5 Things to Do Before Listing Your House
If you haven’t read my last blog post you’re late to the news, but we are currently in the process of preparing to list our home as well as build our dream home. These revelations popped up in the month of March and I have been all systems on go since the decision was made. Even though we thought we would have around 3 weeks to make everything happen, there has been a hold up with the builder and it’s provided us with the opportunity to do more projects so our home is more appealing. Everything I’m sharing is what I’ve found to make this transition as stress-less as possible:
1. Start immediately: Once you’ve made a decision, start doing the work. We purchased a storage unit and attempted to write down a list of everything that needed to be accomplished within our home so it becomes “open house” ready. Do small tasks daily or find a cleaning service that can help get your home looking its best.
2. Declutter: Anything that you don’t need choose to donate or put away in storage. Appliances and or “things” that hang around the house but don’t get consistent use need somewhere to go that’s not visible. Clean out every closet and other areas that tend to be used as just storage. Purchase organization bins/baskets (if needed) and make your space comfortable and pleasing to the eye.
3. Paint LAST: This probably should be the last point, but just in case you don’t read the whole thing I’ll make it 3. My walls definitely need a coat to be refreshed and I wanted to go ahead and knock it out, but I’ve realized that while gathering things and moving stuff to storage our walls have taken a hit or five. I won’t lie and say that it doesn’t bother me looking at the scuffs and scrapes, but it would piss me off a lot more if I go ahead and do the work only to need to do it again since my kids could care less about me paining.
4. Depersonalize Your Space: I’m a little embarrassed to say that I didn’t even really have pictures of us in the home. I had one picture of me and the hubby on my desk area and it is nicely tucked away in my crafting dresser. This area is personally touchy because as a Black woman there’s no reason my home should be valued less because of that fact. However, life isn’t always fair and I have to just go with the flow if I desire my home to sell appropriately. While I’m not certain if this matters much here in Katy, TX (this is by far one of the most diverse places I’ve ever experienced in my entire life), I’d rather not take the chance.
5. Stage Your Home: When I moved into this home I shared that I desired for this space to mimic the home I desired to purchase but couldn’t. Over the past 2 years, we’ve done a lot of upgrades to give our house the “model house” look. In actuality, our home is much better than the model that’s still showing in our neighborhood. After hours of watching HGTV and looking through Pinterest, I recognize the importance of making the home aesthetically pleasing to buyers. I specifically look and listen to what is being said during the staging process to gain insight on things that I can apply to my own home. I encourage you to either look at model homes in your area or search the web for homes that recently sold and still have pictures available. I won’t be able to say how much this has worked out until after we sell, but I’m almost certain that we wont have a problem not only selling quickly but also getting the price we desire.
Do you have any moving tips that you swear by?