Are you a homeowner selling for the first time? You’re probably trying to figure out where to start. The beginning is usually the best place to start. The beginning of the real estate game is choosing a seller’s agent to help market and sell your home. After that, all the pieces start to fall in line. Your home will be sold and you’ll be sitting pretty with a little extra capital in your pocket before you know it. Here’s a to-do list to keep you moving forward.
1. Partner with a seller’s agent: The team at Pelletier Realty Group makes New Hampshire real estate transactions easy. When you partner with us you are connecting to a wealth of knowledge and experience to help you sell your home efficiently with the highest possible price. Our group develops a marketing plan tailored specifically to your property. We communicate with you every step of the way. Partnering with us is definitely a step in the right direction.
2. Clean, clean, clean: One of the most important steps a homeowner can take upon themselves is the rudimentary parts of staging a home. Staging a home is simply getting it physically ready to attract potential buyers. There are a number of things a homeowner can do to get started in the staging process and cleaning is always at the top of the list. Clean everything! You will want to clean the floors, clean the walls, clean the appliances, clean underneath the appliances, and clean anything you may have forgotten to clean (give us a call … we can tell you what you might have forgotten). When you’re done cleaning inside your house, clean the outside of your house. Clean the gutters, pressure wash the deck, clean the patio pavers, clean the windows…clean, clean, clean. When you think you’re finished cleaning give us a call.
3. Landscape: Keeping your lawn mowed weekly, your garden weeded properly, your bushes trimmed and your trees conservatively and attractively pruned are essential in presenting the proper stage for your home. Additionally, you can introduce new flowers to your garden for a pop of color and freshen up the garden bed with new mulch for a nominal investment. All these things will add to what is called “curbside appeal” in the real estate game. It will win you a lot of points with potential buyers.
4. Declutter: After you’re finished weeding out your garden, you’ll want to weed through the furniture and possessions all around your home. You will want to create a spacious and welcoming environment in every room of your house. It is important to remove excess furniture and personal photos and organize every room. Potential buyers need to envision themselves and their things in your home. This is best achieved by simplifying the environment.
5. Paint: If there are rooms in your house painted in dark colors you will need a fresh coat of light paint. We recommend painting all the rooms of your house in a light neutral color. Light colors will reflect natural and artificial light to make rooms look more spacious. Additionally, the exterior of your home may benefit from a new coat of paint. This can be a little costlier. It is best to consult with your seller’s agent from Pelletier Realty Group to decide if it is a good place to spend money, or if money would be better spent improving a different area of the home.
6. Repairs: There are a number of small repairs a homeowner can take care of themselves, or hire out, at a nominal cost. Correcting leaking faucets and tightening or replacing faulty door hardware is essential. To identify larger repairs we sometimes recommend scheduling a home inspection. The home inspection is typically paid for and arranged by a buyer after they have made an offer on your home and you have accepted the offer, but it can be to your advantage to do this ahead of time. A 2-3 hour single family home inspection will cost in the range of $300-$500. The inspection will provide you with a comprehensive report identifying any structural concerns or problems with major systems in the home. With the knowledge of a home inspection, you can choose to make major repairs or simply use the information to price your home accordingly.
The team at Pelletier Realty Group is happy to answer all of your questions regarding Southern New Hampshire real estate. We look forward to helping you market and sell your home. Contact us today!