Selling home for many people is associated with one of the toughest decisions in life and many sellers are very emotional about it. No wonder – after all, they have often lived in a given place for 10, 20, 30 years or even their whole lives and have a lot of memories with it. Therefore, it is not so easy to leave the beloved home knowing that we will never return to it again.
Such a very sentimental approach, however, can make selling your home much more difficult and extend it over time. The home and its furnishing may show that you are not mentally ready to move out yet, so the potential interested person may not be able to imagine himself living in your place. Today I will show you what mistakes are most often made by home sellers and how to effectively avoid them!
Biggest mistakes people make when they try to sell their homes
Not removing personal items
First of all, you have to accept that you will soon move out of this apartment and it will no longer be yours. This is why you have to remove all personal items!
You may think that it is not that important and no one will notice a few of your favorite fridge magnets or the scattered children’s toys in the corner of the living room. Unfortunately, this is a huge mistake. These few seemingly innocent elements can significantly influence the customer’s decision and the fact that they will not be able to imagine your property as their future home. Because they will simply feel like intruders or your guests, but not like potential new owners of the house.
Therefore, you need to depersonalize the house so that no traces of your use are visible. How? Hide in boxes all family photos, religious symbols, sporting equipment and toys. And don’t forget to remove your personal taste from your home decor! Try to make it as neutral as possible.
Here you can see the example from my last project – it was a 6 room house for sale in Leeds. Before Home Staging, there were many personal items at home, such as religious symbols and toys, which certainly distracted potential customers and prevented them from focusing on the charms of the home (especially if they had no children or were of a different faith).
After Home Staging and depersonalization of the property, we achieved an amazing effect, which resulted in selling the house above asking price!
Keeping clutter
An “artistic clutter” will definitely not work when you want to show your home at its best. This is why decluttering is the first step for preparing home for a successful transaction, increasing the value of your property. Get rid of unnecessary things – sell them, give them back or hide them in the garage. Your rooms may be large, but due to the accumulation of various items and general clutter, they can give a completely different impression. Hide all unnecessary items in boxes and you will see that there will be twice as much space in your home – for free!
Not investing in professional photos
Unfortunately, photos taken with an iPhone will not work well in property offers… Especially if you want to sell your home for the highest possible price and present it as something really special. I guarantee you that amateur photos will not show the potential of your home, and worse, they can deter potential buyers from visiting your property forever. You can only make the first impression once! And photos on the Internet are usually the first place where a potential client comes into contact with your home. Take a look at this photo:
And compare it with this one:
There is a difference, right? Which property would you go to see? 😉 Therefore, it is worth investing in a professional who will show your home as beautiful, bright, large and spacious, the one you would like to move into immediately!
Selling home by yourself
As we have already established – you have a lot of fondness for your home. It’s normal. But unfortunately this is another thing that can make it difficult to sell your home. Because you won’t be able to evaluate the value of your home objectively. You are tainted by various emotions, and they may not be entirely good for the successful transaction.
You need someone who will look at your home with a fresh look, from a completely different perspective. Someone who knows the market, knows what prices are the houses selling and how to advertise your property.
Cooperating with the appropriate real estate agent and Home Staging specialist will save you a lot of stress and ensure that your home is sold as quickly as possible at the highest price. Believe me, the first property price reduction will cost you much more than investing in the right professionals. For example, my last client has done two valuations and both were well below the price she wanted (£550k and £650k). After cooperating with me (Home Stager) and the estate agent, the house was finally sold above the asking price of £700k!
Not making repairs
Leaky faucets, dirty walls, stained floors may be things that you are used to and that you do not pay attention to, but believe me that such “details” take away a large part of the charm of your property. Make all easy repairs yourself before putting the home on the market and you will see that it will definitely pay off!
My name is Marta and I am the owner of Pearl Home Design, a company that specializes in Home Staging. I will help you increase the value and the appeal of your property in order to sell your home quickly at the highest possible price. Need help with Home Staging?
