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Is This April?
If you check the calendar, it says January 10th, but it sure doesn’t feel like it!
For a gardener like me, this is like being offered a German Chocolate Cake when you’re on a KETO diet! It took all my self-control to keep from running out there and planting seeds.
Many years in the Pacific Northwest has taught me that our weather is fickle and can quickly go from temperatures like this to snow and 30 degrees.
Instead, I spent the day calling people who’ve previously expressed interest to me in selling their properties. Our market in the islands typically moves into “high gear” around March 1st, so I’m starting to get ready. There are a lot of “behind the scenes” things that need to be done to set my sellers up for success.
CMAs need to be updated, site visits to see if there are items to be fixed prior to listing, setting up pre-inspections, checking on status of permits and utilities and ordering preliminary title reports. As the listing date gets closer, paperwork needs to be signed and pictures ordered.
Hopefully the sellers I work with realize how important they are to me. Their successful transition into the next stage of their journey, is my top priority. Proper preparation is KEY!
We don’t want any last-minute surprises!
If you or someone you know is thinking about selling this year, we’d love to hear from you!
First Impressions – Tip for Marketing Your Home #2
I know you’ve heard it said many times….”Curb Appeal”. What does this really mean and how can you improve it when it comes to preparing your home for sale?
The first thing I’d recommend you do is to get in your car and drive around your neighborhood and look at other homes. How do they look to you? What features do you find attractive? What places look unappealing and why? OK…now that you’ve done that, come back to your place and pull up in front. How does it look?
- Does it appear well-kept?
- Does it look like it needs work?
- How does the front door look? If it has a screen door, is it in good shape?
- Is the front walkway and porch inviting?
- Are the shrubs trimmed away from the house?
- Do trees block the view of the house from the road?
Sometimes, very little change needs to happen to make your home much more attractive to buyers. The big trees that you’ve always loved because they give you privacy, may not be helping the appearance of your home. Taking some limbs off at the bottom of the tree, may make the house look more approachable. If the screen door is older and the dog may have knocked parts of it loose, take it off and store it in the garage or repair it. Little things like a scratched up front door or trim that’s showing some exposed wood, will give the impression that the house “needs a lot of work”, when maybe it doesn’t. If you have children and pets, the doors can take a real beating but that doesn’t necessarily reflect the condition of the home. A little paint can go a long way and is a very inexpensive way to improve the buyer’s first impression of your home.
Spring is an excellent time to put your home on the market and a pot of flowers on the porch (next to your freshly-painted front door), will send the message that this is a house that feels like “home”….
