The inside of a house that has been cleaned and is ready to sell

5 Things You Should Do Before Selling Your Home

By: Rise Realty Group

So, you’ve decided that you’re ready to start selling your house? The real estate market in Brantford and the surrounding area is very hot right now. Meaning, if you have decided to sell your house, you’re likely looking to get top dollar for it and hoping to sell it quickly. Now you’re wondering, what should I do before selling my house? We’re here to help with that! 

The truth is buyers today want a house that they can easily visualize themselves living in. That typically involves a good thorough cleaning, lots of decluttering as well as putting much of your personal stuff away. It is the simple and small things that can make a big first impression to a potential buyer as they walk into your home. So here it is, what you should do before selling your house.  

The inside of a house that has been cleaned and is ready to sell

1. Scheduling a Deep Clean

This is a big one. We all want to walk into a clean house, but what is the difference between a clean and a deep clean? A deep clean is not your regular weekly clean where you dust, vacuum and wipe down the counter tops. Don’t get us wrong, those are important parts to cleaning but a deep clean is much more. Think of your kitchen for example, the top of the stove, the upper cabinets, the backsplash, the corners of the ceiling and walls. It should sparkle! Don’t forget the windows, especially if you have a professional photographer or videographer coming. The natural light in your home is so important. Let it shine bright!  

A deep clean can be a big task, so if you plan on tackling it yourself make sure to give yourself enough time. When you talk to your listing agent, they will likely want to work with you to develop a schedule to sell your home. Make sure you’re realistic in choosing this with them. If you don’t have the time to do a deep clean, consider hiring a professional. If you have carpets in your home, you will want to call someone who does deep extraction.

2. Flooring Refresh

This one is a great Segway from the last, clean flooring is so important! As you’re probably catching on by now, everything in what we’re about to talk about really is important. It’s not a lot, but it will make a huge difference when listing your home for sale. 

As we’ve already mentioned, having a professional come and clean your carpets is your first step if you have carpets. A simple vacuum will not do. Especially If you have pets. If you’ve had your carpets cleaned and some stains remain, you might want to consider replacing your carpet with some laminate flooring. This is a more costly solution, but it will make a big difference in the time to sell and how much people are willing to offer. 

3. The Broken Stuff?

Sometimes were surprised we even have to say this, we’ve gone through several homes that look amazing, but things are broken. You’re probably asking yourself, what do you mean broken? Things like closet doors sliding the way they should, cabinets not sagging off their hinges. Potential buyers will be opening stuff up, turning on lights, etc. Don’t assume to yourself that they won’t necessarily notice any problems. We know this might seem a little petty, but the truth is a potential buyer will not only make note of these issues but they will likely attach a dollar value to fix it. 

Painting the inside of a home

4. Painting

If you’re going to do some renovations before you list your home, you want to make sure that whatever you do you’re going to get a return on your investment. Painting is definitely one of those! Fresh paint will not only hide any imperfections in your walls that might have accumulated over the course of you living in your home. It will also give a potential buyer a strengthened sense of security that your home has been well cared for. If you are painting your house, we recommend a bright and neutral colour. You can always add in accents in furniture that will make things pop. One thing to consider is that paint can have a bit of a lingering smell. Therefore, if you do plan on listing your house and you know in advance, it is best to paint about a month before.  

5. Lighting

First things first, please go through your entire home and check to make sure all the light bulbs are working! Especially in your ceiling mounted lights. As potential buyers walk through, they will likely be flipping on all the switches so they can see what controls what, etc. If you want to take it even further, making sure all the light bulbs match. We know that LED bulbs and CFL bulbs are common now, so we suggest picking one style and colour to keep it consistent throughout your house.  

Finally, if you have table lamps, we recommend placing them in areas where they are not as bright. This will provide the illusion that your home and the space is brighter than it is. 

That’s it! It’s not a long list and it’s certainly not a hard list but you would be surprised by the effectiveness of everything listed above. If you’re read to start selling your house, or If you have any questions, want a second opinion or are not sure who to call if you don’t feel like tackling this list yourself, you can always contact The Rise Realty Group