At any given time, the
Navarre real estate market is filled with many gorgeous homes for sale. If you’re listing your property, you want your house to stand out in that crowd and receive higher offers. If selling your house fast is one of your main goals, you’ve come to the right place!
Luckily, there are steps you can take to expedite the sale of your home. Consider these tips to entice buyers and situate your home at the top of their wish lists:
1. Take an honest look at your furnishings
You might have been living in your house for a long time. Even a decade can be considered a long time in the interior design world. Changes happen quickly, and your living room couch that might have once looked so chic might now be sadly out of style. If your furniture appears worn, faded, or outdated, it might be better to store your furniture out of sight so that buyers don’t associate that “worn look” with the actual structure of your home. Work with an expert stager to bring in new, beautiful furniture and arrange your living spaces to appeal to a wide range of buyers.
2. Remember that the power washer is your friend
Homes that receive the most offers are clean on the inside and out. If you haven’t power washed your home in recent months, it might be building up grime on the siding. You might have grown to ignore those problem areas, but your potential buyers will certainly be attentive to the exterior of your home.
A professional power washing treatment is well worth the couple of hundred dollars it costs. If you need to clean your roof of algae growth, you can consider a soft washing treatment, which is gentler on the shingles.
3. Remove any signage or tacky decorations
Now is not the time to advertise your affection for anything but your home. Remove any front yard signage for sports teams, no matter how dedicated you feel to them. Take down the seasonal decorations, as these are often seen as tacky. Remember that prospective buyers want to see a "clean slate" of a property — they don’t want to see clutter, even outside the home.
4. Clean out your kitchen cabinets
All who pass through your home will see your cluttered kitchen cabinets. You want your home to feel like a clean environment that doesn’t attract pests. However, if you have unsealed snacks in the top cabinets, roach traps in the side cabinets, and plastic catch bowls in the under-sink cabinets (left over from when the pipe was leaking), your home will feel less valuable, possibly to the tune of thousands of dollars. Clean out the cabinets to showcase all the excellent storage space your home has to offer.
5. Give everything a fresh coat of neutral paint
You might feel uplifted and inspired in your bright yellow kitchen, but that color can feel too overwhelming for some buyers. The same goes for bright red and orange, as well as some darker colors that can drag down the space. So while it might seem like it would be easy for your prospective buyers to paint the house in the colors of their choice, you don’t want them to feel dissuaded by any negative feelings that they might have about the color palate of your home. Using neutral tones throughout your home is a great way to liven up the space and create an inviting atmosphere.
6. Remove any evidence of pets
While you certainly love your pets, remember that they can impart odors, stains, and damage to various parts of a home, reducing its value in the eyes of the beholders. Keep your pet out of your home during your showings. Also, remember to address the issues your pets might have (innocently) created within your home. Clean the carpets of fur and dander, and remove pet toys, bowls, and more during your tours.
7. Remove your personal photographs from the walls
Your family photographs are meaningful to you, but they don’t have the same meaning for your prospective homebuyers. Your buyers want to imagine themselves living in your home, and having other people’s faces posted on the wall, refrigerator, and elsewhere doesn’t help them to imagine themselves living in the house. Remove family photos and other personal memorabilia that would otherwise distract your buyers.
8. Emphasize any beachy themes within your home (without going overboard)
An artful vase filled with seashells and sand can be appealing. An elegant painting of a sand dune can be attractive. But there’s no need to go overboard (pun intended) in selling the beach theme of your home. Instead, keep the decor to modern, beachy neutrals to impart the idea that your home is a beautiful seaside getaway.
Your goal is to have your home look like an expensive Airbnb — a “vacation vibes” place where people can come and relax. There’s also a possibility that investment buyers might be touring your property for potential short-term rentals, so you can help them to realize that dream by presenting it as such.
9. Fix any features that are broken
A drippy faucet or a crooked door handle are things that can turn buyers away at times. Buyers pay attention to the little details; if you haven’t been maintaining your home well, your home might be out of the running for them. There might be some things you can fix yourself, but be sure to hire a professional in cases where fixing things yourself might backfire and look worse than when you started.
10. Invest in storm-proofing your home
If you have the time (and money) to install hurricane shutters on your home, this is a great way to show buyers that your home is ready to weather the storm. If you have other storm-proof features set up, such as a permanent backup generator, stilts, or risers, ensure those features are in excellent condition and in working order. Proper storm-proofing can be hugely valuable to potential homebuyers, giving them the confidence to invest in your property near the coast.
11. Work with the right agent
The right agent can make it 100% easier to sell your home. An expert will give you authentic, no-nonsense advice to help you maximize the profits that you walk away with after the sale.
The right agent also understands that you’ve likely grown attached to your home and that the selling process might come with some mixed emotions. The professional team at
Blue Wave Group understands your needs as a seller and as an individual. Reach out to the trusted team for a consultation about how to best position your home in the marketplace and
sell your house fast.
*Header photo courtesy of Shutterstock
