Top 10 Tips For Selling
1.) Prepare The Exterior Of The Home For The Summer
The exterior and curb appeal of a home can give a potential buyer a pretty good idea of what to expect in the interior of the home, so make sure it’s clean, crisp, and attractive.
- 1 - Mow the lawn.
- 2 - Water the lawn to avoid a burnt lawn
- 3 - Trim bushes and shrubs
- 4 - Water the plants to avoid dead plants
- 5 - Weed and mulch the flower beds
- 6 - Touch up any exterior peeling paint
- 7 - Paint and/or clean up the front door
- 8 - Seal the driveway
2.) Highlight Outdoor Living Space
Since we’re discussing the exterior of a home, another excellent tip for selling a home during the summer is to focus on the outdoor living space. In many areas of the country, summer is a fairly short season, so many buyers spend as much time outside enjoying the weather as possible. Many buyers put a premium on a great outdoor living space so highlighting the outdoor space is a great way to impress potential buyers. One of the best staging tips is to help buyers envision themselves spending time relaxing outside. If your home has an incredible outdoor BBQ or a large concrete patio, make sure it’s staged! Showcasing to a buyer how amazing a home’s outdoor living space is for entertaining friends and family will have buyers lining up with a purchase offer in hand.
3.) Address Necessary Repairs Prior To Listing
One of the quickest ways to scare away potential home buyers is by not addressing necessary repairs. For example, if a home has a very old roof with visible damage, not addressing this prior to listing will likely result in the owner potentially losing out on a fair amount of money from their sale.
4.) Keep The Home Cool
One of the most important tips for selling a home during the summer is to make sure to keep the home cool, at least while the home is being looked at by potential buyers. If your home is not equipped with a central air conditioning unit, it’s still important to focus on keeping your home cool. Alternative ways to keep a home cool without central air conditioning include installing window air conditioners, turning on ceiling fans, keeping lights off and blinds drawn prior to showings, and placing floor fans around the home. If your home is equipped with central AC, make sure it’s performing efficiently and has been serviced recently by a professional HVAC technician. One of the biggest reasons to have a home inspection is to ensure the homes HVAC systems are working properly. If a home’s central AC unit isn’t working properly, it’s another potential red flag for a buyer.
5.) Depersonalize & Declutter The Home
When selling a home during the summer, another simple but effective tip is to depersonalize and declutter the home. Home sellers who actually take action and follow this tip will give themselves an advantage over sellers who decide it’s not important. A home that has personal effects all over the place, such as family portraits or a report card on the fridge, provide another opportunity for a buyer to be distracted from viewing the home. Some buyers get distracted easily and will be more interested in seeing what the owners family looks like rather than looking at the features of the home. Not only is depersonalizing a home a way to avoid distracting a buyer, but it’s also a great safety tip to follow when selling a home. As for decluttering a home, regardless of the season, it’s highly recommended. When selling a home during the summer, take the time to walk through your home and evaluate what you actually need to live comfortably while selling your home. If you believe you can live without something while selling your home, consider moving it into a storage unit or into the basement or garage. Decluttering a home is one of the best tips for staging a home on a budget.
6.) Stage The Home To Reflect The Summer Season
Staging can certainly enhance the appearance of a home, which can make a positive impact on a sellers bottom line, as long as the cost to do so doesn’t outweigh the potential return on the investment. An excellent opportunity for home sellers who’re selling their home during the summer is to stage it to reflect the season. Summer staging tips such as placing bright flowers on a dining room table, planting bright flowers in a window box, and having summer scented candles are all relatively simple and cheap, but can make a home stand out!
7.) Strongly Consider Having A Pre-Listing Inspection
Before listing a home for sale during the summer, another great tip is to strongly consider a pre-listing home inspection. There are many benefits of a pre-listing home inspection, one of the most important being that it can reduce the chances of a buyer being scared away after completing their own inspection.
8.) Price The Home Right…From The Beginning!
Generally speaking, there are two major factors as to whether a home sellers or not. The first major factor is that the home is getting enough exposure and being marketed correctly, which should be taken care of by hiring a top real estate agent. The other major factor is whether the price of the home is right or wrong. Simply, an overpriced home will typically sit on the market until the sellers decide to reduce the price to an acceptable market value, which can sometimes take several months. When a home sits on the market for an extended period of time, buyers begin to wonder if there is something wrong with the home, which may result in them not making an offer or submitting a low ball offer.
Final Thoughts
Summertime is an excellent time to be selling a home, if the proper tips are followed. The eight tips above for selling a home during the summer all will make a difference in respects to the amount a home sells for and the time it takes to sell.