The property market is fiercely competitive – so how do you make your home stand out from the crowd. Read our guide for some useful tips and tricks to enhance the appeal of your home to potential buyers… 

The first thing we do when we buy a home is inject it with our own personality. The problem is that when you sell your ‘home’ you want other people to be able to visualise it as their ‘home’. The way you do this is to remove the personality you have given your home and make it more of a blank canvas for people to put their own ideas into.

De-personalise your home…

Buying a home means the fun of all sorts of ideas - “We could do this and that” and “Let’s paint this room x colour.” That’s why a sparsely furnished home allows people to put their own ideas into the fun of looking at property – and takes you closer to a sale. If it helps, visit some show-homes to get an idea of how they achieve this. A room may get the concept of it being a girl’s bedroom by some pink organizing cubes and a couple of dolls, but you won’t have a myriad of family pictures on the walls.

Put away all photos, knick-knacks, collectables and ‘things’ that make your home your home. While it might be painful, if you are serious about selling your property, these are the first things that have to go – and you can look forward to decorating your new home when you unpack them later.

Remove all clutter…

It’s not just good feng shui, removing clutter from your home allows a potential owner to have a clear thinking space and visual eye with which to add their own ideas. Take a step back and look at each room in your house critically. Chances are you’ll see most dressers and bench tops are covered with bits and bobs that you have gathered over time. Sort them into storage and throw the rest out. It may be a time consuming job, but think of it as a long-term investment in making your packing easier when you sell the house.

So you think you can hide all your clutter in cupboards? Not exactly… There is one room in the house where home buyers will always open the cupboards to see the shelving space – the kitchen. Take everything off the bench top and give it a proper storage home in the cupboard. Be ruthless - if you can’t fit everything in the cupboard ask yourself how often do you use that juicer that you bought for a detox you’ve never managed to do? Things that don’t get used and you want to keep should be boxed, labeled and stored.

While you are at it, make sure all the cupboards are clean and presentable. This is a good time to get rid of the weevils from your pantry and clean out the dirty floor cloths from under the sink.

Now go through the rest of the house systematically with the same ruthless ‘clutter eradicating’ hand. Things that you don’t want should be thrown away or better still, organise a garage sale and use the profits to go towards packers and movers for your shift. Don’t forget to clean out your closet clutter in case people want to check out their potential wardrobe space!

Cleanliness is next to godliness…

Your whole house should be ‘spic and span’ – remember that even the little areas of dirt can leave a bad impression on a potential home-buyer. Don’t just vacuum the floor but also thoroughly clean the skirting board of dust and dirt. Gently wash dirt off the walls and remember to carefully clean light switches and door handles to remove grubby marks. Use a stain remover to clean carpets or invest in a steam clean.

Minor fixes…

It’s the little things that can make a big difference to the overall appearance of your property. Scratched and worn paint can look good as new with a fresh coat over the top. Fix any dripping taps by putting a new washer on. Toilet seats, taps and door handles that have seen better days can be easily and cheaply replaced. Creaky doors and cupboard hinges usually just need a quick spray of WD40. Don’t forget to weed the garden and tidy up outside areas as well. A sparse front lawn can be brightened up with a few nice pot plants and some shrubs. Curbside appeal is incredibly important when selling your home. Odours may not be noticeable to you, but if you have a dog it is the first thing someone will smell when they enter your home. Be vigilant with deodorisers and carpet cleaning to keep your home fresh.

A new doormat will make your entranceway look so much better. A note on major fixes – don’t even for one second try to get away with not fixing a leaky building or disguising dodgy plumbing. A letter from the new owner’s lawyer will come back to haunt you before you can even say “bad karma”…

Painting…

If you decide to paint rooms to brighten and clean up areas in your home, don’t go for your favourite colour – again, allow for buyers to put their own creativity into the home. The safest bet is an off-white for walls as it makes a room look clean and spacious and can easily be painted over by a new buyer.

Finally, take a good long look at the outside of your house. If it looks really shabby, you may find that painting the exterior is the best way to spruce up your home and increase the revenue from the sale of your property.

Article by Je t’aime Hayr

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