Right now in the Greater Birmingham area, it is a great time to Buy A New Home. Have you been thinking about buying a house in the next year to take advantage of the great prices AND the tax credit? But, first you have to sell the house you are in.
Getting ready to Sell your Home may seen like a tremendous task - where do you begin? Well, you need to think like a retailer. Presentation is EVERYTHING. There are hundreds of homes out there competing for those buyers and yours needs to sparkle and shine. Curb Appeal is #1 on the list.
Get out the yellow pad and start with a walk around the outside of the house. We come and go from our homes all the time and after a while we just don't even notice what is going on with the outside of the property.
Do the gutters need to be cleaned? If they do, then clean them out. If you can't reach, then hire someone. This is a great time to also replace any burnt out flood lights. The gutter cleaners have that tall ladder and most will replace the floods for an extra 10 bucks each.
Do you see any cob webs, mold or mildew? If so, pressure wash the house. Even Dri Vit can be pressure washed; it just has to be on a low setting. A lot of times mildew on soffits makes it look like they need to be painted and it just needs to be cleaned.
Wash the windows.
Does your house need to be painted? Your perspective buyer is going to spend thousands for your house and they are NOT going to want to paint in the first year. Pay attention to the windows. If the bushes have grown up around the windows, you may find rotten wood. REPLACE the rotten wood - don't just paint over it. Most buyers will hire a home inspector and the inspector will find these problems - then you'll be asked to fix the problem. Replace rotten siding; pay close attention to the chimney. Once you have a contract, you will be on a tight time limit - and that is NOT the time to be looking at replacing windows or finding the siding that matches your current siding. Even worse the buyer may decide to walk from the deal. A little preparation here can save $$ and aggravation later.
Does the garage door have any rotten wood? Does it screech when it goes up and down? Fix it.
Does the sidewalk and driveway have dirty smears? Pressure wash all concrete.
Is the mailbox straight and in good repair? Are your numbers straight and visable?
These are all things that can be seen from the street. Most prospective buyers will take a look at your house on line and do a drive-by of the outside before they make an appointment to go inside. If the house doesn't look well maintained on the outside it can be a huge turn off.
Remember, think like a retailer. Would you rather shop in a store with peeling paint, dirty windows, and a dirty sidewalk, or one that is clean and inviting?
Good luck with that yellow pad and if you'd like any help getting your house ready to sell, let me know, I'd be happy to help.
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