You've made the decision to sell, now what?  What needs to be done?

First Impressions Count

Here's a few things to think about:

• You need to take an honest look at everything in your house. The exterior, interior, kitchen space etc… from a fresh set of eyes.  You HAVE to see this from a buyer's point of you and what they would like and not like about your abode.  What would you want if you were the buyer looking at your home for the first time?  If you are unable to see this with clear eyes, have a friend come over and have them give you an honest opinion of your home and what "they see."
• Take out the emotion. Selling a home is an emotional experience because you have memories tied to it.  When your home goes up for sale, you will receive feedback comments from a buyer's showing experience.  Sometimes, these comments are hard to digest.  It's ok.  That's normal.  As you're getting ready to sell, and looking at items that need to be fixed, try to remove the emotion from that process.
• Buyers want to be able to move right in and not have to do any repairs or cosmetic changes. Knowing this information, will help you decide what projects need to be a priority to get top dollar.  If you need more advice on whether or not to tackle a project, I'm here to help.

Repair, Repair, Repair

If you know the gutters are falling down and need to be tightened up, Do it!  First impressions count and Curb Appeal is the first impression that someone has of your house.  Take a good hard look at the exterior of the house and see what loose ends need to be fixed.

Let's just make this easy… Fix everything that needs to be fixed in order to sell.  If you are questioning this or money is tight, let's chat.  I'll come over and tell you what has to be done.  FYI, if some items are not repaired, it may have to be reflected in your listing price.

Declutter

You knew I was going to say this!

How Can I Balance Needs Versus Wants As I Home Shop?  That is a great question.

Here's the trick to buying your best house: know what you need. Really, you only need a solid roof, good floors and walls, plumbing, heating, and lighting. Everything else is preference.

Imagine your dream home. Review each item that makes it ideal. Ask which items you could live without and which ones you would pay extra to have. Embrace delayed gratification. Items you want are often those you can add later. You can change features such as light fixtures, countertops and paint. Answering these questions can help you determine budgets for the home purchase and future renovations.

Make a list. Think about a home's different features: bedrooms, bathrooms, lighting, landscaping. List characteristics of each. Determine which ones you need to have, would like to have and don't want. This will help you avoid looking at homes you know don't interest you.

• Know exactly what you want to a fault – Open kitchen, quiet street, backyard. Be flexible
• Realize that you will probably buy several homes during your lifetime and it may NOT be your forever home. Lifestyles change, you have kids, parents move in with you.  Your kids move out and the house is to big.  Job change.
• You think home improvement reality shows are actually realistic. While some things are easy fixes, others are not even though it looks EASY on HGTV.
• If you don't like the home, we don't need to look at every aspect of the home. Time is valuable and let's make the best use of our time.

I spent WAY too much time caring about what random people from my past thought of me.  Then I had a major breakthrough.

Tammy:  Just be You. 

Nothing I can do, will change their perception or what they want to believe about who I am so why bother trying to change someone's opinion.

I know the true facts.  I know who I am.  That's all the matters.

My goal will always be to try and be the best person I can be.

I hope you do the same.  I believe people respect you more when they see…

Who you really are.

NOW be proud about it! 

The number one goal is to sell your home as quickly and painlessly as possible.  Correct?

Realize that buying a home is an emotional process for the buyer (and for you, the seller).  The less stress you create, the better chances of selling are for you with a higher price tag.  So not to sound like a broken record but...

Declutter, Organize and Tidy Up

Your clutter stresses people out.  Here are some helpful tips:

• Tackle one room at a time
• Have the following bins: Trash, Recycle, Donate
• Remember less is more. That is the less furniture and items in the room, the larger the room looks.  People want to see the space so if you don't need it and don't want to move it to the next home, then get rid of it!
• Tidy up kids toys with storage cubes and container.
• If you plan on selling and moving – start packing!
  1. Ziplock bags for bolts/screws. If you are taking apart furniture and reassembling at a later date… put the screws in the Ziploc and tape them to the furniture.
  2. Towels are a great source for packing up the fine dinnerware and glassware.
  3. Dollar stores are a great place to secure extra boxes.
  4. "Saran wrap" the furniture if you don't want it to be knicked up in the moving process.
  5. Label all boxes with the room it should be unpacked in.
  6. Garbage bags work great for clothes and pillows.
  7. Tools, cleaning supplies and food should be packed last.
• Exterior – Remember First Impressions Count. So be sure to take care of the exterior of the home and the yard.  It's the very first thing the buyer looks at!
• Depersonalize your home. The buyer needs to be able to see their furniture in your house so try to make the rooms look as big as possible and remove the unnecessary furniture and items and keep it as generic as possible.
  1. Bathrooms - All personal items need to be removed including the bathroom. Clean countertops are the best.

All people really want is a clean house!