You are planning to sell your house. The money will be used to offset a loan or maybe purchase a new home. However, the money available to prepare your home for sale is limited. You barely have enough to fix the whole house, yet this should not dissuade you from the task.

We have outlined some of the necessary yet noticeable preparations you should make for your home’s forthcoming sale.

First impressions count: perfect the exterior.

The first thing a prospective homebuyer will see is the curb. Ensuring it appeals to them may win you a buyer from the onset. The best thing about creating this great exterior is that it is affordable and quite easy to accomplish. Some of the activities you may employ include:

• Weeding flower beds.
• Planting bright-coloured flowers, such as yellow. The colour strikes the buyer in an instant.
• Trim hedges, shrubs and bushes around the house.
• Mow the grass.
• Paint the exterior walls and door.

Other ways to improve curb appeal include:

• Park your car inside the garage or down the street to better showcase your curb.
• Use lighting to improve the aesthetics, especially at night.
• If it is the holiday season, include season highlights such as Christmas lights.
• Ensure trash cans are clean, or place the out of sight.

An effective way to check whether your house is attractive from the exterior is by considering other homes in the neighbourhood. Does your house stand out? If you were a buyer, would you buy your house just by looking at the exterior? With those questions answered, you are now ready to take your preparation process inside.

Improve the interior

Now that the home buyer is inside the house and is hopefully well-pleased with the exterior, here are some of the changes you should make to the interior prior:

• Deep clean all surfaces, floors, windows and doors.

• Declutter and reorganize.
• Paint rooms afresh where necessary.
• Depersonalize. The house should not have any indicator that you once lived there. Make it as fresh as possible for the new owner. Remove any souvenirs, personal belongings, and pictures from the house.
• Don’t sell an empty house. While some apartments may be sold without furniture, it is highly discouraged to sell without providing the buyer with a visual of how the house would look when occupied. Buyers will not buy empty space.

Stage the most important rooms

In every house, the most important rooms are the living room, bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, and dining room. It would be best if you staged these rooms as effectively as possible to instantly earn the homebuyer’s approval. Staging highlights your house’s features that make it more functional, sustainable, and aesthetically pleasing.

Your living room should have minimal furniture and be as depersonalized and decluttered as possible. You may include flowers in a vase to further draw the buyer’s attention. Include some decorative additions, such as candles and pillows. Don’t overdo this one, as buyers may be discouraged from purchasing because of a tacky chandelier.

Replace your bathroom’s shower curtain; it has been used for too long. Scrub all the toilet bowls. Nothing is as disheartening as using someone else’s stuff without them being properly sanitized. Spray all bathrooms with an air freshener. You can also include bathroom essentials such as bath oils, shampoos, and sweet-smelling soaps. Replace old sinks, or repaint them yourself.

Most homebuyers will want to see what the master bedroom looks like. Most people prefer a large, spacious bedroom since it’s their personal sanctuary. Minimize wall art, and make it as tasteful as possible. Do not rely on your individual preferences, research on bedroom wall art. Keep all closets neat and organized. If the house comes with beds, ensure they are immaculately made.

The kitchen is one of the other important rooms that should be staged perfectly. Ensure all surfaces and floors are deep cleaned. Scrub sinks, wash utensils, clean cabinets, and polish fixtures such as faucets. Open windows to ensure ample lighting and fresh air flow. Use your creative juices to develop an outstanding kitchen feature, such as building an automatic soap dispenser.

Replace and repair

You might take the buyer around the house, and they are impressed the whole time, only to decide against buying the house due to a doorknob that won’t work. The issue is not always about not fixing the problem, but that professionalism was not fully met.

To avoid such challenges, check if the following items are working perfectly:

• Faucets
• Doors and door knobs
• Light bulbs, sockets, switches, and power sources.
• Cracked or old tiles and flooring.
• Paint that is coming off.
• Broken windows.
• Plumbing that does not work.
• Shower heads, taps, and sinks.
• Damaged roofs and ceilings.

You can convert most of these activities into DIY projects that you will enjoy doing while saving money.

Appeal to the homebuyer’s senses

Imagine yourself as a homebuyer. So far, we have focused on only what you see that will influence your decision. What about the other senses? You could smell bad odours or strong perfumes that could put you off. Or you may love the soft classical music playing in the background.

Maybe you will be endeared by your host’s hospitality in offering you unbelievably sweet chocolate chip cookies. Perhaps you will touch the kitchen island and find levels of dust that will become a deal breaker. Maybe you are allergic to the cat’s fur.

Considering all these instances, consider how you can ensure all five senses of your potential homebuyer are effectively satisfied. Also, avoid being overly friendly with the homebuyer; don’t be all up in their face. Remember, it’s a sale, not a giveaway.

Invite a friend to rate your house

You may not judge your house as objectively as another person would. And yet you could overly judge yourself. The best way to deal with this dilemma is to have a friend or neighbour rate your house. Ensure that they are objective and have your best interests at heart. A valid explanation should adequately follow every opinion they posit.

If they say, the front door mat is old and should be replaced, confirm it is so, and implement the recommendation.

Final Remarks

Preparing a house for sale is a difficult process. Doing so with a budget becomes even tougher. However, this process does not have to be expensive. Numerous DIY videos on the internet will provide you with amazing skills.