What to do before you put your house on the market
The state your house is in when the estate agent comes to price it up can make a big difference to their valuation, so make sure you do the following before getting it valued.
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Have a declutter and a clean
A cluttered house creates a bad impression, and prospective buyers don’t want to be stepping over discarded clothes and toys every time they enter a room. So before you place your house on the market, have a look at what you can get rid of - packing away seasonal clothes, taking old toys to the charity shop and thinning out piles of books, tidying away computer equipment and cables.
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Consider minor renovation work
If you’re selling up, you don’t want to be splashing out on major home improvements or repair work, but giving the place a lick of paint and tidying up the garden can make a massive difference. No buyer wants to be greeted by an overgrown garden, so make it more welcoming by cutting the grass, weeding the flowerbeds, trimming the hedges and removing any rubbish.
If you have the money available, it might even be worth getting the garden landscaped as this can add significantly to the value of your property.
As for the inside, painting the walls, doors and skirting boards can help brighten the place up, and you should always try to repair any damage to walls and replace cracked or chipped tiles. Although you won’t want to fork out for major repairs, if any urgent work does need doing this will be picked up in the survey that is conducted as part of the sale. If the work remains outstanding, this could affect the sale price or put buyers off completely.
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Think about the timing of the sale
Although this can vary between the region you live in and the type of property you’re selling, the time of year you put it on the market can make a huge difference. Spring always seems to be a popular time to sell, as many people are looking to make changes and don’t have the distractions of Christmas or summer holidays to consider. With that in mind, summer and winter are best avoided, but January could be a good time to put it on the market, in the run-up to spring.
Autumn can also be a good time to sell as the dark, cold days haven’t set in and there are no major holidays to contend with, but bear in mind that after October the market tends to slow right down.
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Get multiple valuations and consider a range of agents
If you’re looking to get any work done on your home, it makes sense to get a number of quotes from a range of contractors, then pick the one that best suits your needs and budget. You should do the same with estate agents.
An increasing number of online estate agents means sellers now have more choice than ever, and valuations can vary significantly from one agent to the next. To get the best idea of how much your property should go on the market for, get valuations from a range of local and online estate agents, then make an informed choice on who to sell with, taking into account the perception and reputation of the agent, alongside the viability of their valuation.