. This only makes sense, but if you have ever looked at houses as a purchaser, you know how many people ignore this simple idea. Clean up, empty the trash, clean the bathrooms and kitchen, even straighten out the closets, and vacuum if possible. Make sure to clean the outside front entrance of your home of bugs, spiders, leaves, etc. And turn some lights on to present the house in the best possible manner.
4. If a realtor is showing your home, seriously consider leaving your home during the showing, and definitely do not follow the potential buyers around when they are looking at the house. The realtor will be accompanying them. Buyers like to look around without feeling they are intruding and at their leisure (particularly if they like the house), in order to make their decisions. However, if you are showing the house by yourself without a realtor, do accompany the potential buyers around the house to answer any questions and make sure the showing goes without any problems. One word of caution. If there is more than one person in the potential buyer’s party, make sure they stay together when viewing your home. There is no need for them to separate, and this could result in some issues. Remember, you do not know these people and problems do occur. Be cautious.
At some point in time, a serious buyer will appear and be interested in making an offer for your home. If you have a realtor, or if the buyer has a realtor, any negotiating or offers made will be through the realtors. This would include both informal negotiations (i.e., questions about what price you might accept, how soon does closing need to occur, etc.) and formal written offers. Of course, if a realtor is not involved, direct negotiations will need to take place. Keep the following in mind:
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