Be the Best on the Block

If you have a choice between 2 equally tasty apples but one of them has attractive shiny red skin while the other is a bit mottled and starting to wrinkle which one will you choose to eat?  Red and shiny?  Yep, me too.

Buyers behave in the same way when presented with two almost identical houses.  One needs a little maintenance and decorative TLC while the other looks like it’s never been lived in.  In reality the first house needs very little in the way of time and money to correct the minor flaws but it’s often enough to send the buyers in a different direction.  Taking care of any repairs, performing simple updates, and professionally staging your house will ensure that your home is the apple of the buyer’s eye rather than the bad apple in the barrel.

If you’ve already had an inspection done (and I recommend you do), taking care of any safety issues and repairs shows that your home is well maintained and that you’re responsible homeowners.  Providing the report to potential buyers with a list of items already taken care of may even entice an AS-IS offer and also significantly reduces the chance of unknown showstoppers appearing during the escrow period.

Clean, clean and clean some more.  Buyers don’t necessarily look for quality, they look for clean and new.   If you can’t get the marks off the kitchen faucet, consider replacing it with a new one.   If the master bathroom vanity looks like it belongs in a “That ’70s Show” rerun you might consider updating to a more modern alternative.  At Slater Thomson we work with you to create an itemized list of “must-dos,” “should-dos,” and “if it’s in your budget” items based on an inspection of your home.   In addition to that, we can recommend an army of cleaners, painters, repairmen and gardeners, and we will take care of all the work on your behalf depending on your needs and preferences.

Staging your home is essential to getting the best result.  Staging doesn’t mean decorating, it means organizing your home to highlight it’s best assets and appeal to the broadest range of buyers.  Slater Thomson will guide you in the staging process and will provide furniture and decorative items to help complete the look.  If a larger staging effort is required we partner with a professional staging company to ensure your home fulfills it’s potential.  Staging doesn’t cost – it pays!