Costly Home Seller Mistakes To Avoid When You Sell Your Home?

Most home sellers make deadly mistakes that cost them literally thousands of dollars. The good news is that each and every one of these mistakes is entirely preventable.

THE GOAL

Ending up with more money at closing is what counts. This money, called net return, is
the selling price of your home less your debt and costs. Spending big cash on improvements and marketing might get you a higher selling price but won’t necessarily increase your net return.
Your strategy is to do only those certain things that will likely increase your selling price
more than the cost of doing them. Realize that you probably will not be able to do them all.

PLAY FAIR

You deserve all you can net out of your home. Some say that there is a fine line between salesmanship and deception. I disagree. Painting a room to improve cosmetic appearance
is salesmanship. Painting a room to hide leaks on the ceiling is deception. The difference
is clear. That is why I recommend that home sellers do four things.

• Disclose everything you can about your home, including defects you know exist and even ones you merely suspect.
• Consider having a prelisting inspection performed by a member of NACHI, the National Association of Certified Home Inspectors and give every prospect a copy of the report.
• Encourage and allow prospects to perform their own inspections. Having taken steps that alert your prospects to the negatives frees you to emphasize the positives.
• Use a real estate professional to keep everything straight. Many a buyer happily paid full price after a real estate professional found them the right home. Both seller and buyer are winners when salesmanship is combined with honesty.

PREPARATION

Think like a buyer. Prospects naturally want the best for themselves. They arrive at
your front door wanting to find the right home. If you have done your preparation work, every room in your home will lead them to end their search. Get everything done before your first showing.

LANDSCAPING

Make sure the lawn is neatly mowed, raked and edged.
Prune and shape shrubbery and trees to compliment your home.
Plant seasonal flowers along the walks and in the planting areas.
Add an inch or two of bark mulch around your shrubs and trees.

REMOVE EVERYTHING THAT YOU CAN TEMPORARILY LIVE WITHOUT.

Put everything you can into temporary storage, donate it to charity, sell it, give it away,
or burn it. Removing everything from your home before putting it on the market…
· Makes your home look bigger.
· Allows a prospect to more easily imagine their own items in your home.
· Allows you to remove personal fixtures, such as grandma’s chandeliers, now, so that
   you won’t have to bargain over them later.
· Neutralizes the personality of your home.
· Gives the inspector greater access.
· Lowers the cost of packing and shipping items.
· Prepares your home for cleaning, painting, etc.
· Creates a possible tax deduction if you donate items to charity.
Tip: Videotape anything put into storage in case you later need to support an insurance
claim or tax deduction.

CLEAN EVERYTHING.

No house is too clean, and few things increase marketability as much as cleaning. Used
car dealers wouldn’t think of selling a car without detailing it first.
· Steam clean carpeting.
· Clean windows and storms inside and out.
· Scrub bathrooms, and keep them spotless.
· Degrease the oven.
· Clean the water heater, furnace, and anything else prospects will be paying extra attention
to.
· Power wash your siding and deck if needed.
Tip: The kitchen is the heart of the home. It is the room that prospects will likely stop
in and talk during a home tour. Clear all clutter from kitchen counters. Remove everything,
even small appliances, to maximize the appearance of work space.

STOP SMOKING INDOORS.

Cigarette smoke causes odors and stains. Now is the time to kick the habit, at least indoors.

REPLACE BADLY WORN OR STAINED CARPETING.

Replace with inexpensive, neutral-colored carpeting. The worse your existing carpeting
is, the better the return you’ll get on this investment.
Tip: Use this opportunity to screw down loose and squeaky sub-flooring.
DON’T BUY ANY NEW MAJOR APPLIANCES OR FURNITURE.
· They won’t make your home look much better.
· The buyer will not reimburse you for them at full price.
· They cost money to move.
· They clutter up the place.
· The buyer may not share your taste.
· The prospect doesn’t value them as much as they cost you.
Exception: Tasteful mirrors can help direct sunlight or make a home appear bigger.
Tip: Leave out owner’s manuals to appliances that are included with the home.

PAINT ANYTHING THAT NEEDS TO BE PAINTED.
An investment in cosmetic improvement will bring a greater return than mechanical
improvement. Consider painting basement walls, front door, metal railings and trim.
· Use neutral colors.
· Be neat.
· Label and leave the extra paint for the new owner. Moving companies won’t transport
it anyway.
· Don’t paint unless you are good at it.
1. Prospects will notice fresh paint if it’s sloppy and wonder what you are covering
up.
2. A sloppy paint job is worse than no painting at all.
Tip: Take photos or video of everything before you paint it to prove you weren’t c o v -
ering up any major defects. Later you may need to demonstrate this to a prospect, inspector,
or worse, a judge.

CHANGE LIGHT BULBS.
Lighting has a tremendous impact.
· Replace burned-out bulbs so prospects can see how cheery your home is.
· Put in higher wattage, soft light bulbs to make your home brighter.
· Install lighting on stairs for safety.
· Add battery-operated lights to those closets that lack them.
BUY ALL NEW SHOWER CURTAINS.
They are not worth washing.