Top 10 Things to Make Your Home More Attractive to a Buyer
1. Clean the front and Backyards
All too often, I have clients in Bergen County who have lost thousands of dollars because they did not take the time to properly address their front or backyard. These issues could have been resolved for a few hundred dollars. In Bergen County, green space is at a premium, if you have it, flaunt it! Don't have the time to do it yourself? Bergen County has hundreds of landscapers eagerly awaiting your business. At the minimum have a nice plain green lawn with healthy grass. If it is typical in your area to have elaborate landscaping, do so, unless you are prepared to sell your home less than others are. If you're in a town that is more urban, like Cliffside Park, or Fort Lee for example, you can make up for the lack of green space by using plants.
2. Minor Repairs
Exposed wiring, leaking faucets, broken screen doors, are all examples of relatively simple do it yourself fixes that can detract value from your home. Nail holes can make a wall look like a former bullet ridden warehouse. If you are not able to do it yourself, hire a handy-man - it's well worth it. Again, in Northern NJ you can find many eager businesses and persons willing to help for modest costs. Switches plates (the plate that secures your light switch) that are hanging off or missing are major red flags, it just subtracts from the overall aurora of the home.
3. Major Repairs
Some repairs require more consideration - although it is my opinion that it is better to sell the home in move-condition as opposed to selling a home as a "fix-it-upper" or "handy-man" special. The reason is that homes in need of repair will allow the buyer to have a good reason to low-ball (or offer a low amount to purchase the home) the seller. A roof can be an expensive job, but it may be worth fixing if it's badly damaged. Siding can dramatically improve the look of a home - but will be a moderate to high priced repair. If a home is in need of a major repair, it may need a C/O (Certificate of Occupancy) to be issued, which can limit the attractiveness of the homes to potential buyers.
4. Flooring - The Magic, The Allure
There is something about flooring that can make or break house. Install a nice hardwood floor with a shine that will blind and you will have a home that stands-out. Flooring will cost a few hundred dollars but can make a home go from average to "wow". A client of mind who is an real estate investor and practiced the art of "flipping" not too long ago, would buy homes in Bergen County, renovate them and sell them (with me of course). Each and every time he bought a house he installed cherry hard-wood floors - every home sold within sixty days. He of course also renovated more than the floors, but flooring is a major factor that isn't a huge expense and adds a "wow" factor.
5. The Kitchen
Food is the best way to a man's heart - A kitchen is the best way to a buyer's heart
Buyers in the North New Jersey area consistently rank a renovated kitchen as one of the most sought after features in a home. I wonder if it has to do with us being American and overweight as a nation? In any case, if your kitchen isn't already renovated, you should take some steps in making it more attractive. Removing scratches from cabinets, and modernizing them with new inexpensive handle-bars are two cost-effective improvements. Granite countertops are always in demand as well - although they can be a more costly improvement. Bathrooms are the next most important rooms - a hot tub is a nice bonus.
6. Paint
Painting, so simple, yet often overlooked. Have paint chipping on any of your walls? Fix it, repaint! Painting is by far one of the simplest and inexpensive fixes. You can do it yourself and pace yourself. White is by far the best color as it make rooms look larger and allows buyers to imagine and plan out their own colors should they want to.
7. Odors - A Deal Breaker
I once brought a buyer to a large home that had a basement, reserved for two dogs. The buyers started walking downstairs towards the basement, and the stench bestowed them - they immediately made a u-turn and left the house. If you have pets, be sure to eliminate the odors associated with them a few days before your home is shown. This is also applicable to odors related to cooking - remember the potential buyer may not be a pet lover, of enjoy your love with garlic - get rid of those odors days before the showing.
8. Clutter & Cleanliness
The most cost-effective thing you can do is to organize your home in and out and remove clutter.
It's important that the outside of your home is well presented as well. Make sure you take out the trash. The last thing you want are persons who make an appointment to see your home, but don't bother walking inside because of the condition of the outside of the home. Don't make your home as we call in Real Estate, a "drive-by".
9. How are you marketing your home?
If your home is in truly bad shape, you may want to appropriately market it to the right audience. For instance, a home that is in "knock-down" condition may be better marketed as "value in the land" if it's on a large lot. Have a huge lot ? Perhaps you can seek a variance with the town for approval on plans for a larger home or development. This can open your home to potential investors, who will be less fussy, and will pay top-dollar if their is money to be made. One of the newest strategies is to stage your home. You can hire a professional to do this, or try your hand at it. Staging can dramatically increase the marketability of selling your home through careful selection of decor. Check out our article on staging for tips.
10. Hire a real estate agent (preferably me!)
A real estate agent can facilitate the entire selling process so that you can spend your time on the others items in this list. Selling your home involves marketing, legal issues, adherence to state and local laws, and administrative paper parties. I perform a great number of tasks to prepare a home to be sold, which includes creating a brochure or flyer, creating postcards, marketing your home on the internet, visibility to my own personal contacts. Read about me, and the skills and experience I have to help sell your home.
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