New Hampshire and Maine Homes and Condos

Portsmouth NH Homes and Condos Owners - if you're thinking about selling, there are things you need, and should, do before you actually put your home or condo up for sale.  


You'll want to take a good slow walk around the outside of your home, and do some sprucing up to get that ready for the spring selling market.  "Spring Home Selling Tips" will give you some great ideas on doing just that.


And now you'll want to do some work on the inside of your home or condo - make it really stand out to those potential Portsmouth real estate buyers who come to look at your home.  The old saying, "You never get a second chance to make a really good first impression", really is so true when it comes to to real estate.

To help you get the inside of your home ready for the real estate market, here are 10 tips that will help you prepare your condo or home for sale:

• 1)  Get rid of any clutter - your personal products in the bathrooms, your knicknacks that you love, stacks of books and magazines, piles of bills and paperwork, stacks of clothes that need to be put away - these all need to be put away neatly somewhere out of sight of any potential buyers.  Keep your kitchen counters clean and clear of most things - kitchens are important and you don't want them seeming any smaller by having clutter all over the counters.
  
  
• 2)  Clean out closets and cabinets - buyers always look in closet and cabinets, so straighten them up and move out anything you're not going to be using - make them look as roomy as you can by having them neat and organized.
  
  
• 3)  Put personalized touches away - put away most of those family photos and pet pictures, take down any animal head trophies or stuffed mounted fish you may have out.  These kinds of things create distractions for potential buyers, and also sometimes cause a buyer not to be able to see themselves living in your home as their own.
  
  
• 4)  Take down and/or remove things not staying with the property - special light fixtures, window treatments, a mirror that was a gift, etc.  If the buyer never sees these items that you don't want to leave behind, they won't ask for them.  Be prepared to put something nice up in their place that you will leave with the sale - no one wants a dining room with no light or a bathroom with no mirror - choose something fitting for whatever you take down.
  
  
• 5)  Make necessary repairs, especially the minor repairs - a home that hasn't been well-maintained sends messages to buyers that raise red flags for them, and they then look for problems where they may not be any.  Touch up paint on doorways, clean marks off the walls, fix leaky faucets, replace light bulbs that may have burned out, have the furnace serviced if it hasn't recently been serviced, put oil on squeaky doors, adjust kitchen cabinets and closet doors so they hang nicely.
  
  
• 6)  Rent a storage unit to help you make your house as uncluttered as possible.  Don't use your garage, if you have one, because the buyers will need to see that as well.  A packed garage sends a message that the house and garage are too small.  Your rooms should appear as large and roomy as possible, and you want it to be clear to potential buyers what each room is used for - some people have no vision so you need to help them.
  
  
• 7)  Make everything sparkle and shine - clean all the rooms thoroughly, no cobwebs, make bathrooms shiny and clean, kitchens should glisten, hardwood floors should shine, carpets need to be clean and free of marks and stains,  dust and vacuum and polish everything.  Clean and shiny really gives a terrific lasting impression to buyers.
  
  
• 8)  Get rid of all odors - a home that smells can be a huge turn-off to buyers.  No pet odors, no heavy cooking odors, no smoking odors, take the trash out regularly, no dirty laundry smells.  Use upholstery and carpet cleaners like Febreeze to help with this.  Bad odors like these really can cost you some of that equity you've worked hard to build up, and no one wants to see that happen.  Sellers typically just don't notice these smells themselves if they've lived there and gotten used to them.
  
  
• 9)  Make your home or condo as light and bright as possible - clean your blinds and curtains, have them open for showings, make sure every light in your home works and that the switches work as well, dimmer switches need to work if you have them.  Very few buyers look for dark homes, so make yours as bright and welcoming as possible.
  
  
• 10)  Objectively look at your home as a potential buyer would - what do you see that you like, what do you see that you don't like.  A potential buyer will see all of that and more, and they will be comparing your home to all the others that they look at - work hard to make a great lasting impression and your home may just the one they choose to make their own.  That's THE goal!!
  
  

You've taken care of the outside maintenance list, and these tips will help you with the inside to make it sparkle. 

This work will go a LONG WAY toward making your home or condo stand out and create a terrific first impression in buyers' minds - and that will ultimately help them in making their choice when buying Portsmouth NH homes and condos.


 
Your goal is MY goal - to get your home or condo SOLD!! 


Do you have questions about getting your home or condo ready for the real estate market here in the Portsmouth Seacoast areas?  Are you unsure about what repairs or improvements your home needs?  Let's talk!   

Are you thinking about selling your home or condo here in the Portsmouth New Hampshire and Seacoast area real estate market?  If you are, send me an email or give me a call so we can discuss how I can help you achieve your real estate goals - I'd love to help!!         


Related Articles of Interest For Portsmouth NH Real Estate:

Tips For Hiring Your REALTOR                 


        

             





                                  
  Ann Cummings, New Hampshire & Maine Broker
  RE/MAX Coast to Coast
  Portsmouth NH
  ann@anncummings.com
  888-349-5678 x 3839
  Servicing the Coastal Areas of NH & Southern Maine                    



                                    

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