This week we’ll look at how to make the inside of your house sparkle. Show the house to its full potential, it will be worth the effort!

Remember, you can only ever make one first impressions.

1. Clean your house like it’s never been cleaned before!

Buyers hate messy or dirty houses. Aside from the basics of dusting, vacuuming, and mopping, pay attention to the details such as light switches, polishing doorknobs and washing curtains / blinds etc and any built up mould. It’s also worth putting some real elbow grease into your windows. Other areas that are sometimes overlooked by sellers are:

a. Clean the ovens in the Home – Prospective buyers spend a lot of time in the kitchen at inspections – they often open the oven to see how large and clean it is.

b. Clean up the fridge door – A fridge door covered in magnets, photos, or the kid’s artwork, distracts buyers’ eyes from the kitchen itself. It’s best to pack them away for the time being. It also really makes the photos come up a lot better too

c. Clear all kitchen and bathroom benches – When selling your own Home, you want your house to appear new, clean, and spacious, so remove any items on your benches to help improve the room’s overall appearance.

2. De-clutter the house

It’s here were a lot of buyers get confused. Remember you are not creating a home for yourself. You are trying to make your house look as big as possible but also, it’s much easier for a buyer to envisage their belonging in the space if it is not cluttered. Don’t forget the cupboards, buyers are assessing the practicality of the home and they will most likely will open cupboards.

3. Spruce up your kitchen

When you’re selling your home, sprucing up the kitchen is high on the priority list. Some cost-efficient ways to breathe new life into your kitchen are:

a. Replacing all the kitchen hardware (handles, knobs etc)

b. Have a good look at the cupboard doors – A fresh coast of paint can totally change the look and make it feel and smell new and fresh.

c. Regrout, paint or replace the backsplash

d. Either paint the benchtop or you can have a thin layer of granite placed over your existing benches, giving you the look of solid granite benches at a for much cheaper price.

4. A fresh coat of paint does wonders

You can’t go wrong with fresh coat of paint on the walls, skirting, trims, doors, or windows. You’d be surprised at how new you can make a house look, feel, and smell with just fresh paint.

5. Replace all the light bulbs

Install high wattage bulbs to brighten up dark rooms and replace any yellow or flickering bulbs. Warm white globes make a room feel warm and inviting, cool white globes can make a room feel very cold. Getting bright looking rooms will help you sell your own home!

6. Invest in easy-to-read house numbers

When selling your own home, it’s obviously best if the buyers can first actually spot your home from the street.

7. Give every room in the home a purpose

If you have an empty room, consider turning it into a kid’s playroom, home gym, study, cinema, or rumpus room.

8. Do your building & pest inspection BEFORE you sell

This will help identify any issues with the property that you can easily fix prior the sale and will help you avoid any nasty surprises. Plus, buyers will look at your home with a lot more confidence if you can produce a recent building and pest report.

9. Organise any children’s rooms

Help convince your buyer that this house will do just that – by organising your own kids’ toys neatly.

10. Depersonalise your home

Remove all personal items such as family pictures around the house. This makes it much easier for buyers to visualize themselves in the house with their belongings. It is also helpful to remove any bold pieces of furniture or accessories, which will also help the space appear as large as possible.

11. Forget your taste. Be Neutral

Try to understand the demographics of the potential buyer – and learn what style they like. For example, if you are selling to first time homeowners, they are probably young and not as interested in dark wood trim – so paint it white or neutral colours instead.

12. Replace faulty power outlets

The devil is in the details. Buyers notice details so for a small amount of money, make sure all the outlets match and work safely.

13. Patch any cracks, dents, or holes in the walls

Buyers don't want to be fixing up your handy work. These are often the first things buyers see in a room, therefore depending on the job, you may be able to repair them with some putty and paint, which will immediately help lift the room.

14. Repair any leaking or faulty taps

Buyers want a fully functioning home. Make sure all the taps and showers are working properly before you put your home on the market.

15. Clean the carpet

This is self-explanatory, yet surprisingly a lot of people overlook this. This service may set you back a few hundred dollars’ but will help the house feel fresh and brand new.

16. Create an overall nice space

You don’t want them bumping awkwardly into furniture as they move about so make sure the path through the house flows well and remove any obstacles. Keep everything tidy!

17. In winter, heat up the house

Heat the house in winter, cool it down in summer. It just helps set the mood

18. Remove any nasty smells – Pet Smells

You may be used to the smell of your pets, but your potential buyers are not. If you have pets, get all rugs steam cleaned and be extra vigilant about vacuuming and washing surfaces. Buyers 100% will be able to smell your animals... even if you can't. Remove any cigarette smells – Any non-smoker can smell the smoke in your house. While your property is on the market, try to avoid smoking in or near the house.

19. Fresh flowers or scented candles on tables

Lift the appearance, mood, and smell of the house. Just having this simple piece of art can brighten an entire room. Please be careful not to over fragrance the room, it can seem like you are trying to hide nasty smells like mould.

20. Create an ideal First impression, so they buyer falls in love

Most buyers decide if they’ll place an offer on a house within just seconds, it's vital to make a good first impression.

Selling Tips - Part 2