The Top Ten Tips for Selling Your Home in 2011

If you're interested in selling your home in 2011, use these tips to aid you in a quicker sale!  

Selling Secret #10: Pricing it right
Find out what your home is worth, then shave 15 to 20 percent off the price. You’ll be stampeded by buyers with multiple bids — even in the worst markets — and they’ll bid up the price over what it’s worth. It takes real courage and most sellers just don’t want to risk it, but it’s the single best strategy to sell a home in today’s market.

Selling Secret #9: Half-empty closets
Storage is something every buyer is looking for and can never have enough of. Take half the stuff out of your closets then neatly organize what’s left in there. Buyers will snoop, so be sure to keep all your closets and cabinets clean and tidy.

Selling Secret #8: Light it up
Maximize the light in your home. After location, good light is the one thing that every buyer cites that they want in a home. Take down the drapes, clean the windows, change the lampshades, increase the wattage of your light bulbs and cut the bushes outside to let in sunshine. Do what you have to do make your house bright and cheery – it will make it more sellable.

Selling Secret #7: Play the agent field
A secret sale killer is hiring the wrong broker. Make sure you have a broker who is totally informed. They must constantly monitor the multiple listing service (MLS), know what properties are going on the market and know the comps in your neighborhood. Find a broker who embraces technology – a tech-savvy one has many tools to get your house sold.

Selling Secret #6: Conceal the critters
You might think a cuddly dog would warm the hearts of potential buyers, but you’d be wrong. Not everybody is a dog- or cat-lover. Buyers don’t want to walk in your home and see a bowl full of dog food, smell the kitty litter box or have tufts of pet hair stuck to their clothes. It will give buyers the impression that your house is not clean. If you’re planning an open house, send the critters to a pet hotel for the day.

Selling Secret #5: Don’t over-upgrade
Quick fixes before selling always pay off. Mammoth makeovers, not so much. You probably won’t get your money back if you do a huge improvement project before you put your house on the market. Instead, do updates that will pay off and get you top dollar. Get a new fresh coat of paint on the walls. Clean the curtains or go buy some inexpensive new ones. Replace door handles, cabinet hardware, make sure closet doors are on track, fix leaky faucets and clean the grout.

Selling Secret #4: Take the home out of your house
One of the most important things to do when selling your house is to de-personalize it. The more personal stuff in your house, the less potential buyers can imagine themselves living there. Get rid of a third of your stuff – put it in storage. This includes family photos, memorabilia collections and personal keepsakes. Consider hiring a home stager to maximize the full potential of your home. Staging simply means arranging your furniture to best showcase the floor plan and maximize the use of space.

Selling Secret #3: The kitchen comes first
You’re not actually selling your house, you’re selling your kitchen – that’s how important it is. The benefits of remodeling your kitchen are endless, and the best part of it is that you’ll probably get 85% of your money back. It may be a few thousand dollars to replace countertops where a buyer may knock $10,000 off the asking price if your kitchen looks dated. The fastest, most inexpensive kitchen updates include painting and new cabinet hardware. Use a neutral-color paint so you can present buyers with a blank canvas where they can start envisioning their own style. If you have a little money to spend, buy one fancy stainless steel appliance. Why one? Because when people see one high-end appliance they think all the rest are expensive too and it updates the kitchen.

Selling Secret #2: Always be ready to show
Your house needs to be "show-ready" at all times – you never know when your buyer is going to walk through the door. You have to be available whenever they want to come see the place and it has to be in tip-top shape. Don’t leave dishes in the sink, keep the dishwasher cleaned out, the bathrooms sparkling and make sure there are no dust bunnies in the corners. It’s a little inconvenient, but it will get your house sold.

Selling Secret #1: The first impression is the only impression
No matter how good the interior of your home looks, buyers have already judged your home before they walk through the door. You never have a second chance to make a first impression. It’s important to make people feel warm, welcome and safe as they approach the house. Spruce up your home’s exterior with inexpensive shrubs and brightly colored flowers. You can typically get a 100-percent return on the money you put into your home’s curb appeal. Entryways are also important. You use it as a utility space for your coat and keys. But, when you’re selling, make it welcoming by putting in a small bench, a vase of fresh-cut flowers or even some cookies.

Call me for all your real estate needs!  If you have a friend or family member who is interested in buying or selling a home, let me know!  I'm never too busy for your referrals!

It's About That Time.... SPRING CLEANING!!!

How many times have you heard, "Where in the heck did I put _____??  I just saw it!"  And then the frustration ensues, couch cushions start flying, the dog runs under the bed, and you still can't find it.  Sound familiar?  Believe it or not, amid the endless piles of laundry, dishes, old catalogs, bills, overdue library books, you have a house.  A house you would desperately love to show off with pride, as your home.  You might feel that your only hope is that a charitable neighbor nominates you for a cable show home makeover.  But, back to reality, it's really just time to dig in and find your home again!  Hopefully these tips for organizing and cleaning will help....

The first thing to do is to really look at your problem area.  Grab a notebook and a pencil.  Mentally survey each room and jot down the problem areas of the room, putting one problem on a page.  You'll see why in a minute.  The problem areas should be parts of the room that really bug you, or areas that attract clutter or messes.
Example:  Shoes that pile up next to the door, table piled with mail, end table with magazines from last year...  Carefully (but quickly!) analyze each room in the house and write down the areas that need improvement.
Don't forget about the hidden messes like junk drawers, medicine cabinets, garages, closets, and attics!  We don't usually notice the disorder until we try looking for something in one of these places and get lost.

Next, for each of the problem areas in a room, try to figure out why the disorganization and mess continues.  Sometimes this is best done while you're in the actual room, and it may be easier if you are drinking wine at the time.  All answers are acceptable here, including the fact that you live with slobs.  Typically there is usually more than one reason why an area of your home is continually unorganized.
Example:  Why are the magazines overflowing?  You may realize you have a fitness magazine with a headline that reads, "Get in the Best Shape of Your Life in 2010!".  It might be time to part with it, since you're doing 2011 spring cleaning. (or just cut out the section you want and file it away!)  You might have a giant bag of plastic grocery bags taking up space in your pantry.  Try to think of why you need that many plastic bags.  If you can't come up with a good enough reason to hoard them, maybe you can recycle some of them instead.
Continue the process for each of the problems in the room.  Write down the reasons for each problem in your notebook, then move to the next room.  When you're done analyzing all your problem areas, start go back to the beginning page of your "Spring Cleaning Notebook" and start making solutions, page by page.

Now comes the fun part.  Think about habits, behaviors, and tools that can make those messes disappear.

• Do you need special tools, bins, baskets or shelving to help organize things?
• Is the problem a habit that just needs to be enforced and practiced?
• Is it a combination of both of these things?
• Or do you just need to toss some stuff out?

Example:  Junk mail piling on your table.  Sort the mail while standing over the trash can.  Immediately throw away the junk.  Or find a sorter and organize it when it comes in, and downsize once a week.  Maybe reduce your mail by using online bill paying and opt out of credit card pre approvals.  How about extra coat hooks in the entry way closet?  Would that reduce the coats piling up?  Would a bowl or basket on the entry way table help track down keys? 

After you decide on your solutions, then it's time to implement the changes.  If you went through your home and only had a few changes, then you're lucky and can probably start immediately.  Make a list of what you need, buy the tools to get the job done and jump in.  Warning!  Organizational tools will not help if you don't use them!  You must also start to implement the behavior changes associated with keeping the mess clean.  While you're tearing things out, it's a great time to clean!  Start wiping down the walls and trim.  Dust the pictures that have been hanging in the same spot for three years.  Wash the curtains.  Sweep and mop in those hard to reach places.  Now is as good a time as any!
If you feel that you have substantially more work to do, don't expect that you will be able to instantly do the changes that you desire, espcially if your solutions involve hundreds of dollars of organizing equipment.  It may be necessary for you to pick one room at a time to overhaul.  And don't do it alone.  Make it a team effort.  Then the next time you hear, "Have you seen the _____?"  You can answer, "YEP!"