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Helpful hints for marketing your home.

By
Real Estate Sales Representative with RE/MAX Properties Plus

#1  We have always heard,  "put your best foot forward" and "you never get a second chance to make a first impression".   The same is true with real estate;  buyers  judge your home from  the curb.   That is where  staging begins!   Make an extra effort to check your own "curb appeal"  before putting your home on the market.  Walk across the street and take a look at how your home looks to others, objectively. Spruce up the landscape with seasonal plantings, trim shrubbery,  as needed, and anything else your home needs to give it a warm and inviting look to potential home buyers. If they don't like the outside, it can cast a negative vibe throughtout the tour,  even if the interior is magnificent.  Keep in mind, someone out there is always competing against you.  Try harder!

#2  De-personalize your home when trying to sell it.  Buyers want to imagine how they would live in your home with their things, not yours.  Overcluttered and personalization confuses them and inhibits them from visualizing  how their furniture and possessions would look in the home.  Homestagers are a great investment.   Their objective view can focus your home's best attributes and minimize distractions. 

# 3  "Let the sun shine in".  Clean windows, remove or pull back heavy window treatments, pump up the wattage in your lamps and recessed lighting,  add extra lighting to dark areas.  When showing to potential buyers your home should be lit up as if  you single handedly support the local electric company.

#4  Kitchens and Bathrooms sell homes!  These two areas of your home are important areas to upgrade.  Investing in these  areas offer the best return when selling.  Depending upon your budget, you can see a significant return on your investment.

#5  Fresh paint, fresh smell and spaciousness are key when selling a home.  A fresh coat of paint in neutral tones is a sure winner. Be sure to give the house a good top to bottom cleaning and de-cluttering to make it shine.

#6   When your home is being marketed it is always "SHOWTIME".  Living in your home and showing your home are two different things. When your home is being marketed it must always be immaculate and ready to show on a moment's notice without having to clean and straighten up.

#7  Pricing your home in a today's market.  We would all like to get the best price for our home and we all like getting a good deal.  Even in today's real estate market, keep in mind that what your home may no longer be worth as a seller, becomes your opportunity as a buyer when you purchase your new home.  Overpricing a home and having it languish on the market is not the object of the game, no one wants to have to be always ready on a moment's notice and have throngs of prospective buyers trail through your home with no offers.  Realistically,  pricing your home is the best way to attract motivated and qualified buyers and in the end you win by selling you property in the shortest time, with the least amount of inconvenience.

#8  It is a good idea to have a home inspection of your own if you suspect your home is in need of repair.  By investing in a home inspector prior to pricing and marketing your home, you have the opportunity to fix deficiencies which may lead to difficult negotiations or lost sales contracts when it gets down to the wire.

Show All Comments Sort:
Monika Depalo
GAFF'S REFERRAL'S INC. - Port Orange, FL
REAL ESTATE Agent/Stager

I have a listing where the homeowner paid too much and he doesn't want to listen that he will lose money especially after all the fee's.  His home is move in ready just a price problem.

Jul 11, 2009 03:25 PM
Mark Menzella
RE/Advantage - Fairfield, NJ
We build websites for REALTORS®

Peter - Nice to see you posting.  Great article.

Jul 16, 2009 01:33 PM
Don Rogers
Keller Williams Realty Chesterfield - O'Fallon, MO
Realtor, Broker, CDPE, GRI, OnullFallon MO & St Charles County MO homes

Good morning Peter and welcome to Active Rain.  Kudos on your first post and it has some great information on marketing ones home.

I hope that we will be reading more from you in the near future.

Oct 29, 2009 11:39 PM