Tips on Property Preparation for Sale
Making the decision to sell your house is a significant one, but often the thought of the workload required to get your home looking its best can be daunting. At Upstate, we have a dedicated Concierge team to help assess your home and give recommendations on quick fixes to make it stand out from the competition.
With spring just around the corner, we’ve provided this list to help you get started over the next couple of months so your home is ready for the spring market. Our Concierge team are dedicated to helping prepare your property for lease or for sale.
Here are our top tips that our team recommend tackling to prepare your home ready for Spring!
Declutter
Decluttering can be overwhelming yet rewarding. The key is to focus on one area at a time. First, check the next council clean-up dates for your area or book the next available slot. This gives you a deadline to work toward. Start with storage areas like the garage, storage rooms, cupboards, and drawers, including those often-avoided junk drawers and boxes of odd bits.
Sort through these and determine what can be thrown away, stored, or given away. This method can be applied to the rest of the house—clothes, tupperware, office spaces, and kids’ storage. Dedicate an area for the ‘throw pile’ so you can move it all to the council clean-up or take it to the tip. Everything else should be donated or organised neatly for the move to your new home.
Upstates Concierge manager Angie Barbour advises “Take it one step at a time—focus on one shelf, one drawer, one room at a time. Enlist friends and family to assist if you have a lot to get through and reward them with pizza or drinks afterwards!”
Tackle the Odd Jobs
We all have a list of odd jobs that need doing around the home. Work through this list by replacing lightbulbs, fixing broken hinges, cleaning grout, and redoing bathroom silicon. You might also consider swapping out cabinetry handles or tapware to make the home appear more modern or refreshed. The goal is to present your home as well-maintained, so potential buyers don’t think they have work to do if they buy your property.
First Impressions Matter
You want your home to impress from the moment buyers arrive. The works required on the front facade varies depending on your property, but here are the top tips to focus on:
- Lawns: Prepare them now so they are lush in spring. Remove weeds, ensure the soil is healthy, and sow grass seeds so it thrives in time for your first open home. Ensure garden beds are mulched, hedges and gardens are trimmed, and pot plants have healthy plants and look presentable.
- House wash: This is one of the main jobs our Concierge team recommends. A good housewash can breathe new life into your home’s exterior, driveways, paths, and fences. We often use it to refresh the look of paint and to remove moss and algae build up. It is incredible how effective this can be, view the results here.
- Other Improvements: Consider replacing or removing old awnings, painting front fences, front doors, or simply replacing the house numbers or letterbox.
Paint
It goes without saying that a freshly painted house can significantly enhance its appeal, making it look more attractive and well-maintained. Our advice is to paint the interior in a neutral color so it looks fresh, makes the house appear larger, and appeals to a wide range of people. Every room should be the same color, so make sure you paint over any bright feature walls.
Floors
If you have existing timber floors that are scratched or faded, we recommend giving them a good sand and polish. This simple project can breathe new life into tired old floorboards. If you have outdated, stained, or worn-out carpets, consider replacing them with something modern and neutral—either in beige or light grey tones. If they’re not too old, a good steam clean will get them looking as good as new.
Styling
An empty house or apartment looks cold and uninviting, while a poorly furnished one can deter buyers. But you can alter perceptions of your property easily with styling. We are always amazed at how our stylists can completely transform a home.
Consider hiring a professional stylist to take your home that extra mile so your home stands out online and when buyers walk through. If a full style is not an option, consider having a partial style so you can use all your large furniture pieces and have a stylist add their touch with decor, bedding, soft furnishings, artwork, and rugs. Alternatively, have our Concierge team provide recommendations on cost-effective DIY styling by purchasing some decor and soft furnishings to help your home present its best.
Buyers want to imagine themselves living in this home, so it’s important to set the scene and highlight the best areas of your home.
Properly preparing your home for sale can significantly increase its sale price, making it a worthwhile investment of your time and effort.
Our Upstate Concierge Team Can Help You Achieve Great Returns
At Upstate, our real estate specialists can make your property goals come true. We’re a big agency with the heart and determination of a boutique one.
If you’re thinking of selling and want to increase the value of your property before it goes on the market, speak to Upstate’s personalised Property Concierge team. We’ll show you the possibilities that earn excellent results.
Contact Angie from our Concierge Team today!
The Upstate Team
