Do you believe in love at first sight? Two great sayings “Never judge a book by its cover” and “You never get a second chance to make a great first impression” are very applicable to homes. While it’s good to “never judge a book by its cover” – or real estate, judge a home by its curb appeal -- it’s human nature to let first impressions have a significant bearing on overall impressions, which is why it is essential to make a great first impression – and why “love at first sight” is so powerful. For that reason alone, when preparing your property to sell, it’s important to make a positive first impression. By capturing your home’s greatest qualities and amplifying them, you can almost certainly “WOW” those buyers.
To capture a buyer’s attention and set the hook on the idea of buying your home, careful preparation is needed. Start by taking a deliberate tour of your home, going from room to room, compiling a list of each room’s strengths and weaknesses. Begin the tour from the curb and work your way through the front door and entry, then enter into the home as a first-time visitor would traverse the property.
Out Front - Do everything you can to make sure your property is clean and well-manicured, from the lawn to the driveway, front to back. There are countless ways to help boost your lawn and garden’s visual appeal. Make sure the siding of your home is clean and in good repair, without faded or chipped paint. Bearing in mind that over 90% of buyers start their home search online, many buyers pass judgement on a home with the first thumbnail photo of the listing. This is where professional photography pays off as the opening photo needs to make it through the first filter of what they are looking for.
Once inside your home, play the role of those potential buyers and ask yourself, what do you see? If you’ve lived in your home for any period of time, there may be details and features you’ve begun to take for granted or ignore. Try to think back to your own first impression and compare it to how the house is now that you’ve lived there. Involve your close friends and family, ask them to take a tour and weigh in with what they see. As buyers pull up to your home and step inside, the goal is to cause excitement for them to want to explore the rest of the home, and eventually begin to see themselves living there.
As you walk through the rooms of your home, take note of any distractions that take away from the best qualities of your home. An open and roomy space can quickly feel cluttered and small when packed tight with furniture and very personalized décor. Perhaps the lighting needs to be adjusted to portray a light and bright airy space. Whenever possible, take advantage of natural lighting techniques that can help improve the visuals of almost any room. Would the room benefit from a fresh coat of paint? Paint is one sure way to give any room a refresh.
The first steps to staging a home is to pare down furniture, improve lighting, and add dedicated functional spaces. Whether you work with a professional stager, or your real estate agent offers staging as part of her services, it’s important to stage a home to highlight the home’s best qualities and to appeal to what today’s buyers are seeking.
A home shines beautifully when the details are impeccably addressed with taste and skilled hands. Put yourself in the shoes of potential buyers and ask yourself the basics: why would someone want to live here? What makes this a great spot to live? Once you can answer those, you will know which features to highlight to make your home special.
The extra effort put into getting the home ready to sell will yield a larger return on investment. Buyers will be wowed, and they might just fall in love at first sight.
To capture a buyer’s attention and set the hook on the idea of buying your home, careful preparation is needed. Start by taking a deliberate tour of your home, going from room to room, compiling a list of each room’s strengths and weaknesses. Begin the tour from the curb and work your way through the front door and entry, then enter into the home as a first-time visitor would traverse the property.
Out Front - Do everything you can to make sure your property is clean and well-manicured, from the lawn to the driveway, front to back. There are countless ways to help boost your lawn and garden’s visual appeal. Make sure the siding of your home is clean and in good repair, without faded or chipped paint. Bearing in mind that over 90% of buyers start their home search online, many buyers pass judgement on a home with the first thumbnail photo of the listing. This is where professional photography pays off as the opening photo needs to make it through the first filter of what they are looking for.
Once inside your home, play the role of those potential buyers and ask yourself, what do you see? If you’ve lived in your home for any period of time, there may be details and features you’ve begun to take for granted or ignore. Try to think back to your own first impression and compare it to how the house is now that you’ve lived there. Involve your close friends and family, ask them to take a tour and weigh in with what they see. As buyers pull up to your home and step inside, the goal is to cause excitement for them to want to explore the rest of the home, and eventually begin to see themselves living there.
As you walk through the rooms of your home, take note of any distractions that take away from the best qualities of your home. An open and roomy space can quickly feel cluttered and small when packed tight with furniture and very personalized décor. Perhaps the lighting needs to be adjusted to portray a light and bright airy space. Whenever possible, take advantage of natural lighting techniques that can help improve the visuals of almost any room. Would the room benefit from a fresh coat of paint? Paint is one sure way to give any room a refresh.
The first steps to staging a home is to pare down furniture, improve lighting, and add dedicated functional spaces. Whether you work with a professional stager, or your real estate agent offers staging as part of her services, it’s important to stage a home to highlight the home’s best qualities and to appeal to what today’s buyers are seeking.
A home shines beautifully when the details are impeccably addressed with taste and skilled hands. Put yourself in the shoes of potential buyers and ask yourself the basics: why would someone want to live here? What makes this a great spot to live? Once you can answer those, you will know which features to highlight to make your home special.
The extra effort put into getting the home ready to sell will yield a larger return on investment. Buyers will be wowed, and they might just fall in love at first sight.