5 Tips To Prepare Your Home To Be Sold

Don't sell your house before doing these 5 things first!

If you’re thinking about selling your home in the Spring or Summer now is the time to start getting the home ready.  If you want to sell your home quickly and for top dollar do these 5 things as you prepare your home.

Create a great first impression.

Winter may not be the best time to prepare landscaping however one key area you can work on any time of the year is the front entry way to your home.  Look at the door does it need to be painted?  How is the trim work?  Make sure this are is clean and free of any cobwebs or dirt.  Remember that the buyer will often be waiting outside for a few minutes before entering the home.

Declutter

This is a simple one but not easy.  Picture your home as a model home.  You want to make the rooms look open and inviting.  Sell or pack excess furniture.  Pack knickknacks or decor that is excessive.

Clear The Kitchen Countertops

Kitchen spaces can seem small when they are covered with appliances, utensils and pots and pans.  Remove everything off the countertops to make your kitchen and counter space appear bigger.

Make sure the home is odor free

Smells can make or break a house.  Odors can easily be picked up on as soon as you enter a house.  Make sure your home is odor free.  Keep it clean.  If you’re a smoker, smoke outside.  Air out the house if you need to or seek professional help if you have a severe odor.

Fix things that are broken

If you know things need to be done take care of them.  Fix little things like burned out light bulbs, leaky faucets, or electrical switches that don’t work.  If you really want to be proactive you can do a pre-home inspection and find out exactly what issues would come up on an inspection report.  This gives you time to fix or evaluate the issues before putting the house on the market.  We have home inspectors we can recommend if you need help with this.

If you’d like more ideas on getting your home ready contact and request our free Room By Room Review booklet.  We can email you a copy of this booklet or come out and personally give you our recommendations on what to do and what not to do.

Don’t Do These 3 Things If You Want To Sell Your Egg Harbor Township, NJ House

Here are 3 critical mistakes you want to avoid to sell your Egg Harbor Township, NJ House.

Read this first before making one of these 3 critical mistakes seller’s make when selling their Egg Harbor Township, NJ home.

  • Over price the home!  This may seem like a no brainer but many home sellers will over price their home thinking they will net more money.  In fact overpricing your home can actually lead to netting less than if you priced it right from the beginning.  Most home sellers will overprice their homes for the following reasons:
    • Bad information.  They may have inaccurate information on what their home is worth.
    • Room for negotiations.  Sellers may price the home high expecting to get a lower offer.  However if the home is priced too high you won’t get any offers
    • Net proceeds.  Some sellers will price the home based on what they need to net rather than what the home is worth.
  • Prepare the home to be sold.  Home staging works to help the house show like a model home.  If the house is messy or cluttered or dirty it will not show well and may turn off buyers completely.  Preparing your home to be sold helps your Egg Harbor Township home sell faster and for more money.  We offer our clients a Room By Room Home Staging Checklist to help them prepare the home to be sold.  We also work with professional home stagers that can provide services to home owners and even furnish and decorate vacant homes.
  • Bad photography.  It’s amazing how many homes I see for sale online with horrible photos.  There are blurry pictures, dark pictures, pictures with the home owner in them etc.  Most home buyers start their search on the internet and pictures are the first impression.  You only get one chance to make a great first impression.  Make sure you have great photos and use a professional photographer.

I hope this list helps you as you prepare to sell your Egg Harbor Township, NJ home.  Contact us for a free consultation so we can help you net more money and have a faster sale.  Best wishes, Matt

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How to Wake Up Feeling More Refreshed

Matt's Home News January 2017

  • Most of us have experienced bouts of insomnia that make it difficult to get up in the morning. But for some people, waking up throughout the night is a continuous problem. Here are a few suggestions for improving your sleep and giving yourself more energy in the morning:

    1. Shut off all electronics at least one hour before bed. Studies have shown that electronics keep the mind active longer than other forms of mental stimulation.
    2. Do a sleep hygiene assessment on your home.  Do you have blackout drapes?  Are all LED and other small lights turned off or covered? Do you have a source of white noise, like a fan? Is your pillow and bedding comfortable? Do you need a new mattress?

      First snow day of 2017

    3. Exercise vigorously during the day, but not within two hours of bedtime. Take a walk after dinner to help with digestion, which can also keep you somewhat awake.
    4. Don’t load up on carbohydrates at or after dinner. Digesting carbohydrates tends to spike the energy in your body.
    5. Sit up and read a book in bed until you start to feel sleepy.  Don’t push past the sleepiness. Instead, put the book down and turn off the light.
  • For more great articles and fun facts download and view my January newsletter here.  January Newsletter – Matt

Clever Household Cleaning Hacks

Here are some clever household cleaning hacks from my April newsletter.

 Steam-clean your microwave. Cut a lemon in half and
put it in a microwave-safe dish filled with water. Zap it
until the water boils. Let it steam for another minute
before opening. The gunk can now be wiped away with
less effort.
 Speed up dryer time. Throw one clean dry towel in with
your wet clothes before starting the dryer. 10-15
minutes later, take it out. The dry towel will absorb some
of the excess moisture.Clever Household Cleaning Hacks
 Clean scorched pans. Fill the bottom of the
pan with water and a cup of white vinegar.
Simmer. Remove the pan and add 2
tablespoons baking soda. Empty the pan and
scrub lightly to remove burn marks.
 Dust lamp shades with an adhesive lint
remover roll.
 Dusting magic. Use “used” dryer sheets to pick up dust on your computer keyboard
and screen, wipe the TV screen, buff out water spots on the bath mirror, clean murky
car windshields, and pick up dirt from your baseboards.

For more great articles downland and view my April Newsletter:  April Newsletter – Matt

Best wishes, Matt