Once you’ve done all the decorating and maintenance jobs around your house there are still a few things to do before you list your property, it really never ends!
So today I’m sharing my top five tips to getting your house ready to sell in order to attract the right buyer and get the best price.
PRESENTATION
It goes without saying that presentation is a key part of selling your home. You are selling your biggest asset and it’s important to show it off to its full potential. It blows my mind how many people don’t do this when with a little bit of effort will make all the difference.
Getting your home to a presentable place requires a few phases;
The clear out phase – sell, donate or give-away anything you don’t want or use any more, and pack up anything you don’t need.
The deep clean phase – go through each room and clean it from top to bottom including the inside of any cupboards that are built in or will remain with the property as people will look in them.
The de-clutter phase – you’ll probably find yourself doing this alongside the two phases above but it’s worth noting because it’s important to pack away items such as family pictures, holiday magnets and kids pictures on the fridge etc. You want to remove any personal references to you and your family.
Now for the fun phase, styling! – you’ve done the hard work now you get to stage your home up to sell.
Magazines/Pinterest/Instagram are great sources for reference on how to do this, but here are a few of my tips for styling your home;
- Create vignettes – these are basically a grouping of several objects to create a little scene. Odd numbers are better when it come to this, so for example on a console group a plant, a candle and an ornament/sculpture together, or a lamp, a picture and a plant together. With these try to create different heights and natural elements will add more interest.
- Style with trays and books – grouping things together on a tray or book helps to ground them and make them feel considered rather than cluttered.
- Add layers with rugs and throws – a throw on the arm of a chair, on the end of a bed or the back of your sofa adds interest and warmth to your home. Rugs, you can’t have enough! Obviously you don’t want to be buying anything new as you’re moving so use what you can or have a look on Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree for second hand rugs as they will help make your rooms feel inviting and warm. My only suggestion would be to keep them neutral or in line with the colours already in the room, now is not the time to go bold on a highly patterned rug.
LIGHTING
Lighting is the best thing for setting a mood and creating just the right atmosphere, therefore it’s important to add this to your pre-sale to do list;
- Check that all of your lights are working and have lamps in them
- It’s also really important to use the right lamp colour. For living areas and bedrooms I would opt for warm white lamps, this will add that cosy and ambient vibe, but for utility areas such as bathrooms, kitchens and laundries I’d opt for a day light lamp which will make them feel brighter and cleaner
- For your open homes turn on every light and lamp, and if any of them are on dimmers I’d set them to the right level depending on the time of day/weather, duller days will need the lights to be on brighter.
I’d also suggest that once your listing is live that you turn on any outdoor lighting every night for anyone who drives by when its dark, kerb appeal is important at all times 🙂
SMELL
Obviously one of the best things to combat any potential odours is to do a deep clean of your house, clean your drains, get any carpets cleaned and air out your house before the open day, but as an added touch setting out some fresh smelling scents will add to the experience when people view your home.
For me nothing is better than Santa Maria Novella Pot Pourri, it’s such an intoxicating and energising scent. I also had candles on the kitchen counter and in the bathrooms where it was safe to have them.
MUSIC
For that extra impact playing music will really help add to the vibe of your home and set the mood. We are lucky to have three Sonos speakers including one in our outside area, and we made sure they were used on our open day to play this playlist I created. Although not necessary I honestly can’t recommend this tip enough because you’ll stand out from the crowd and you’ll be helping the potential new owners envision living in your house that little bit more.
CHOOSE YOUR AGENT CAREFULLY
All agents are not created equal and with their fees starting at 2%, you want to make sure that every dollar of that 2% or more is going towards getting you the best price for your home. I have to be honest in saying that when we first heard the percentages agents charge here in Brisbane our first instinct was to find the cheapest one. That’s obscene, how can they charge that much… but it became very clear as soon as we met some of them that the good ones charge a higher rate for a reason.
I knew then that it was me that had to change so instead of focusing on their fees I focused on the fact we’re selling our most valuable asset, and to make money you have to spend money and invest in the right people. We ended up choosing an agent who’s percentage was 3.7%, a hefty fee but he was absolutely worth it.
Tips on finding a great agent
- choose one that sells in your area, they will know the market and the current buyers who are looking in that area too
- look for someone who has a good number of listings, they’re not desperate for a sale and will be more likely to hold out to get the best price for you
- do they have a team or are they a solo agent? The reason I mention this is because the solo agents are going to be busier dealing with all the admin, were an agent with a team can focus on selling your property and getting you the best price.
So these are my main tips on what to do when selling your home, what do you think? What are your tips? I’d love to hear what you did to sell your house.
