Selling your house at any time of the year can be stressful, but it can be especially stressful during the winter. The real estate market typically shifts in the winter, and it becomes more difficult to sell a home because not as many people are looking to buy. People have a lot on their minds with the holidays, winter break, etc. so it’s extremely important to have your house in tip top shape to make the decision to buy your home as easy as possible for potential buyers. There are a few things you can do to make your home more appealing to buyers and to increase your ability to sell your home quickly and easily. Following the tips below will make for a top-notch selling experience!
Here are 10 winter tips to sell your house fast Jacksonville:
Declutter your home
It’s always important to start getting your house ready to sell by going through and decluttering EVERYTHING. Go through every room, closet, cabinet, and drawer to make sure everything looks neat and tidy. Get rid of any personal pictures or memorabilia in order to give buyers the opportunity to really envision themselves living in the home. Also get rid of any unnecessary items taking up space, as this will allow for rooms to feel bigger and more inviting. Basically, the more stuff that you can get rid of (or put into storage), the better!
Clean everything
By everything, we mean EVERYTHING! Do a deep clean of your entire home and don’t forget spots like fan blades, light switches, and doorways. If you don’t have the time to do this, or if you just don’t want to do it, consider hiring a professional cleaning crew to do a deep clean of your home. You can find a professional cleaning company through Google and most of them have reviews that you can check out before hiring them. Once you have the deep clean done, remember to always do mini-cleans before each showing to ensure that your house is sparkling and makes a great impression.
Have your home professionally staged
Staging your home is one of the best ways to make sure it sells! By staging, we don’t mean having someone come in to your home with all new furniture and décor; we mean having someone come into your home and generating a report that details how to best use your personal furniture in the space provided. Following the suggestions in this report can make rooms feel bigger and can make the house “flow” better to potential buyers. Hiring a professional stager to create a report like this won’t break the bank either. The price varies from company to company, but here in Jacksonville, there are companies that will generate a staging report for only $99. You can Google staging companies or you can ask your real estate agent for a good recommendation.
Make use of natural light
Most times, your staging report will include information on how to do this, but it’s beneficial to add an extra reminder to make use of all of the natural light possible. Make sure to pull back curtains and open shades and make sure that you don’t block any windows. Natural light always makes a home feel more inviting, and we want buyers walking in to notice how light and bright the home is. This is a trick that can really make your home stand out against other homes that potential buyers are looking at.
Make the landscaping look pretty
Fixing landscaping and any problems on the outside of your home make a huge difference in the eyes of potential buyers. It is so important to have good curb appeal, and landscaping is a very big component of that. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term “curb appeal,” it means the first look buyers get when pulling up to your home. This includes everything from the yard to the exterior paint to the front door entry way. You want to make sure all of these things look as good as possible to ensure a good first impression when buyers drive up to your home. Having awesome curb appeal will put buyers in an optimistic state of mind for the rest of their showing which will ultimately better your chances of a sale!
Take amazing pictures (or better yet, have someone else take amazing pictures)
Now that you’ve got the inside and the outside of your house in perfect condition, it’s time to get some pictures taken. Do NOT take pictures of your home yourself with your phone. Nothing turns away buyers more than bad pictures. Unless you are a professional real estate photographer, you should hire someone else to take professional, high-quality photos of your property. If you’re working with a real estate agent, they can give you good real estate photographer recommendations, otherwise hop on Google and search in your area for a highly-rated real estate photographer. This is one thing you do not want to skimp on as it can directly affect how many showings you’re getting on your home.
Set the right price
Making sure you have your home priced correctly can make or break the successful sale of your home. If it’s too high, you won’t get any showings, and if it’s too low, you’ll be leaving money on the table. One thing that’s really important to remember when pricing your home is to leave your emotions out of it. Buyers don’t have the same emotional connection to the house as you do, so for them, it’s more of a business transaction, and you should be in that same head state when determining your asking price. Trying to leave your emotions out of it is also a really great tip for when you get to the negotiation stage. Although it may be difficult, it’s important to be realistic about price. If you’re working with a real estate agent, they should be able to come up with a good price for your home based on recent sales and market data. If you’re not working with a real estate agent, and you’re totally confused about how much you should ask for your house, you can also always have an appraisal done to determine the value.
Advertise EVERYWHERE
Spread the word that your house is for sale anywhere and everywhere! Make sure to tell friends, family, and neighbors that your house is on the market. Also, put a for sale sign in the yard with a visible phone number on it. Then, put the professional pictures you had taken of your house all over the internet. Key places include the MLS, Zillow, Redfin, Trulia, Facebook, Nextdoor, etc. You never know who’s looking to buy a new house, so getting the word out there in as many places as possible is key!
Be flexible with showings
When selling a house, it’s important for you to work around potential buyers’ schedules. This means many of your home’s showings will probably be on nights, weekends, or any time outside of working hours. Although this may be inconvenient, it’s important that you accommodate buyers to the best of your ability. If not, they may find a home they fall in love with before they ever even got the chance to look at yours. If a potential buyer shows interest in your home, try to get them in for a showing within 24 hours whenever possible.
Reach out to local investors for quotes
If all of the previous tips sound like too much of a hassle, you should consider scheduling appointments with a few of your local real estate investors. They’ll come out to your house, take into consideration the condition it’s in, and make you a cash offer right there on the spot. Most local investors are able to offer fair prices for homes, and this cuts out the need for commissions, closing costs, repair costs, etc. so it can actually end up saving you some money. This tip is especially useful if your house needs repairs, you want cash, or you just need to sell your house quickly. Working with local investors is often a hassle-free experience and can be a great way to go a lot of the time.
Selling your home can be a hassle, ESPECIALLY in the winter time. But, with these winter tips to sell your house fast Jacksonville, your home-selling experience can be smooth, quick, and easy. Following the first 9 tips above will make your home more appealing to buyers and following tip number 10 will ensure a fast sale. Either way, we’re here to help in any way possible. If you’re considering selling your home in Jacksonville, give us a call! We can answer any questions and help to ensure your home is in the best shape possible to sell for top-dollar.