Selling Tips

Presentation

Always talk to your agent before spending any money on renovating your home for sale.

Often, particularly on North Stradbroke Island where we have many older fibro cottages, an older home may be an investment for the purchaser and they may not wish to pay extra for the new kitchen or the paint job as they are planning to build a new home on the property.

Also, new paint or other renovations may not increase the price of the property but it may allow you to sell more quickly.

The following are some tips for the presentation of your home while it is on the market:

Firstly, look at the outside - the first impression.

The garden, lawns and front entrance should be tidy, mowed and free of weeds.
Flowers in season add to the presentation of the home, as do trimmed edges and trees.
Check the gutters for leaves and other clutter, including those pesty trees that take root in the gutters!
Clean out the garage, carport and sheds if possible.
Ensure that the built in barbeque is clean as well as fish cleaning areas.
Gates and doors to garages etc should be oiled and working.
If you do wish to repaint at all, it should be in neutral colours so as to suit as many prospective purchasers as possible.

The inside of the home.

Pack all non-essential items away. The reason - so as to give as 'uncluttered' and spacious a feel as possible.
Remove any unwanted furniture - maybe now is the time for a garage sale?
Every thing should be in working order - including no dripping taps, broken door handles, broken windows or blown light bulbs.
Floors should be clean, windows and drapes should be washed, cupboards neat and tidy. Untidy or cluttered cupboards will give the impression of not enough storage space.
Make sure that there are no odours such as cooking, smoke or pet smells.
Kitchen benches should be clear, bathrooms particularly clean from mold.

If you have tenants:

It may be a good idea to reduce the rent on the property as a thankyou to your tenants for their cooperation.
If you wish to have Open For Inspections on the property and the tenants agree, maybe organising a cleaner for them is an option, getting a gardener in or shouting them a meal at the local club or restaurant as a sign of appreciation.

Helpful tenants often assist greatly in the sale of a property, so having them on side is always a very positive thing, and the last thing that an agent wants to do is make life uncomfortable for a tenant!