Getting Ready to Sell
Emotional Factors
The first move is a mind and soul experience in which you imagine yourself "out there" and decide in your mind that your current house is a commodity and not your new home. If you already know you're ready to sell then it's time to plan.
Make Time to Plan
I’ve sold all my California homes in less than 4 months, but you never know how long it will take. The best thing to do is what you’re doing now, begin thinking about it and as soon as you’re ready list your California home for sale with me. The selling process takes time. Once I find the buyer and an offer is signed there’s almost a guaranteed 30 day escrow period after that. Also, it’s probably good to know where you are going after the house is sold which is something else to plan and think about. Whether you buy first or sell first is fine as long as you have a plan.
Repairs, Remodels or Neither?
So your roof has a huge hole in it where the tree fell through it last summer and your garage door is jammed permanently. There are so many things that could go wrong, carpets, ceiling fans, walls, painting, flooring, windows, foundations, plumbing, air ducts, but in the end for which type of buyer are you going to shop for? Exactly, you can never know! So why pay out a bunch of money when for every dollar you spend you are sure of only one thing, you probably are not going to receive 100% of what you put in and plus your time and energy are not even considered in the buyer's equation. Yes, if the place is a total dump and your brother fixes houses for a living and sells them that’s different, but for the run of the mill repair job let the new buyer do it. If it’s the water heater or smoke detector that’s not working the state requires those to work before you sell the place. The only things I would say do if necessary are fix the leaky faucet, put in the new light bulbs, put down the new carpets, freshly paint the place, clean the place up, air it out, get rid and throw away junk and old furniture, that means trying not to put too much stuff in the closets, just throw it all away and buy some mirrors, flowers and colorful things to put around the house and Walla, you’re done and ready to sell in less than two weeks as far as I’m concerned! Make sure to disclose to buyers and your Christian California Real Estate Agent the problems you know about, but if you don’t know about a problem then it’s not your fault, that is why the buyer is encouraged to hire their own home inspector after they decide to buy the place.
Making the Home Stunning on the Inside
Stunning California homes have one thing in common for guys, clear walk paths. Remember guys are spatial, which means if you want a stunning home throw away old junk and ugly furniture and create open spaces. Girls on the other hand like textures, light, order and cleanliness. A nicely curved entryway, a cute niche to put a breakfast table, straight wooden floors, beautiful windows overlooking a landscaped area outside are selling points for women. The key is making sure these spaces are cleared so that buyers can walk into these special spots close to the walls and windows of your home without stubbing their toes on the tables, chairs, couches and lamps - move these things and throw them away if they take up unnecessary space, have a garage sale or just give them away.
Curb Appeal
Now it’s time to think about making the outside look nice. Take a walk across the street and look at your house. Then go in the alley and take a look. What can be done? Does your outside fence say keep out in more ways than one? Normally that might be good. For now, when you are about to sell, that’s bad. You want a fence that says look how charming I am. I am the best house for sale in California. You want a front porch that says come walk on me and sit on me, I’m clean and fresh. You want an alley that doesn’t say I’m going to be robbed. Put a colorful adoring sign in the alley next to your backyard door that says home sweet home with some decoration in it to remind people that they are near to a beautiful California home which they are about to walk into so they can take their focus away from the car next door that looks like it was in a hijacking incident last night. How does your yard compare to the neighbors yard. Just knock on their door and ask what they did and copy their style, at least your house will blend in and look fresher when you’re done cause it will be most recently kept. Rake up leaves and clean the yard if possible, fertilize, water and mow the lawn. If the roof leaks disclose it to the buyer and give them the money to fix it. However, you can also fix the roof and paint the house outside if you think it will make it stand out more than the other houses on your block. Put warmth into your decorating, a cute mailbox on the street, a bright spring flag, a new bright blue awning cover, stuff like that attracts the eyes of buyers driving by your house. Please contact me below.
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 | © John-Robin Middlebrook. Last updated April 2008.
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