An article and guide going over the importance of improving curb appeal and the process of readying a home for sale in Tucson, Arizona!
Half of the battle of selling a home is in the preparations made as a seller. Doing proper research on the area’s market, deep cleaning, repairs, and a general increase of curb appeal are vital in the success a home-seller will see in their results. With this said, this article will dive into some ways that a seller can maximize their chances of selling their home at a pleasing rate and make the already arduous process of selling their home a little bit easier!
1.) A Disassociated Look:
It’s very likely that the home you’re preparing for sale has become a bastion for memories and feelings but when preparing to sell that home, you must be able to let go of that and make the home a less personal space for the potential buyers. Family heirlooms, photographs, and any other items of sentimental worth need to be removed. Doing this makes it easier for potential buyers to envision the property with their sentimental belongings in the home as soon that home will be a place for a new occupant to create memories in.
Generally, a good approach to having a smoother selling process and success is to broadcast the home to as many potential buyers as possible and one of the best ways to do this is to make your home more impersonal. This ranges from pictures hung around the home to niche furniture that you may own. This more impersonal approach also plays into the previous point of allowing potential buyers to envision the house as their future home.
2.) Organization and Decluttering the Home:
It’s not outlandish to assume that after years inside a home, a large collection of items will have built up. These items can be kept around due to sentimental value, being tucked away in a space that’s out of sight and out of mind, things that had broken and you had the full intention of being fixed but now just collect dust. Whatever the reasoning may be, one of the first processes of readying a home for sale is to declutter the home of unnecessary items so if you haven’t used it in more than a year it may be wise to place it in a pile that is for consideration of being donated, gifted away, or sent to the trash bin!
The process of decluttering can be paired with the task of organizing closets and other storage cabinets. When a potential buyer is scoping out the house, the storage space of the property is going to be a subject of interest and expect them to be checking out every closet and cabinet. Knowing this, having your storage spaces in the home organized not only allows them to look as spacious and useful as possible but also gives the impression that you take good care of the hidden away spots of the home so you are likely to take care of the other spaces in the home. As you clear the cabinets and closets, it can be productive to mix decluttering the space of unnecessary items and furniture. This ranges from clearing bookshelves of knick-knacks and books to clearing kitchen counters of as many items as possible. A good tip can be to isolate all daily-use items to a box or single space for when they’re not being used.
If you’re reading this and the bit about having accumulated a fair share of unnecessary furniture and sentimental items it may be a prudent idea for you to consider renting a storage unit to store those important sentimental items and furniture to help open up the floor space and aid in the depersonalization of the home!
The final tip for this subject is that if there’s a personal item like window coverings or certain furniture pieces that improve the curb appeal or look of the home and will be used for the showing, it may be important to mention that those pieces will not be included in the purchase of the home!
3.) Repairs and Detailing:
Depending on the market you’re in some sellers have the ability to sell a home at a “lived-in condition” however, most normal markets are a buyer’s market and require repairs to be sold. Even if your market allows for a lived-in condition, it would be wise to make repairs and small upgrades to give your property an edge on other homes in the area. Knowing this, here is a small list of important items you will want to focus on repairing to improve the results of a house showing:
Cracked tile on counters and floors.
Any holes in the walls need to be patched well.
Leaky faucets.
Doors and cabinets that don’t seem to shut quite right or have a squeak to them.
When showing a home, it is vital that everything works as intended and is as close to at least looking in new condition. The last thing you want is for a potential buyer to have trouble opening a cabinet drawer or have a closet door fall off the track when checking the storage space or have a burnout out lightbulb when showcasing a darker spot of the home!
However, just repairing the home is the bare minimum a seller can do to improve the chances and results of a home sale. It would never be unwise to make low-cost improvements to certain aspects of your home before the showing of it. A few low-cost improvement ideas include:
Make yard improvements like pulling the weeds and adding some greenery if noticeably barren.
Since you’ll already be replacing lightbulbs during the repairing phase it could be a great idea to get items to improve the lighting of the rooms in the home.
Removing or replacing older appliances in the kitchen.
Steam cleaning the carpets or outright replacing them if the condition is bad enough is a great way to improve the appeal of your home.
Remember, that during the process of selling your home it is important to maintain the “sparkle” or appeal of your home by daily vacuuming, dusting, putting up fresh towels in the bathrooms, avoiding especially odorous actions like cooking certain foods or using especially harsh scents, and other small tasks can vastly improve the success of your house showings!
And lastly, be scrutinizing when assessing the appeal of your home from the outside to the small details within. You’ll want to view each part and room of your home carefully and try to view each space in the mindset of a homebuyer. Buying a home is just as big of an event as it is to sell one so potential buyers will be incredibly detail-oriented and careful with their decision so doing all you can to minimize their apprehension is paramount!
4.) Critical Analysis and Cost Assessment:
The thing you’ll want to do often throughout the process is to consider the cost of readying your home for sale and the process of sale as well. Costs to consider when calculating include:
Costs of repairs and improvements and weighing decisions of how much value those repairs and improvements will add to the sale of the home.
Potential cost of storing excess furniture or personal items for showings.
The biggest cost of all will most likely be the payment to the realtors handling the buying and selling of your home (Yes, you handle the buyer’s realtor payment as well!)
Along with the cost assessment of the selling process is the critical analysis of when and how that process happens. Generally, the best months to sell a home occur in May and extend to June or July but here in Tucson, Arizona, the best months to sell are in December and January! When you have the “when” taken care of, it’s important to determine the proper price for your home, deferring with an agent is the best way and the agent will not only help guide you through the process but have the expertise to properly price your home. If doing it alone, a great place to start with the pricing of your home is to look at comparable homes in the area and make a judgment based on the condition and any improvements or features your home has that adds value.
After reading this article it is no surprise to say that properly readying your home for showing and sale is a vital task in improving the odds and results of your home sale. There are many elements that go into great preparation for home sale so don’t be hesitant to reach out to an agent for tips or guidance on how to maximize the value and curb appeal of your home. Luckily, there are no shortage of knowledgeable and excellent realty agents in the city of Tucson, Arizona!
