| 1. |
Get rid of clutter."That's
universal. Ask someone who
won't hold back" to give you
an honest opinion of what
needs to go. "Kitchen appli
ances all over the counters,
for instance. Get rid of the
stuff on the refrigerator door.
And collections. All your baseball caps. Pack them up until
you move to your new home." |
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| 2. |
Wipe up dirt. "Once you live in the house, the dirt becomes invisble. I went into a house once, and dirt was literally hanging off the ceiling fan. The sellers never even noticed. And dirty bathrooms. These are personal things buyers don't want to see." |
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| 3. |
Roll on a fresh coat of paint. "Just make sure the color is neutral. You might like bright orange, but the majority of people don't want it. You're looking for multiple offers here. So paint with a wide brush." |
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| 4. |
| Open the curtains and blinds. "Let the sun shine in. The rooms look larger and have more energy. If the home looks small, the buyers don't think they're getting as good a value." |
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| 5. |
Pump up curb appeal. "Many times an agent will give an address to drive by. If the outside doesn't look good, well, that's that. Our goal is for the buyer to approach the house and say, "Oh, boy! Believe it or not, a new doormat works wonders. And make sure your house is well manicured. You don't want cars sitting blocks on the front yard." |
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| 6. |
Make your master bedroom a haven. "Replace dingy bedding and soiled carpeting. It's distasteful. Make a master bedroom look like a retreat." |
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| 7. |
| Temporarily relocate furry occupants. "Make sure all pet items are out of sight. And the odor. My word, the odor! Have someone come in and do a sniff test for you." |
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| 8. |
Box up plastic kid's toys. "You don't want buyers tripping over them in every room. And if they're pushing up against the wall, you can't see the size of the room. Bright colored plastic is offensive in every way." |
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| 9. |
Leave the house when it's being shown. "Buyers don't want you to stay. They can't see the wonderful fireplace because they're too nervous the seller is there." |
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| 10. |
Finish the projects that you've started. "The buyer sees all this work he'll have to do. Floors unfinished. Moulding around windows. Patched holes not painted. The buyer will wonder what happened. It's a red flag." |
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