How to sell your home - A Designer’s Perspective
This article was written by Sandra Lawson, an Interior Design Consultant who has brought her skills to a wide spectrum of assignments including private and commercial projects, period homes, loft apartments, new homes and apartments, family homes, offices and boardrooms.
Sandra looks at “how to sell your home" through the eyes of a professional.
First Impressions
How many of us actually pay attention to the approach, entrance and first impression our home gives? Most of us just run up the path at the end of the day, burst in the door and head straight for the kitchen to put the kettle on. Beware - potential buyers will pay much more attention.
You will need to do exactly the same prior to selling your house. Look at your home through the eyes of a stranger.
Buyers are looking for a spacious and attractive property. Does that describe your home? Ask yourself (or a trusted friend) – “why not"?
Plan of Action
The quickest way to create the feeling of space is to make some available! Tidy up and de-clutter – big time! Put away articles that will need packing anyway, remove surplus furniture – nests of tables, footstools, bean bags – to avoid the furniture saleroom look.
Remember to clear and clean out your cupboards – viewers will look in them especially if you tell them about the “great storage"! Clean and tidy your kitchen units too – the kitchen is very important to potential purchasers. Clear the work surfaces including gadgets – two or three is enough! If your room is a kitchen/diner emphasise the eating area. Most viewers will say they cook and entertain a lot, so create the impression you do too!
Bathrooms are also key to buyers so make sure the ceramic and glass surfaces are sparkling to give a clean, ordered and pleasing impression.
Define the use of each room
Remember viewers only have a few seconds to assess each room/area so make it simple for them! Make a bedroom a bedroom, the dining room for eating in and so on.
If there are desks and computers all over the house, this blurs the edges – is it a bedroom or a study, a dining room or home office? Confine study/homework to one room for the duration of the viewing. If you have a very small bedroom it may be best to make this the study. Many people do some work from home and a home office is becoming increasingly sought after.
The Master Bedroom is also important to potential buyers. This is the room that those with the purchasing power will be using, so add touches of luxury! You are looking to create a sanctuary of a Master Bedroom – think hotel bedroom.
Talking colour
It wouldn’t do for everyone to have the same interior style however, when it comes to selling homes very individual tastes are a detractor rather than an asset.
It is not necessary to make each room Magnolia, but light subtle shades, with an overall continuity of colour, are the way to go. Soft, light colours will create the impression of space and elegance.
Most paint ranges have shade cards which provide good advice on harmonising colours and often suggest accent colours to complete the scheme. Keep to one or two basic wall shades and vary the accent colours. If you are fortunate enough to have Georgian or Victorian interiors don’t try to do anything clever with the cornicing and mouldings. Let the architecture speak for itself – too many highlights will detract from the classical elegance.
If time is short to decorate throughout, then at least decorate the ground floor in co-ordinating light shades including the hall and stairwell. In the case of a flat decorate the hall and lounge to co-ordinate.
To introduce some colour, and define each room or area, co-ordinate with accessories. Add accent colours, interest and individuality to the background of neutrals – just don’t overdo it!
Fresh, clean décor will always appeal to the prospective buyer. Spending some of your time to freshen up the décor pre-sale will save effort for buyers who will pay a bit more for a property that has that “ready- to-move-in" appearance.
Don’t forget the exterior
Cut the grass, tidy the flower beds and weed the path. One afternoon’s professional care will pay dividends via the property price achieved. Wash, or re-paint, the front door, polish the brassware and clean the steps or communal stairs. Splash out on a couple of colourful ready-planted flower pots for the front door.
Showing your home – The Big Sale
Always remember that you are selling your home because you are planning to move to another. Having already made that decision, look upon this as a sales project with target bonuses for the best price and fast turnaround achieved.
If you have made the best of your home, you will be proud of it and happy to show it. At viewing times lead potential buyers around the house initially – start with the best rooms generally the living and kitchen areas, and leave the least attractive to the last.
By starting with the best room you will be sure to be “aglow with pride" and give an enthusiastic sales pitch. Smile and your home will smile with you! Good luck!
First Impressions
How many of us actually pay attention to the first impression our home gives? Try imagining yourself as a prospective buyer - look at your home through the eyes of a stranger – inside and out. You may no longer notice the skull and crossbones sign (saying “enter on pain of death") pinned to your teenager’s bedroom door, but does this give a welcome to viewers? Do you have to pick your way through a sea of footwear, bags and sports gear to reach the lounge? While these items are the stuff of everyday family life, during viewing they represent clutter and lack of space.
Does the garden look attractive and tidy? Does it look overgrown or littered with bikes like a kids play park? Just as for the interior, buyers want attractive and easily managed for the outside space too.
De-clutter
Buyers are looking for a spacious, easily run and attractive home so make sure you achieve this while you are showing your home. Time to tidy up and de-clutter BIG TIME!
Box items that will need packed for the move anyway – seasonal clothing and sports equipment, books, Xmas decorations, and large toys. Box them and put them into storage, or a relative’s spare room/attic, but don’t dump boxes into your garage while viewing. Buyers expect to see a car-sized space here!
Confine children’s toys to their bedrooms or dedicated playroom. Inexpensive and colourful cube or basket storage is readily available – buy each child their own to encourage tidying on viewing days. Let them have the freedom to be messy the rest of the time to make it all seem less of a chore.
Clean out your cupboards – buyers will look in them. Its no use telling them you have good storage if, when they open the door, all that is visible is stuff! If something has been at the back of the cupboard for months then it is not needed immediately (or indeed ever) so can be boxed and stored elsewhere.
Remove surplus furniture – two sets of nest of tables may be handy for a large family, but will make your lounge look like a furniture showroom room during the sales! Same goes for bean bags and footstools – they all cluttering the floorspace. Do you have a piece of furniture that has been squeezed in somewhere or bought purely to hold more stuff? Move out the stuff and the item of furniture! Is there furniture in the house that does not really have any particular purpose? An obstacle race is not considered an “added value" item by viewers!
Kitchens and Bathrooms
Clean, tidy and polish the kitchen and bathrooms. Clear the work surfaces, throw out half used bottles and tubes, and tidy the cupboards. Cut down on the kitchen gadgets – one or two will do. Set the kitchen table with a cloth or runner and add a vase of fresh flowers. Add fluffy towels, scented candles and nice bath goodies to the bathrooms. Clear all household bills, letters etc and put them in the study desk or away in a drawer.
If your kitchen is a dining kitchen then emphasise the eating area. Most viewers will say they cook and entertain often so create the impression that you do the same. At least hide the evidence of convenience foods, snacking children and the four varieties of cereals.
Room Count and Use
Define the use of each room – if it is a bedroom buyers expect to see just that. If they are met with bookshelves and desk this room will register as a study, not the bedroom it may actually be.
If you have a dining room that you never use (because the kitchen is a great place to dine and entertain for instance) consider putting in a sofa or sofa bed to create a family room or make a value-adding extra bedroom. That way prospective buyers can appreciate the flexibility the accommodation offers.
Bedrooms
The Master Bedroom is important to potential buyers. It is no longer just somewhere to collapse at the evenings end but often described by house builders as a “luxurious sanctuary". You can suggest this idea with the help of a few accessories. Dress the bed with cushions and a throw and place attractive lamps at the side of the bed. Tidy and organise the wardrobes – storage is very important in the main bedroom. If you have an en-suite add lots of bath goodies, scented candles and white, fluffy towels.
In family homes the occupants of the other bedrooms will probably have strong opinions on the look and décor of these rooms! If you cannot persuade (or bribe) your offspring to tone down and de-personalise their own rooms, concentrate on making the Master Bedroom, landing and bathrooms fit the light, soft tones model.
Soft Furnishings
Don’t forget to consider the windows – both their outlook and soft furnishings. If you have large windows that allow generous light, or you have pleasant vistas, consider doing without curtains in the public rooms. If your soft furnishings are looking a bit tired, your curtains don’t actually fit the windows or the style is out of date replace with blinds for a cheap and quick update.
New scatter cushions on your sofas and beds will instantly lift and update a room and you can take these new items on to your next home.
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