Marketing Your Home

Homes sell quickly when proper steps are taken. Following several home-selling guidelines can mean the difference between quickly unloading a home or watching it languish for months on the market.

Spending a few thousand dollars to fix up the interior and exterior of a home can increase buyer appeal and marketability. Sellers should be conscious of this so-called "curb appeal," because if a prospective buyer does not like the outside of the home, he or she probably will not even want to view the inside. The same pertains to landscaping. Especially during warm months, fresh landscaping can return many times its cost in the form of a higher sales price.

Meanwhile, inside, sellers generally fail to recognize the importance of attractive, up-to-date light fixtures. Homeowners can replace "dated" fixtures with inexpensive new lights purchased at home-improvement and lighting centers. Sellers should also pay attention to floors and carpets. Worn carpets and floors can kill home sales. New wall-to-wall carpets are an inexpensive improvement. A light, neutral color with thick padding is most appealing. For homes with hardwood floors, sellers might consider hiring a specialist to sand and refinish them.

Garages can also be a trouble spot for sellers. Sheetrock walls can improve the appearance of unfinished garages, however. So too, can painting the walls and cement floor and getting rid of unnecessary junk.

Obtaining customary professional inspections can prevent surprises by revealing home defects. Sellers can then repair those flaws before placing the home for the market. The best professional inspectors are members of the American Society of Home Inspectors. Sellers who want to make the most profit on their home will attend to only the most necessary and obvious defects. They should avoid less-profitable repairs and simply disclose them to buyers, selling the home "as is."

Sellers should also try to see their property from the buyer's perspective. Elements in a home that a seller takes for granted, like messy closets or pets, can be turn-offs to buyers. For sellers who do not need cash upfront, offering financing will increase the market appeal of the house and provide a nice monthly income.

Finally, sellers should consult a successful realty agent. Each possible candidate should prepare a comparative market analysis and disclose a recommended asking price for the home. Sellers should also ask prospects to disclose a list of references of recent home sellers, so as to provide information on the best possible candidate.

"10 Steps to Make Your Home Sell Fast, For Top Dollar," Inman News Features Online (12/01/00); Bruss, Robert J.

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