How to Prepare Your Home to Be Sold

The housing market can be very competitive depending on how many other homes in the area are for sale and how high of an asking price the homeowner sets. If a homeowner wants to earn the highest profit on the sale of their home, there are certain preparations they should make in order to attract buyers. Homeowners should be equipped to prepare the exterior and the interior of their homes properly to ensure a high return on their investment.

Curb Appeal

A well-kept, tidy yard and exterior is the first impression prospective buyers receive. If the exterior is appealing, the buyer will be more apt to want to see the inside. For example, a freshly cut lawn and clean gutters or sidewalks imply a well maintained home. Here are some other tips to bring curb appeal to your home:

• Any trees or shrubbery should also be trimmed and free of any unnecessary limbs or debris.
• Fences or retaining walls should be nicely painted and any lawn equipment or children's toys should be put away to avoid a cluttered front yard.
• The front door to the home should be properly painted and cleaned with new screens that function and fit properly.
• Shutters should be aligned.
• Small items should not be overlooked, such as old, rusty mailboxes, porch lights and doorbells.
• It is essential that the house numbers are visible from the street, particularly if there is no for sale sign posted: a home that is impossible to locate will certainly deter buyers.

Indoor Appeal

Neutral colors make rooms look more spacious and uncluttered. A homeowner might want to consider painting over dark colors with a white or beige. In addition, the smell of fresh paint generally equates cleanliness.

Cleanliness is the key essential element to the interior of the home. Everything should be spotless, including:

• Carpets
• Windows
• Mirrors
• Appliances
• Surfaces (walls, floors, counters, etc)
• Plumbing Fixtures

According to the Sacramento Bee newspaper, a homeowner's worst enemy when selling a home is clutter. Clutter is the precise thing prospective buyers do not want to see. A cluttered home will certainly not appear spacious and the homeowner should remember that their goal is not to impress the buyer with personal property, but to get the buyer to see themselves and their family in the home.

One option is to rent a U-Haul to get everything out of the home that is unnecessary and taking up extra, valuable space and to put it in storage until the house is sold.