Whitewalls?

Yes, your walls need to be painted white, cream or a light taupe in order to create a neutral palette in your home to increase the likelihood that buyers will choose to make an offer on your home and not on a competing home in your area.  It does not matter where you live.  Buyers are looking for a home that is ready to move into and where few, if any, repairs or adjustments will need to be made, including paint color.   So how do your rooms stack up in this white/cream/light taupe paint contest?  The house with the majority of rooms in this color palette will sell more quickly if the rest of the home is in good condition and very clean on the inside and outside of the home.   Written, copyrighted and all rights reserved 2007 by Sherrie Hartzell, licensed real estate salesperson in Virginia with Keller Williams Preferred Realty-Stafford, VA.

Tidy up

The moment I walk up and into a home, I can tell you how well-maintained the home is by looking at the carpeting, front and backside of the entryway door, and stairs (inside and outside).  These areas all leave signs of whether they are clean and in good working order just by their lack of dust, dirt, fingerprints, and smell.  Sellers need to watch these areas for signs of uncleanliness and keep a cleaning company or two on speed-dial during the home is for sale process.  Your home needs to be ready to show to buyers with maybe as little as 10 minutes notice, so keeping your home on a regular cleaning regimen (such as weekly or bi-weekly) with a professional cleaning company is a must if you want your home to get noticed by buyers.  Competition is fierce for educated home buyers and lack of cleanliness will send these buyers to other homes that look tidier than your home. Written, copyrighted and all rights reserved 2007 by Sherrie Hartzell, licensed real estate salesperson in Virginia with Keller Williams Preferred Realty-Stafford, VA.

Leave electricity on when you move out and your house is for sale

Imagine how a buyer would feel walking into your vacant home if there was not any electricity.  In the wintertime, this means your home is icy cold in many states and possibly borders on freezing cold temperatures.  Now consider that in addition to not having any heat, there are not any lights on either.  As a result, a buyer can hardly see the inside of your home that you, as seller, want to sell.  Do you think this is going to leave a favorable impression of your home with potential buyers?  No, of course not.
Now think about if this buyer happens to have a child or another relative with them.  Do you think they will be happy to be in a very cold and dark home?  No.  Consider this carefully and be willing to pay the money required to keep your house looking in buyer-ready condition.  Pay the money to keep your electricity, gas, and water all functioning properly. Written, copyrighted and all rights reserved 2007 by Sherrie Hartzell, licensed real estate salesperson in Virginia with Keller Williams Preferred Realty-Stafford, VA.

Snow and Ice Deter Buyers from Seeing Home Features

Sherrie Hartzell is a licensed real estate salesperson in Virginia with Keller Williams Preferred Realty in Stafford, Virginia.  I started this blog to help home sellers, home buyers and investors reach their goals and receive advice from a professional.

When your home is on the market and you want it to sell, please make sure you keep your driveways and sidewalks cleaned off.  Any snow and ice on driveways and/or sidewalks will discourage buyers from walking along your driveways and sidewalks in order to get inside your home.

Also, leaving snow and ice on sidewalks and driveways will be a bad signal to buyers that you have not taken good care of the rest of your home maintenance both inside and outside of your home.  This only hurts you, the seller.  The buyers have plenty of homes to choose from and you lose out on a buyer seeing what is behind the front door of your home-its features such as flooring, garage, room sizes, deck, patio, screened-in porch, playroom, library room, built-in bookcases, etc. Written, copyrighted and all rights reserved 2007 by Sherrie Hartzell, licensed real estate salesperson in Virginia with Keller Williams Preferred Realty-Stafford, VA.