Staging Your Home for Sale

When placing your home on the market, presentation is key!  First impressions are of extreme importance when selling your home.  There are a number of simple and inexpensive things you can do to sell you home quicker.

Clean and De-clutter
First things first!  No one wants to see or smell a dirty home.  Clean blinds, ceiling fans, baseboards and under furniture.  Pack away knickknacks and de-clutter counter tops.  Steam carpets to remove dirt and pet odors and organize closets to utilize available space.

De-Personalize

When prospective buyers are looking at your home, they want to envision their family, not yours.  Remove all personal photographs, keepsakes and mementos. Paint your home neutral colors so that buyers can imagine their furniture and belongings in your home.


Curb Appeal
Don't neglect the outside of your home.  Trim bushes, power wash siding and sidewalks and wash windows.  Add a fresh coat of paint on your front door and purchase a new doormat.


Use Space Effectively

Rearrange furniture to maximize space and enhance your home's features.

Let There Be Light!

No one likes a dark, dreary home.  Open blinds to allow the sunlight to pour in. 

Entice Buyers' Sense of Smell

Bake cookies, bread or simmer spices prior to a showing.

Set the Temperature

You want prospective buyers to be comfortable and stay awhile in your home, right?  Now is not the time to worry about a utility bill.  Turn up the heat if it's cold enough to wear a sweater in your home.  Likewise, turn down the temperature if it is uncomfortably hot.










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Moving On: Tips for a Stress-Free Move

Moving can be challenging and stressful, at best.  It can be difficult to remember everything that you need to do during this life-changing event.  Here are some useful tips to help you during the process!

Preparation

Write down the names and numbers of utility companies and make the transfers.  Give yourself at least a week, as many utility companies can't transfer service the next day. Change your address with the postal service at least a week in advance.

Finding Packing Supplies 

Boxes can be expensive.  Check with your local retailers, ABC stores and furniture stores.  When you're finished unpacking, advertise the free boxes on Craigslist so you won't have to dispose of them.

Packing

• Consider your move as a time to organize.  Designate areas for items to donate and items to sell at a garage sale.
• Pack the items you use the least first.  
• Dust items as you pack so that you won't have to dust when you unpack.
• Wrap small fragile items in brightly colored tissue paper so they won't accidentally be thrown away.
• Avoid mixing items from different rooms in the same box.
• Color-code boxes by designating a color for each room.  Place a colored sticker on each box.  Be sure to mark boxes that are fragile.
• Use suitcases, baskets, hampers and clothes baskets in place of boxes.  Pack small kitchen items such as spices in large pots.
• Stack plates vertically to save room.  Plates are also less likely to break if stacked vertically.
• Use newspapers, towels and/or clothes instead of bubble wrap for fragile items to save money.
•  When disassembling furniture, place screws and parts in a Ziploc bag and tape to the base of the furniture so that it is easily accessible when time to reassemble.

The First Night

Pack one overnight bag or box with the bare necessities you'll need for the first night.  Chances are that you'll be too tired to search for these items after the big move.

Do you have any moving tips to share?  Please let us know in the comments below.

Benefits of a Home Inspection

 Think you don't need a home inspection?  Think again!

Whether you're a homeowner preparing to sell or have found your dream home and are ready to begin the sales process, a home inspection can save you unwanted grief.  A home inspection is beneficial to both buyers and sellers because it eliminates any nasty surprises for sellers and relieves potential doubts for buyers.

For buyers, home inspections may pay for themselves in savings.  A home inspector typically checks for issues with structural integrity, major defects, safety hazards and that major appliances are in working order. A home inspection enables a buyer to make an informed decision and feel more confident about their purchase.  Keep in mind there are certain things a home inspector cannot see, like the inside of walls or underneath floors. 

Sellers benefit from home inspections in that having a home inspection can eliminate last-minute negotiations.  Why wait for a buyer's home inspector to uncover unknown problems after you've already accepted an offer? 

Home inspections are a benefit to both buyers and sellers:  they remove unknown factors to help make the transaction as worry-free as possible.