Did you know there’s such a thing as ‘home buying season’? There are times of the year when people are more likely to be house hunting (the spring is popular, and the school summer holidays are a prime time for moving) and the autumn is a notoriously unpopular time with homebuyers. One reason is that many people don’t want to pack up and move house with Christmas looming. On the other hand, there’s usually a boost of interest in January, when people take stock of their surroundings and make big decisions about their life and home. But just because there’s a homebuying ‘season’, that doesn’t mean you can’t attract plenty of buyers to your property at this time of year; you just need to set the right price and create an excellent first impression. Follow these 10 secret ways to sell your house fast at any time of year.
1. The price is right
As a seller, you may be tempted to sell your house at a higher price. This can be a mistake as a very high price at the beginning might not get much interest, and then you’ll slowly and steadily have the reduce the rate to finally close the deal. This can lead to slower sales and the house may sell at far lower price rate than average. Estate agents and buyers may stay away from your property altogether if the price is too high. They may think that you will not negotiate over the price and so it is important to compare your home to other similar properties and price it right.
2. Boost curb appeal
Apply a fresh coat of paint, add new flowers and turf, renovate the front door and clean the windows to add to the curb appeal of the house. To get the maximum amount of buyers through your door, curb appeal is everything, as it’s the first thing anyone sees when viewing your home. That estate agent board out the front of the house shows anyone passing that your home is up for sale, and they’ll judge the exterior before even making a phone call to the agent. A nice looking front facade will help you to sell your house fast and get a good price.
3. Update the interior
To give your house a makeover in preparation for selling, it’s a good idea to clear out the clutter and update the interior. Use new fixtures, paint the walls, deep clean the bathroom and improve the décor to make the house as appealing as possible. The home must appear tidy, well-maintained and in the best possible condition.
4. A depersonalized home sells fast
If you just remove the items that are not needed in the house, it will appear more spacious. Take advantage of your imminent move to try and de-clutter the home. Get rid of unwanted excessive furniture and knick-knacks. It’s a good idea to take down family photos, posters and personal possessions so that prospective buyers can easily envision the home as theirs.
5. Assign different roles to the rooms
If you have rooms that seem to have no purpose at all, such as a large hallway, box room or conservatory, you must use them. Each and every room must have a definite purpose, because this provides more valuable space for potential buyers to use. For instance, if there is some odd alcove near the kitchen area, you can add shelving or doors and call it a pantry. A large landing upstairs might be able to house a desk and suddenly you have an office space.
6. Easy access
Make the property easily accessible and welcome buyers into your home. Be available for viewings morning, afternoon, evenings and weekends – whenever a buyer wants to come is good for you. Show them whatever they wish to see and answer all their questions. This will give you an idea of the needs of prospective buyer and enable you to use this advice to improve the property for the next viewing. It’s preferable to have an estate agent show buyers around the property as they’ll feel more relaxed if you’re not there – so make yourself scarce!
7. A pet-free zone
If you can move pets during viewings, do! From hamsters to dogs, take them to a relatives home or out for a walk during the viewing. Remove any pet paraphernalia like cat litter trays and dog dishes, and be sure to clear any pet hair away. Airing the property and using room fragrances will get rid of any pet smells that you’ve become accustomed to.
8. List your property
Use the major online portals to list your property so that as many buyers a possible get to see it. Hire an estate agent to do this part of the work and make sure that your home will be included in their shop window displays and email newsletter.
9. Use good photos
While listing the property, use impressive snapshots to make the property attractive and desirable. Clean and style each room with flowers, plants and homely items before taking a photo. A good estate agent should be able to take great listing photos for you, and if you’re not happy with the photos don’t just stick with them – retake them!
10. Highlight attractions
Apart from sharing good photos of the inside of your home, it’s a good idea to also post the photos of the garden, neighbourhood and any outstanding views. Many buyers want to know about distances to the nearest train station or main road, and what the local schools are like. Talk about shopping areas, connectivity, recreation or any other property highlights.
I hope that these ideas will help you when the time comes to sell your home. By using the above tips, you can speed up the selling process – buyers will snap it up! Let me know any techniques that you used to sell your own home by leaving me a comment below.
This blog post is an advertisement feature that has been written in collaboration with a sponsor. The pink links in this post indicate a sponsored link 🙂
One Response
I definitely agree with pricing your house right and boosting the curb appeal to sell your house faster. Great blog by the way and thanks for sharing!