Don’t wait until all of those new spring listings flood your real estate marketplace. Take the time now to start prepping your home for a quick, lucrative sale in 2019.
Spring is prime-time for selling a home, but getting your property ready for market can be time-consuming, costly, and downright nerve-racking.
Here’s the good news: If you start planning now, the experience will not only be less stressful but you’ll also save money and get a jump on everyone else planning to list their homes this spring. Below we’ve outlined the most important steps to take when selling a home in the spring!
Our Top 5 Tips For Selling a Home in the Spring:
1. Schedule a consultation with a Certified Staging Professional® (CSP). Before you do anything else, consider an initial consultation with an expert! CSPs are trained to objectively view every detail of a house from a home buyer’s perspective. During your consultation, the CSP will identify everything that needs to be done to make your property “market-ready” and help you prioritize projects according to budget, urgency, and return on investment (ROI). Staging consultations typically cost a few hundred dollars, but can vary based on needs.
2. Set a budget. Some homes only need small improvements—fresh paint, landscape improvements, or new fixtures—while others need new windows and flooring throughout. When selling a home in the spring, be smart about which improvements are the most vital, don’t forget to include your closing costs, and apply for a home improvement loan if you need one. Trying to figure out which projects are worth your time and money? Check out Bankrate’s 6 home renovations that return the most at resale.
3. Create the schedule. Set the date for when you want to list the house. Whether March, April, or May, work backward from that date and create a schedule for the to-do list provided by your stager. The more time you have to prepare, the better!
4. Fix what you can yourself; hire help for the rest. Most people can handle small repairs like touching up paint on the walls, repairing leaky faucets, and fixing loose hardware like door hinges, but the heavy lifting should be left to the pros. You don’t want a botched do-it-yourself (DIY) project deterring future buyers, so resist the temptation to save money by having your neighbor’s-brother’s-friend handle your important projects. Unless you’re a seasoned expert, never do electrical work, plumbing, roof repairs, gas appliances, structure repairs, and work with toxic materials (like mold or asbestos) yourself.
5. The final stretch: Showcasing. According to the National Association of REALTORS®, 77% agents said professional home staging positively impacts the way potential buyers view a home—making it easier to imagine themselves living in a property. Before pictures are taken and the listing goes live, bring your Certified Staging Professional back in for a final session to ensure that everything flows, negative distractions are gone (or minimized) and the house’s best features take the spotlight. You’ll be amazed at what can be done – look no further than this example of a problematic family room that was transformed.
If the home will be vacant, your Certified Staging Professional will provide a design plan and an estimate to bring in the furnishings and décor necessary to give the home warmth and character. Whatever level of staging you decide to use, it will increase your property’s marketability and help potential buyers “picture” themselves living in the space.
Looking to calculate your potential savings? The Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) has a staging savings calculator that lets you figure out how much time and money (mortgage payments, carrying costs, etc.) you’ll save by staging a vacant property before listing it.
Remember that as soon as you decide to sell your home, you should also adopt the mindset that it’s no longer your home. This is now an asset that you’re trying to get top dollar for. By creating the plan, timeline, and budget now, you can make sure that your home is both show and move-in ready when selling season kicks into high gear.
Maximize your ROI when selling your home this spring. Ready to get started? Call us at 314-221-9113 to start your consultation.