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Get Your Home Ready To Sell
A common mistake people make is to spend a lot of money – renovations, new roofs, remodeling. While buyers will be impressed with these things, spending $5000 on remodeling will not add $5000 to your sale. Spend as little money as possible, and spend it on cosmetic, readily seen features like interior painting. The time to remodel is when you plan to stay in the house, not when you’re going to sell.
If you think about everything that needs to be done to sell your house, you might throw your hands up in despair, or at least feel some anxiety. Take one step at a time, one small task at a time. Break it down to manageable-sized chores and you’ll have better results.
First things first – have a garage sale. Whatever doesn’t sell needs to be set out for a Disabled American Veterans or Association of Retarded Citizens pickup. Once the clutter is cleared away, it will be easier to see what needs to be done.
This is your first impression, so it had better be a good one.
l Edge, mow and fertilize the lawn regularly. Make sure it’s well watered and reseed in any sparse areas.
l Put a bright coat of paint on your mailbox.
l Trim hedges, weed lawns and flowerbeds and prune trees regularly. Cut back overgrown shrubbery that looks scraggly or keeps light out of the house.
l Buy a new welcome mat.
l Check the foundation, steps, walkways, walls, and patios for cracks and crumbling, and reseal if possible.
l If you have siding or brick, power-wash it. If you have a painted exterior, consider repainting in a neutral shade. This is especially important if there is any peeling.
l Make sure the porch light works.
l Clean and align gutters and downspouts.
l Inspect and clean the chimney.
l If the doorbell doesn’t work, repair or replace it.
l Repair and replace loose or damaged roof shingles.
l Repair and repaint loose siding and caulking.
l Remove oil stains from driveway and garage.
l If you’re selling in the winter, keep walks neatly cleared of snow and ice. Otherwise, keep the walks and driveway swept.
l Repair broken outdoor steps.
l Spring for some brightly colored potted outdoor flower arrangements for the front yard near the entrance.
l Keep your garage door closed.
l Wash the windows inside and out.
l Store RVs, boats, and extra vehicles (anything that can’t be parked in the garage) elsewhere while the house is on the market.
l Paint the front door.
If prospective buyers walk into your house greeted by the smell of cat litter, cigarette smoke, mildew, or pet accidents, there is little chance that even a reduced sales price will persuade them to buy. So the first thing to do:
l Clean, clean, clean. This includes walls, floors, inside closets, and cabinets – everything. If you must, hire a cleaning service to come in and do the job.
l Get rid of clutter. Put away appliances you normally leave on countertops. This alone will make your house appear bigger and brighter. Clean out your closets, garage, and attic.
l Paint the walls and ceilings a neutral color – off white or beige.
l Repair cracks, holes, and damage to plaster, wallboard, wallpaper, paint, and tiles.
l Replace broken or cracked windowpanes, moldings, and other woodwork.
l Repair dripping faucets and showerheads.
l Buy new cabinet knobs and curtains for the kitchen.
l Shampoo all carpets, scrub and wax linoleum, wash and wax wood floors.
l Unclog slowly draining sinks and tubs.
l Clean out the fireplace and lay some logs in it.
l Mend torn screens. Clean out all window tracks.
l Check to see that all windows will open and close.
l Replace burned-out light bulbs. Use brighter light bulbs.
l Make sure every light switch works.
l Nail down any creaking boards or stair treads (drive two long finishing nails at opposing angles through the floor and sub-floor into the joist).
l Lubricate any squeaking doors
l Remove excess, worn or unattractive furniture.
l Thoroughly clean all appliances (especially refrigerator and oven).
l Replace old toilet seats and shower curtains.
l Clear all cobwebs from corners and doorways.
l Wash all light switches, handrails, and doorknobs.
On Showing Days
l Keep draperies and shades open to let in the light.
l Place fresh flowers throughout the house.
l Have your home well-lit during the showing.
l At night, turn on the porch light and outdoor lighting in the back if you have it.
l Set out colorful, luxurious towels in the bathroom.
l Avoid having dirty dishes in the sink or on counters.
l Keep any toys in the children’s rooms, bikes, wagons, and skateboards in the garage.
l Play pleasant music at low volume.
l Spend the day of an open house away from home.
l Leave pets outdoors.
l Unless you’re selling it yourself, let the agent show your house and don’t tag along.
Americans bought more homes in June, the fourth straight monthly gain as the sales rate reached its highest level in more than nine years.
The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that sales of existing homes rose 1.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.57 million, the best performance since February 2007. Buyers are quickly making offers amid tight supplies of homes on the market, boosting prices as the traditional buying season reached its crescendo. The solid job market and mortgage rates near historic lows have kept demand steady, even though the number of listings on the market has dropped.
But continued sales gains appear to be limited this year because of the acute shortage of listings. The meager supplies have fueled price growth that has eclipsed wage gains while forcing buyers to either save more for down payments or borrow more heavily. The result is that sales likely peaked in June, as data from the Realtors show the pace of signed contracts and open house visits have slipped.
Sales rose in the Midwest and West last month, while staying unchanged in the South and slipping in the Northeast.
The median home sales price was $247,700 in June, up 4.8 percent from a year ago. That increase is roughly double the pace of average hourly wage gains.
Individual investors are retreating from the housing market, being replaced by first-time buyers. First-timers comprised 33 percent of June sales, their highest share of the market in four years.
Despite the improving prices, the number of listings on the market has fallen over the past year. Many homeowners are still rebuilding equity that vanished when the housing bubble began to burst almost a decade ago. Even though prices are within striking distance of their peaks, these homeowners would be unable to generate enough of a profit from a sale to pay for the expense of purchasing a new home.
The number of listings has fallen 5.8 percent from a year ago to 2.12 million.
Many current homeowners are choosing to update their current properties, a possible sign of either their desire to stay put or their plans to list the property for sale in the future. Interest in bathroom and kitchen renovations have picked up this year, according to an index released this week by the remodeling firm Houzz based on the business seen by architects, interior designers and contractors.
A separate indicator on remodeling activity by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University is also accelerating at a pace above its historical average.
"By the middle of next year, the national remodeling market should be very close to a full recovery from its worst downturn on record," said Abbe Will, research analyst at the Joint Center. "Annual spending is set to reach $321 billion by then, which after adjusting for inflation is just shy of the previous peak set in 2006 before the housing crash."
Builders have increased the pace of home construction, yet that has done little to relieve supply pressures. The Commerce Department said Tuesday that June housing starts rose 4.8 percent from a month ago to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.19 million.
The employment outlook has also given more Americans the confidence to buy. Hiring rebounded strongly in June to 287,000 jobs added, relieving fears after job growth came close to stalling in May.
Mortgage rates near all-time lows have helped increased demand. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 3.45 percent this week, down from 4.05 percent last year.
Boak, Josh. "US Homes Sales Improved in June, Best Pace Since Early 2007." ABCNews.21 July 2016. Web. 27 July 2016.
