Stand Out in the Spring Market
Spring is a great time of year to sell your home. The sun is out, the birds are singing, trees and flowers are blooming and people are looking to buy new homes. Spring is also a challenging time to sell your home. Even if home prices fall in your favor as a seller, buyers have a lot of options in a saturated market. So how can you help your home stand out and catch the attention of prospective buyers?
The age-old tradition of spring cleaning is a good place to start. Get rid of clutter — in the living areas, the closets, in the garage — everywhere. Pick things up off the floors and counters. Not sure what to do with it all? After you’ve given your best effort to organize everything, you may still find that you have items that don’t have a home. If those items don’t “spark joy” anymore, you can feel good about selling or donating them.
Once the house is decluttered, take the opportunity to “stage” the rooms. Take a fresh look around and analyze your furniture arrangements. Consider if there’s too much furniture in some rooms. Removing some larger pieces, even temporarily, will help give the rooms a larger feel. Ask your realtor for guidance on staging and making the home seem less like yours, so that prospective buyers will have an easier time imagining their own belongings and families living there.
De-personalizing the home might include removing knick-knacks, memorabilia collections, or large displays of family photos. If any of the rooms are painted in bright colors, you could give the walls a fresh coat of something more neutral with the goal of allowing a possible buyer to project their own personality into the home.
Giving the house a deep clean, including windows, floors and woodwork, will help make a great first impression. Wash or dry clean the drapes and blinds. As the weather improves, let some sunshine and fresh air in through the windows. Put some fresh flowers strategically placed around the home.
Don’t lose focus on the exterior. Winter doesn’t do our New England yards any favors, so there’s probably some clean-up to do. Throw away dead brush and leaves, trim shrubs and rake the lawn. Make sure the deck and patio look inviting. Set up the outdoor furniture, even if it’s a bit sooner than normal. Place potted plants or flowers around the walkway, entrance and backyard.
Once your home is show ready, it’s time to get the word out! Use social media, along with the expert marketing efforts of your chosen realtor to let people know your home is on the market. Be prepared to host open houses and be ready to vacate the premises during those times. It’s also best to be very flexible and accommodating when your realtor has an interested buyer wanting to take a tour, even at a seemingly inconvenient time. You don’t want to miss any opportunity that could lead to an offer and eventual sale. If you’re not sure how your home should fit into the market, we have some advice to set the right price.
Ready to look for your own new home? Check out our newest community in Merrimack! Greenfield Farms offers nearly a dozen styles and layouts to choose from, waiting to be customized by you!