Sellers: Are You Ready for Your Close-up?

Sellers: Are You Ready for Your Close-up?

Before your home enters the market, your home is prepared for the close-ups of the contract.  The first being the professional photos of your home.  How important are these pictures?  These pictures are the first impression of your home.  Bad lighting and clutter can cause buyers to pass by your home and not see it in person.  All of the things on your to-do list that you have not completed?  Those are the things that are going to stand out to potential buyers.  Signs of deferred maintenance is your enemy.

Once you receive an offer on your home, your second close-up is the home inspection.  Getting ready for the home inspection is extremely important as well.  The buyers may be there with a parent or a friend that they trust as well as a qualified home inspector, whose sole job is to protect the buyer.  The home inspector is paid to pick your home apart and uncover its' flaws.  You can expect that there will be repairs needed, though not all will necessarily be requested by the buyer.

Your third and final close up is with the appraiser.  The appraiser works for the buyer's lender and their goal is to prove that the value of your home matches what the market dictates a buyer will pay.  The appraiser will comb over your home and look for similarities and differences of your home compared to other homes in your area and price range that have recently sold.  Keeping your home sparkling will increase the ability of the appraiser to give your home a thumbs up for the overall condition.  

Looking at your home as though you are a buyer, an inspector and an appraiser prior to entering the market will save you a lot of time and stress during the home selling process.  I have a list of items to check prior to listing that I provide to my sellers for free.  It is a checklist of the items that are most found by home inspectors.  Things like replacing your furnace filter and making sure that it is installed correctly or firmly attach all of your toilets to the floor or cleaning out the gutters.

Is your home ready for a close up?  I can help you get your home ready!  Call me today at 319-521-0701 for your free consultation.  

Keep smiling!

Karen