How many chances does one home get to make a first impression?
No, that's not a trick question. The answer is...ONE. With housing inventory at record highs, your home won't get a second or third chance to make a good impression. Curb appeal is an important starting place for your overall marketing efforts. If prospective buyers drive by without stopping to tour the inside of your home, they'll never get to see the wonderful floor plan or beautiful granite countertops.
From the internet, the "first impression" or single picture that the prospective buyer initially sees in a search result may be as far as it goes. Your home needs to stand out - it makes sense doesn't it? No one is going to have the time or desire to look at every single home in their price range. Choices have to be made. The choice is either in FAVOR of keeping your home "on the list", or in FAVOR of tossing it aside and moving on to the next house in the search result.
What can you do to increase your home's curb appeal? The first step is for you, the homeowner, to accept the critical importance of curb appeal, and make a firm commitment to keep the grass cut, bushes pruned, leaves raked, etc. An easy welcoming step is a colorful pot of flowers on the front porch. For the motivated homeowner, do-it-yourself landscape improvements are a relatively inexpensive way to increase a home's visual appeal.
It's is a good idea to have the exterior, deck, and driveway power-washed. Dark and mildewy sidewalks just scream "I'm neglected and old."
Freshly painted trim provides noticeable sparkle. It doesn't pay to avoid making all the small, inexpensive repairs that you may have been putting off. Many homeowners say "ah, we'll just wait and fix it after they have their home inspection." What if the buyer who looks at your home decides (unfairly) that with several small repairs left to be done, what big items might the homeseller be avoiding? Get everything in tip top condition - don't shoot yourself in the foot.
If the outside of the home looks as though it has not been maintained, people will wonder what maintenance issues may have been skipped on the inside as well. Buyers go into a market like this one thinking that they want to buy a distressed property but many find that the condition of those properties takes alot of the j-o-y out of the homebuying experience.
Give them a reason to see your home instead.
A recent agent survey concluded that when a property looks its best, it attracts attention. Buyers who are unimpressed by a home's "curb appeal" aren't interested in a closer look. With so many choices buyers no longer have an incentive to "work at" giving your home another chance. It's not like they only have 2 or 3 homes to choose from or they won't be able to make a purchase. They have HUNDREDS.
I have driven up to a house with buyers in the back seat who have said, "we don't need to see this one" before they even opened the car door. Don't let this happen to you. It IS in your control and you can't say that about too many things these days!
Agents will tell you that the likelihood of a sale depends greatly on the buyer's first impression. That same percentage of agents would probably also agree that the appearance of a home's exterior is equally important as the interior features and condition. When buyers see your home from the street and the front walk, they believe that "what they see is what they get."
Sellers who understand the importance of curb appeal and pride of ownership, will come to realize just how crucial these factors are in getting them to the closing table sooner. I've had listings that started out not looking so great and then, when the seller sees the light, magic seems to happen! Make your magic sooner than later, BEFORE you start reducing the price after lingering on the market. It REALLY works!
Stephanie McCarty, ABR
RE/MAX Greater Atlanta
770-979-1700 office 404-457-8089 cell
www.mysouthhomes.com slmrealestate@comcast.net
Ask me about other staging tips that could make all the difference in your market experience. I'm happy to assist my clients in showing their property to its full potential.
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