Tips to Selling Your Columbus Home This Summer

As the real estate market regains momentum after the recession, you need to know tricks of the trade to get your home sold quickly, and for top dollar. There are ways to enhance a home's attractiveness besides lowering the asking price. If you're looking to sell your home in a cooling real estate market, read on for some tips on how to generate interest and get the best price possible. There’s a lot of things to consider and it may run from checking the house, inspections, finding buyers, and so on. Read on for our tips on selling your Columbus home.

Tackle Obvious Repairs

If you’re planning to list your home at the start of summer, you now have 30 to 45 days to tackle all the necessary and obvious repairs. Why is it so important to check these off your to-do list ahead of time? First and foremost, it’ll prevent potential buyers from being distracted as they tour your home. Instead of making a mental list of what needs to be fixed, they’ll be able to focus on your home’s positive qualities.

Remove Your Clutter

Clutter eats equity and kills deals. Period. It’s time to de-clutter, freeing up more visual space in your home. Look at each item in your house, and decide to save it, store it, sell it, or chuck it. The concept that ‘less is more’ is at the heart of making a home sellable. Once you’ve gotten rid of what you’re not using, edit and organize the rest. Living space is an extremely precious commodity, and a little extra breathing room, along with a sense of expansiveness, makes your home feels luxurious, calming, and uplifting. And, as obvious as this seems, a buyer will naturally be drawn to, and pay more for, a home that feels bigger.

Depersonalize Your Home

It’s time to take down the collectibles, family heirlooms, school photos, and other highly personal mementos. Not that those treasures aren’t amazing – I have a house full of family heirlooms, but now is not their time in the spotlight. When it comes to selling, you want a slate that’s blank enough to allow potential buyers to visualize themselves in the home, and to them, your memorabilia is just more stuff, so put it away for now!

Hide the Religious and Political Paraphernalia

When clearing out the house, remove any controversial elements – which translates primarily to anything religious or political. Many people have strong emotional reactions to these types of items. Don’t give your buyer a chance to prejudge your home because of your political or religious beliefs.

Don’t Forget about Curb Appeal

First impressions are everything, and a good looking house will get buyers in the front door. Right now, you can get a jump on your curb appeal by taking advantage of the spring growing season. This is the time to plant grass and flowering plants. Remember, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. That’s why curb appeal – the way your house looks from the street – is so critical.

Be Realistic

An educated seller makes smart decisions. Research what other homes in your area have recently sold for—this is helpful for getting to know the competition. To be extra thorough, explore similar homes in your neighborhood on Trulia or Zillow. A quick survey of other homes in the area will be immensely helpful for helping you get to that perfect list price.