People need homes for different reasons: They may want to buy their first home, feel the need to upgrade to a new space or have to relocate for a job.
Buying or selling a home has to do with lifestyle changes, not which season it is.
Homes are moving all the time. Folks have come back from summer vacations. Kids are back at school and their parents are adjusting to finally having a schedule again. The wetness of the winter and the hustle of the holidays are still a ways off for the most part.
Now is a superb time to buy or sell a home.
Here are five tips for home sellers to help your home put its best face forward for the fall.
1. Clean Up the Yard. Red, orange and yellow leaves are beautiful on the tress, but make the yard look unkempt when they’re on the ground. You’ll have to rake pretty regularly if you have your home up for sale during autumn. After the leaves are all gone is a good time to cut down creeping vines and trim branches, which will better reveal the siding of your home and allow more sunlight in the windows. Hose down the siding if it has collected dirt over the summer. Clean the gutters and make sure they are draining properly. If its rainy where you live in the fall, be sure to have floor mats spots places for wet shoes and umbrellas. If snow is already on the ground, keep the front walkway to the door clear and de-ice any exterior stairs.
2. Add Fall Curb Appeal. Now that your exterior is clean, it’s time to make it sparkle by adding some curb appeal. Buy potted flowers for the front of the home – chrysanthemums and marigolds are popular this time of year. Put the pots at the edge of the stairs, porch and along the sidewalk. Feel free to sparsely decorate with pumpkins, gourds and Indian corn or mount a festive autumn wreath on the front door. If Halloween is getting close, it’s okay to have a jack-o’-lantern or other modest holiday display. Keep in mind that if you go overboard with holiday decorating when you’re in the process of selling a home, it could distract potential buyers.
3. Clear the Cobwebs. If you’re like most people, you probably did some spring cleaning this year. That’s not enough if you’re putting your home up on the real estate market in the fall. The house has had a whole season of kids on summer vacation, open windows letting in pollens and accumulations of dust bunnies in hidden places. Rain from over the summer will have smudged your windows. Scour your kitchen and bathrooms from top to bottom. Vacuum or sweep under the furniture, inside closets and in all of the corners of the living room and bedrooms. Sweep out the fireplace – even if you don’t use it, it can accumulate dust and dirt. Get the furnace in good working condition and replace the filters to prevent dusty and musty smells from filling the house when someone is taking a tour. A home buyer will likely ask a home inspector to look at the furnace anyway, so it is a good idea to discover issues now, before you try selling your home.
4. Create Autumn Atmosphere. You’ve already taken advantage of fall appeal outside with the pumpkins and flowers, now it’s time to splash some autumn cheer on the inside of your house with some home staging. You don’t have to get new furniture in fall colors or anything, but you could accessorize with a bright red blankets and golden-hued pillows. Make or buy an fall centerpiece for the dining room table. Don’t forget the other senses besides sight and touch. Fill the air with the scents of fall by simmering hot apple cider and cinnamon on the stove and offer it to potential home buyers at the end of their tour. If you’ve got the talent or inclination, baking an apple pie, banana bread or pumpkin cupcakes could help ingratiate you with the buyers.
5. Let in the Light. As the days get shorter, the sun sits lower on the horizon and casts longer shadows, making it dimmer inside your home earlier and earlier in the day. Push open the blinds, pull back the curtains and open the shutters of every window. Turn on the lights in the house – you may even consider turning on appliance lights and closet lights. Lighten up particularly darks rooms by adding standing lights behind furniture or in the corners. Just as it should be well-lit, it should be kept cozy. When the temperature drops outside, home buyers expect to enter a home that is warm. If it’s too chilly, they might leave with an negative impression of your home.
Take the time to tidy up your house so it looks its best for fall the season and home buyers are sure to take notice.
Contact me today for a free Market Value Report of your home or to discuss market conditions in your area!
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