Getting the Interior of your Home Ready to Sell

Now that you have the exterior cleaned and ready for the home buyers to drive up and see, you can start working on the interior. Start at the front door. Is it old and beat up? Would a coat of paint help it look like new again? Is the hardware loose and worn? How about the entrance inside? Is it cluttered with coats, shoes, and umbrellas? First impressions are lasting impressions so start cleaning up all the extra stuff you have acumulated over the years and get those coats hung in the closet. How does your house smell? You are so used to it you probably cannot tell so have a friend come over and give it the sniff test. If you have smoked inside or have dogs that have had accidents on the carpet you are going to have to do some heavy cleaning. Buyers who do not smoke will usually just turn around and walk out if the house smells like smoke and you do not want to lose prospective buyers before they even get inside. Speaking of carpet, is it badly worn or damaged or is it just dirty? A good carpet cleaning can do wonders if it is just dirty, but if it is worn it would really be good to replace it. Some people think that they will just give a 'carpet allowance' so the buyers can choose what they want, but you will gain more money and time in the selling process with new carpet even if it is not high end material. Most buyers have no imagination and are turned off by the look of a warn, dirty carpet. Replace it with a nice non-offeccive middle of the road color and style. It will make you home more inviting and it will be one major item you will not hae to worry about in the negotiations.