Condition - Will Your Buyers Want Your Home?

Just like when your selling a car, you should do anything you can to make the condition of your home really sparkle. Sometimes it can be a challenge to keep your home looking great through the showing period, especially with mom and dad working outside the home and small children and pets around. It can be hard to live in a showroom forever (which is another good reason not to set the price too high above market -- who wants to spend six months living in a model home?). Still, in general, the more you can pick up and spruce up, the higher the price you'll get and the quicker your home will sell.

Ways to Make Your House More Salable

• Get rid of clutter. Throw out stacks of newspapers and magazines or old files. Pack away most of your small decorative items. Store out-of-season clothing to make closets seem roomier. Clean out the garage.
   
• Wash your windows and screens to let more light into the interior.
   
• Keep everything extra clean. Wash fingerprints from light switch plates. Mop and wax floors. Clean the stove and refrigerator. A clean house makes a better first impression and convinces buyers that the home has been well cared for.
   
• Get rid of smells. Clean carpeting and drapes to eliminate cooking odors, smoke, and pet smells. Open the windows.
   
• Put higher wattage bulbs in light sockets to make rooms seem brighter, especially basements and other dark rooms. Replace any burnt-out bulbs.
   
• Make minor repairs that can create a bad impression. Small problems, such as sticky doors, torn screens, cracked caulking, or a dripping faucet, may seem trivial, but they'll give buyers the impression that the house isn't well maintained.
   
• Tidy your yard. Cut the grass, rake the leaves, trim the bushes, and edge the walks. Put a pot or two of bright flowers near the entryway.
   
• Patch holes in your driveway and reapply sealant, if applicable.
   
• Clean your gutters.
   
• Polish your front doorknob and door numbers.