Landlord Blog

Education and news for smart DIY landlords!

Follow These 10 Tips Before Listing Your House For Sale


To sell your home as soon as possible, you must make all the appeal-boosting preparations first before staging it for sale. Therefore, you need to declutter, clean, repair, and rearrange the house’s interior to entice interested buyers into making a decision.

And it’s not just about interior makeovers, you also need to boost both curbside and backyard appeal. Read on for an in-depth discussion.

1. Hide your valuables and clutter

Children’s drawings, toys, seasonal decorations, framed photos, or anything that are valuable but adds clutter should be hidden in boxes and stored somewhere offsite and safe. You can choose to put these filled container boxes in your closet but you’ll need to show the wardrobe. Pieces of jewelry should also be secured especially for those hosting an open house.

2. Add some plants

Boost your curb appeal by adding some plants and designing a landscape on the front lawn. Plants, in general, give off a welcoming atmosphere that is bright. Make sure that they are present in places where interested buyers are more likely to look. Use succulents for the bathrooms and other indoor plants for the living room. Flowers also look good on the dining table.

3. Make repairs

Small things such as a loose door handle can make your house look less appealing. That’s why you should inspect every nook and cranny of your home for wear and tears. Then repair them before putting your home up for sale on a listing site. The same goes for small things such as replacing batteries of smoke alarms.

4. Hire a home inspector

There may be other damaged areas that you can’t see but an interested buyer does. If you aren’t an experienced home seller, consider hiring a home inspector to look for problems in your house that need repairing. The best part of this is the home inspector can give you an estimate of repair costs and can suggest a reputable repair contractor.

5. Rearrange furniture

We all have our preferred interior furniture placement. But that doesn’t mean our taste is the same with other people. If you have limited knowledge of how to organize your house, then it’s best to hire a professional organizer. An organizer is also a huge help in boosting your home’s interior appeal because they know how to make your house look clean and stylish.

6. Touch up scuff marks

Scuff marks are signs that your house is old and wasn’t cared for. The #1 rule of making your home appealing is making it look sparkling new and not make the buyer think that your home would make them spend additional money just for repairs. Scoff marks are often found on doors, walls, and baseboards. Pay special attention to these areas.

7. Don’t set an unrealistic price

Evaluate the local housing market first before setting your selling price. A good strategy is to add your repair costs and a little more amount to the market price so that you’ll avoid getting lowballed during the negotiation process.

8. Make the backyard look spacious

In the mind of buyers, space comes third after cleanliness and the condition of the home. They want to see how much space the backyard has for gardening, building a pool, or how many friends they can invite for a weekend barbecue. So clean your backyard by removing weeds, raking the leaves, and picking up after your pet.

9. Clean

Eliminate molds on tiles, basements, and under the sink storages. Remove dust from window railings and vacuum the floor. Wash out water stains on kitchen counters, sinks, and window glasses. Remove carpet or rug stains as well.

10. Stage it with a professional

For the final step, hire a professional photographer to take the best photos of your home to be uploaded on the listing site. You can do this yourself if you know how to take good pictures. Just make sure that your photos are clear, bright, and properly leveled.

There are more things to do before uploading photos of your home on a listing platform. You can choose to repaint the entire abode if the current paint is old. You can also add new features to increase the house’s value.

For tips on how to increase property value through adding new features, read these articles: