If you are in the market to sell your home, Your First Step is to call a Realtor. Your Realtor should explain to you the benefits of staging and preparing your home for sale?
A well known Realtor in the Scottsdale, AZ area is an expert when it comes to preparing a home for sale. She knows that a little TLC and some elbow grease, paint and de-cluttering can make a difference in whether your home sells for top price or if it will bring a price which due to poor presentation, will sell below market.
What you should look for in a Realtor is someone who will tell you the truth about how your home is prepared for market and tell you need to do to get the best price. Unfortunately, having a clean home ready to sell is not always good enough in the eyes of a buyer, especially in a market where prices are declining.
The key is to have a home that stands out from the rest, one that shows like a model home. To accomplish this, your Realtor should spend more time on assisting you in staging your home than on all the gimmicks they have for marketing. A well staged home could sell itself, assuming the price is appropriate.
De-clutter your home, strip out all the stuff you don't need on a daily basis. Rent a storage locker and box everything up and get it out of the house, you're planning to move anyway, this will give you a head start. A fresh coat of paint will always bring the biggest bang for the buck. Choose a soft neutral color, other than white, which will give your home an updated appearance. If the flooring is tired and soiled, replace it, including the hard surfaces. Get rid of extra furniture. Make sure that the furniture is arranged in a way that it doesn't interrupt the flow of traffic in the home. Sometimes furniture placed against the walls doesn't work, it may need to be grouped in a different pattern. Remove all the stuff on the kitchen and bathroom counters. You may find this inconvenient, but it's temporary. Hire a professional to come in and give your home a thorough cleaning. If you're not the neatest person, have someone come on a weekly basis to keep the home in spotless condition.
If you are totally over your head and can't see your way to getting your home ready for market, there are professional staging companies that will come in and totally prepare your home for you. Some will even provide furniture and accessories.
Just remember, we can't sell our homes the way we live in them. It's no longer your home, think of it as merchandise to be marketed. Which has more value to you as a consumer, a beautiful handbag which you have to sort through in a bin to find or the same handbag showcased in a lovely niche with gorgeous jewelry accessories? This is what you want to remember when you market your home for sale.
