Salt Lake City Real Estate
It’s a question with opinions as divided as crunchy or creamy peanut butter, and one debated more furiously than which came first, the chicken or the egg—should you list your home fully furnished or completely bare?
It seems that there’s a bit of contention in searching for a definitive answer on the matter. Just like every other either-or debate, the answer lies somewhere in between. Some Realtors prefer empty, others prefer a lightly furnished home. But which is right for you?
You’re selling your home, but no one seems to want it. You’re in a good neighborhood, there are good schools nearby, yet everyone seems to leave in disgust shortly after looking at your home. It’s priced well, so what could it possibly be?
Chances are if any of these 5 things describe your home, potential buyers are probably thinking more about setting fire to it than actually purchasing it. Check out (then immediately fix) these five things that are turning buyers away from buying your home.
Here’s an update you may have missed – nothing brass has been ‘cool’ since the 90s. When potential buyers look at your home and see brass adorning every piece of hardware, it looks old and outdated. Even if you’ve updated your appliances, your countertops, and have the latest and greatest eco-friendly features built into your home, brass anywhere is still going to appear off-putting to your potential buyers. Spend a little money and replace those doorknobs, handles, and other hardware with chrome or brushed nickel.
This might sound obvious, but it never hurts to reiterate it a thousand times. Your circa-1970s appliances aren’t retro. They’re just old, worn out, and should have been replaced years ago. No one wants to buy your house knowing they’ll immediately have to shell out even more money to equip the place with appropriate appliances made in the last 5 years. Do the right thing and replace them before putting your home on the market.
Yes, there is such a thing as being too hip and modern. I remember a former neighbor of mine had a sleek 1980s ‘Material Girl’ style interior. Mirrors everywhere, odd black and white geometric patterns painted on every wall, and decorations made of post-modern mannequin parts. The point of this is that trends and fads change. While this may have been the height of cool in 1988, it’s just plain odd in 2014. Keep this in mind next time you attempt to decorate anything by permanently putting a bird or ironic mustache on it. How’s this going to look in 10 years?
Is your home’s natural beauty suffocating in cheap, crappy carpet? Too much carpet, or carpet that’s made of cheap material could be sabotaging your sale. Carpet can be used appropriately, however it is not appropriate to simply cover every surface with it. Breaking up flooring surfaces helps break up rooms and areas. Plus, carpet can dirty and date quickly. Higher-quality wood, ceramic, and stone flooring has a timeless and durable quality your potential buyers will enjoy for years to come.
Everything returns to the land from which it came, right? Wrong! If it looks like you have a nature or wetlands preservation area outside your front door, you have a serious problem, one which potential buyers don’t want to inherit. Bust out the lawnmower and gardening shears, it’s time to become one with the soil and get to landscaping. Of course, this may not apply to those who’ve taken the time to set up legitimate natural areas in their yards. If you have, then kudos to you. Just don’t expect it to be every potential buyer’s cup of tea.
Have you wondered what forms you need when selling a home? Do you know how to determine the value of your home? Do you know how to find out the prices your neighbor’s home sold for?
These are a few questions answered by Donna Batdorff in her eBook 50 Things to Know About Selling Your Home. In it, she addresses the major concerns first time sellers have about the overall process of putting their home on the market, as well as detailing potential benefits and pitfalls that could help or hinder the sale. Donna was gracious enough to share the first 10 items from her full list of 50 Things to Know. Don’t forget to download the full eBook here.
Don’t let the sale of your home slip through your fingers. You can prevent mishaps in the selling process by doing your research, communicating with your Realtor, and planning ahead. It’s better to do a little more prep work before putting your home on the market than to curse yourself for losing a buyer later.
There are many steps involved in selling your home, and more steps means more opportunity for problems to arise. Your job is to make sure you’ve dotted your I’s and crossed your T’s, so you don’t waste time and money once you’ve started the process. With that in mind, here are the top three things that will absolutely, positively kill the sale of your home… and how you can avoid them. [Read more…]
Both my husband and I have been in the real estate and mortgage business for many years, and we felt extremely confident in Mona and how she represented us and brought us through our home purchase without a hitch.
Joy and Kyle Costello
Keller Williams Salt Lake City
2121 S McClelland St Ste 201
Salt Lake City, UT 84106
