The average house price in the UK is now around £305,732 and with such big figures involved, those who are selling need to do all they can to ensure their property doesn’t sell for less than its market value. Staging and dressing the property is key and so here we take a look at some of the most effective ways to prepare your house for sale and viewings.
First Impressions
As you would imagine, first impressions count for a lot and so ensuring your property has “kerb appeal” is paramount. Tidying the garden, painting the house, bringing in the window cleaners and perhaps even fitting a new front door are all among the measures you can take to improve the properties kerb appeal and to get potential buyers interested.
There is an additional bonus and that is added value. Spending up to £1,500 on the front of the property could increase its value by as much as £5000 – that’s a really good return on investment.
Declutter and Clean
When it comes to the interior of the property, the first step in preparing it for sale and viewings is to declutter and deep clean the place from top to bottom. Doing so will reveal any superficial work that needs attending to – filling cracks and touching up paintwork can make a huge difference.
When the time of the first viewings is looming, conduct another clean up. If you have pets, remove all traces of them and make sure the rooms they inhabit smell nice. Your goal is to maximise the space and have the property looking clean and tidy.
Staging Ready for Viewings
This step is, perhaps, the most important and you should go about it like you would if you were preparing the place for a glossy magazine photo shoot. The idea is to make the house look as desirable a place to live as possible and so think light, airy and fragrant.
One good tip that will help with light is to hang stylish mirrors in places where light will be reflected throughout the room, this increases the “light-flow”. Plus, even if the viewings are scheduled during daylight hours, think about switching on some lamps, these can add dynamics and a little drama to the stage.
For a sweet fragrance, turn to flowers as these also look attractive and act as an eye catching feature in the room where they are placed. Other ideas include brewing a pot of coffee or doing some baking. Also, if the weather is nice open a couple of windows – as long as it doesn’t create a draft.
Another good tip is to think about how you might sell the lifestyle and so strategically placing a coffee table book or lifestyle magazine are among the options you may want to consider. If you can get the viewers to buy into the lifestyle that comes along with living in the house, then you are on to a winner.
Dressing your house for sale and viewings involves a methodical approach and following these steps will help the property sell quicker and for a peach of a price.