Good Morning All,

Another beautiful day in Massachusetts and my holiday weekend has been full of fun and family as well as discussing  and visiting with potential sellers of homes in the Greater Boston, Southshore and Plymouth areas of Massachusetts.

"Are you ready for a mini- home inspection?"

With so many  television and internet home shows geared to turning your typical home into a showcase by painting, new handles on cabinets and running to TJ Max,  Homegoods and Marshalls for all those cute decorations I still find the most important pre-listing items to not be addressed via this media and many real estate professionals.

Buyers for the most part can see beyond the color of your paint and your current choice of wall decorations.  A good Realtor reinforces the fact that a Buyer must look beyond the current decorating and the current choices of decor and how the new Buyer can personalize their new home with their furnishings and their own style.

But what do I find to be the most important items for you to tackle before your home comes on the market?

Keep in mind a home inspection for a Buyer can run in the dollar figure of say $350 to over a $1000 depending on the company and the size and offering of the home of your choice.  Many Buyers are very aware of this output of funds, sometimes at a cash challenging point in their lives.  This usually is reflected on how a serious buyer will conduct their own mini-home inspection prior to placing an offer.

When I am working with a Buyer I encourage my Buyers to investigate as much as possible about the home so that there are no surprises (or as few as possible, only a professional in a specific area of building, structure, etc can give you a true picture of condition). 

Typically when you are working with TradeWinds Realty Group llc we go over the property with you as if we were the Buyer.  Many Sellers take this time and make notes of items to be addressed, others feel like they have lived with these minor deviations for so long themselves without an issue - so why fix them?

Why fix them?

Those small items that people can notice or detect upon their mini home inspection usually make a buyer think,  if the Seller does not address these small easy to handle home maintenance issues, what about the big items?  Have they done their preventative maintenance to the larger components?

So let's just start with a few items,  myself and TradeWinds Realty Group llc Team  would be happy to address onsite what you too can do to increase the value and likelihood of a new Buyer wanting to spend their lifetime and money in your home..

1.  House numbers, clear, clean house numbers are important, not only mandated by the fire/smoke certification process with your local fire department but you want to make sure your home is easy to find for the Buyer searching for their new home.

2.  From the front door in, check for holes in screens, loose handles, latches which do not work properly.

These are the first impressions.  Also kickplates around the front door on the landing are often abused by water or possible insect damage, check the wood around the door.  On a decorative point, a fresh coat of paint on the front door where the prospective Buyer and their Agent may spend time awaiting the lockbox etc to open is very important.

3.  Lighting, exterior and interior...replace or test all your light bulbs, (ask me about the MassSave.com energy audit program - did I hear "free light bulbs"?) many Buyers are working long hours (in order to afford your home) so the showings make take place after dark.  Make sure those outdoor bulbs and lighting fixtures are clean and equipped with bright bulbs.  This is important to protect your property from people tripping as well.  With regards to interior lighting make sure ceiling fixtures are free of the collection of dust, dirt and dead flying bugs one looks up on many an occassion.  Bathroom ceiling vents/lights are sometimes extremely noisy and have gathered the above collection along with sometimes insulation from the attic above has fallen into the vent.   Clean this fixture or if it is loud and the fixture itself is cloudy, change the fan to one of the new quiet models, low cost fix and you won't hear the Buyers saying "oh we couldn't live here this fan would wake my kids up every morning when I take a shower!", simple fix...make your home comfortable to a new Buyer when they think of morning, noon and night. $95.75 at Home Depot for a very nice exhaust fan light combo, AirKing Deluxe Quiet CFM Ceiling Exhaust Fan with Light   or see a whole Home Depot selection at:

 http://www.homedepot.com/s/quiet%2520bathroom%2520ceiling%2520fan?NCNI-5

      In areas such as closets, attics and basements you can purchase those battery operated lights to be attached to walls and ceilings without having to go to the expense of wiring.  You can also use these lighting fixtures in areas you want to make sure the Buyer can easily access such as the furnace, electrical box, sump pump, water heater and such.

4.  Clean the fireplace, best thing would be to have a chimney sweep come in and give a full cleaning that you can have  a receipt available to the Buyer for their review.  I have seen so many people loose buyers as they are fearful that  the furnace does not have a separate flue from the chimney etc.  Have the written proof to show a Buyer.

5.  Bathrooms are always seen as an expensive adventure if they need to be addressed by the new Buyer.

Check the subflooring around the toilet and outside of the tub for a spongy floor.   A home inspector or Buyer cannot see through the flooring so they anticipate the worst and see $$$ going out the window. Sometimes a new plywood subfloor and covering are much less expensive than the adjustment a buyer may want  on the sale price.  Toilets, especially in some of the areas I cover with higher mineral contents in the water, may have much staining (sinks with leaky faucets too).  You can replace the toilet for much less hassle and expense than you might think.  If the toilet is in good condition make sure it is tight to the flooring, " a loose toilet" shows up on a lot of home inspections.

Check the piping underneath your vanity...are there signs of leakage there?,  maybe old and has been addressed then clean up the past wear and tear on your vanity instead of people suspecting they are in for future leaking.

6.  Kitchens, ah the old deal killer - when the home inspector says, there are no GFI's in this kitchen (or bathroom or an area where water and electricity may mix).  A new home owner hears Electrician and that something is not "up to code" (keep in mind the home you are selling was not built to today's code as it was not built this year, but permits were inspected for and issued accordingly with the era of the build) and the Buyer thinks "oh no, electrical issues.  http://www.homedepot.com/p/Leviton-SmartLockPro-15-Amp-Slim-Tamper-Resistant-Duplex-GFCI-Outlet-3-Pack-White-M02-X7599-03W/202514679 quotes a three pack of gfi outlets for a mere $36.99 not hundreds of dollars!

Again under the sink, check for signs of leaking of pipes, past and present, codes for the drain pipe and angle etc have changed and depending upon the condition of the pipes you may wish to have a plumber check them out prior to putting your home on the market.  While under here, it is a common place for signs of possible mice and carpenter ants due to the moist issues which may be present, check for pests and remedy.  I have never been with a Buyer who felt "okay" with droppings found by mice, bats or more.

Remedy before this becomes an issue.

There are other items I cover when I am being interviewed to market and sell your home.  Unless a move is an immediate need I usually suggest we try to plan ahead.  Some of my Sellers and I have worked on a long term plan to meet their goals.  We may actually start our plans three years in advance of the sale and put together a list of items to be addressed over time readying their home for sale, reducing their intial expenditures or budgeting them over time and always increasing their return on their "work", yes "work" of getting the home ready for marketing.

I work as a Team Member, a Partner, in the sale or purchase process of your home.  I believe we all have to have the same goal to accomplish the desired outcome.

If you would like to sit down and discuss your plans whether they be for today, tomorrow, next year, three or five years out just give me a call on 781-829-2900 or email me on MaryBeth@TradeWindsRealtyGroup.com.    Our website is http://www.TradeWindsRealtyGroup.com and we service all of Massachusetts as well as can make very reliable referral references across the Globe for your real estate needs.

Look forward to hearing from you,   MaryBeth Mills Muldowney, Broker Owner

President TradeWinds Realty Group llc

President Massachusetts Real Estate Network llc

"THINKING OF BUYING, SELLING OR LEASING - CALL TRADEWINDS REALTY GROUP LLC!"

Office locations in Braintree, Norwell, Pembroke and Plymouth Massachusetts - servicing Buyers, Sellers and those looking to Lease in Massachusetts and the GLOBE!