How To Prepare Your Home To Sell

Setting the Stage to show and sell your home.

Getting your home ready to show and sell can make the difference between a quick sale and a long market time. Setting the stage may or may not get you more money but it can reduce the time it takes your home to sell, which does save you money. Setting the stage to show and sell your home is a two phase project. First, the things you need to do BEFORE you put your home on the market and secondly the things you need to do before EVERY showing.

Before You Put Your Home on the Market

DE-CLUTTER Rent a storage unit if you have to. Try to look at your home through the eyes of a buyer. That stack of stuff in the corner that you are so used to looking at needs to be removed. If your home is small and or crowded consider rearranging or removing furniture . The exercise equipment that you never use - Store It! Accessories are wonderful and should remain in moderation. Go to some model homes and see how they look. They have accessories, but nothing is overdone. Closets should be uncluttered also. Remove out of season clothes and give all those things you no longer need to charity. Stack things neatly on shelves. OR ADD - if your furnishings are sparse, borrow some pictures for the walls, cover the beat up sofa with a throw and bring in a flower arrangement. Just use common sense, make your home look the best you can.

CLEAN EVERYTHING Your home should sparkle. Don't overlook light fixtures, a clean fixture can make a huge difference in the lighting in a room. While you are cleaning the fixtures replace dim bulbs with bright ones. Make sure your bathrooms are spotless, faucets should be shiny, counters empty except for a few accessories, fixtures cleaned and fresh (get the rust stains out of the toilet etc), mirrors should be clean and streak free. The same goes for the kitchen - sparkling faucet, clean shiny sink, cabinet fronts should be wiped down or cleaned, replace drip pans on the range. Wash all light switches, we don't realize how the fingerprints collect on these. Go through your home room by room and make sure everything has been cleaned, even the utility room and furnace.

MAKE MINOR REPAIRS That dripping faucet or toilet that won't quit running may just be a quick 10 minute repair but left alone can become a concern for the buyer. "Maybe there is a plumbing problem" , "we better offer less" or "there is too much deferred maintenance in this house" are typical comments from buyers. TOUCH UP paint or paint a whole room if needed. The drawings your kids made on the wall will not be considered art by potential buyers. Touch up woodwork where needed. The scratches your dog made on the door (or worse chewed the woodwork) should all be fixed and painted. Re-caulk tubs and showers. More

FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT - Remember you never get a second chance to make a great first impression! Paint your front door. Sweep away leaves, cobwebs etc. More   I can't stress this enough, potential buyers are already deciding if they like your home while waiting for the REALTOR® or homeowner to unlock the door.

Put out the welcome mat before every showing! Before every showing, remember to...More really useful information

 

Buying or selling a home can be a challenging, time-consuming process. Protect your family's assets by taking some of the following precautions when you are buying or selling a home:

1. Call on an expert
Before making important decisions like the 'asking price' for your home, or an appropriate offer to make on your next property, make sure you are seeking the counsel of a seasoned expert. Few other transactions in your lifetime will have as significant of an impact on your family's financial health and future. RE/MAX associates are professionals who have established themselves as top performers in their industry; they can apply their expert knowledge to save you time and money. I am at your service.

2. Know the pace of the market
As your RE/MAX Associate, I will help you to establish realistic expectations of how long it will take to sell your home or to find and purchase an appropriate new property. In fast-paced markets, for example, the most desirable properties often receive multiple offers within days of being listed for sale. Making the decision to become a homeowner or to change residences are processes that require significant time and attention. Once those decisions have been made, however, you will need to be prepared to act at, or ahead of, the pace of your local market.

3. Identify your priorities
As a seller, your agent, I will conduct a CMA, or comparative market analysis, to determine a realistic sale price of your home. I will also help you to evaluate the results of that CMA within the framework of your own needs and priorities.

4. Ask questions
You should interview your real estate agent in the same manner as you might interview any other trusted professional - from doctor to dentist, attorney to financial advisor. Make sure you understand what your agent will do for you and how he or she will be compensated. I welcome your questions!

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My Home Selling System begins with traditional marketing then adds a professional streaming video virtual tour and slide show, an individual website showcasing just your home, and markets your home 24/7 on at least Ten web sites.

Your listing will be accessible through the World Wide Web via a minimum of Ten web sites, including an individual web site highlighting just your home with pictures, descriptive text and a streaming video virtual tour!

Harnessing the power of the World Wide Web, these venues provide 24-hour advertising and information services for global exposure in the marketing of your home.

Of the 17.5 million Canadian adult internet users, 85% of those looking for a home use the internet. Prospective buyers who visit these various websites and want more information on listings can secure an immediate e-mail report of the actual listing and virtual tour. We also include the offer to send hard copy information upon request.

 

I want to earn the privilege to serve you.
Call for a free, no obligation consultation.

Allan Todd
REALTOR®

Remax Professionals Inc., Brokerage
1645 Dundas Street West, Mississauga, Ontario L5C 1E3
270 The Kingsway, Suite 200, Toronto, Ontario M9A 3T7
1 East Mall Crescent, Etobicoke, Ontario M9B 6G8

416-640-0734

905-270-8840

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