Everyone starts househunting in the spring, so what better time to get your house in order if selling it is what you want to be doing this spring. If you read my blog a few days back called "Staging the Inside of Your Northbrook Home for a Quick Sale", you already know a bit about staging your home on the inside for a quick sale. Today we have some tips for staging the outside of your Glenview or Wilmette house to improve its curb appeal - and the speed with which it can sell.
Find a good lawn care company who knows all the ins and outs of what it takes in your part of the country to get your lawn growing and green and looking its best. Or find your own high-quality weed killer that's full of micronutrients to feed the lawn and do it yourself. Don't mow it too short either. Three inches high is good. This will help lower its need for extra watering.
Trim any branches that are touching your house, covering windows, or just out of synch with the rest of the plant. Don't let any plants touch the house as this can cause growth of mold which is not a good thing.
Buy mulch to put down around your plants. Don't opt for the cheapest thing you can find, however. This year, with your house on the market, buy mulch that looks great and will stay that way at least through the summer season. It may cost an extra dollar or so per bag but if your house sells before fall it will be well worth the added cost.
Edge along flower beds. If you don't own an edger, take a spade or shovel and insert it about four to six inches into the earth along the edge of the flower beds. This will cut off grasses that may be creeping from the lawn into the flower bed and make everything look crisp and appealing.
Rent a powerwasher or hire someone else to do the job and wash the whole house. This will clean off dirt left over from the winter, as well as kill and remove mold and mildew. If you live in the south where there are no hard freezes, you know that mold does not die off like it does in the cold northern winters of Illinois, so powerwashing is especially useful. If you do it yourself, be careful with powerwashing so you don't damage siding or crack windows!
Plant lots of annuals that will bear abundant flowers. By the time they need to be replanted, hopefully you'll no longer be living there so save the perennials for your new home.
If you have a sunny corner in your North Shore home, plant a small vegetable garden. Let prospective buyers know that there's more to this yard than just growing grass. Don't plant corn and sprawling plants that look like they belong on a farm. More compact plants such as green peppers, colorful Swiss chard, and herbs are a good choice.
Add a hammock to your yard to let everyone looking at your house see how much leisure time they're going to have. If possible simply tie it between two trees but if you don't have trees in the right location, put it on a hammock stand, preferably in the shade.
If you have some attractive feature in your yard, add a couple of chairs and a small table so prospective buyers can envision themselves sitting there, having their lemonade and enjoying the view.
Some staging inside as well as outside should help your house sell quickly. Let the Marla Schneider team help you. See what they offer in Wilmette, Glenview, the North Shore and Northbrook.
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