LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!
Your house has to have "Curb Appeal". First impressions are powerful ones, and every detail counts. By way of some "Before and After" photos to the right, you can see the real impact of exterior work!
1. REPAINT THE EXTERIOR: Does the house sparkle or is it looking a little tired? If you don't want to tackle an entire paint job, at least spruce up the window frames, shutters, porch railing and front and back doors. Perhaps a faded Southern exposure needs a fresh coat of paint. Painting makes everything look clean and new. Look how the nice front porch now "pops" with white paint instead of the darker "before" photo on the right.
2. GIVE HOUSE A BATH: If the exterior is dirty, wash it. Mold and Mildew are a priortity to eliminate. Include the cement porches, sidewalks, carports. If you rent a pressure washer, be careful to not hold the nozzle too close to any surfaces because it can peel the paint off!
3. CLEAN AND REPAIR ROOF AND GUTTERS: A dingy or blackened roof looks bad and it is well worth the time to have the black mold cleaned off and fix any missing or torn shingles while you are at it, unclog and re-secure any loose gutters or downspouts.
4. TRIM BUSHES, DE-LIMB, PLANT GRASS/FLOWERS: Do the bushes and trees cover up the view and block the sun light? Look at the difference in the way the yards look on the photos to the right where the bushes and tree limbs were trimmed back or high up so that they no longer blocked the view and let some sun light in to brighten the area. During Spring through Fall, flowers are always a wonderful way to "pop" the yard and house and if the grass just doesn't want to grow (often with trees), would sod be a good way to bring some green into the yard? The second set of photos shows a planting at each step up which helps to make it "pop".
5. REPLACE SIDING: If your siding shows more wear and tear than a paint job can fix, consider replacing it. A house that looks good from the outside sells faster and for a better price!
6. CLEAN WINDOWS TILL THEY SHINE: Scrape off any paint splatters with a razor blade, wash windows with ammonia & water or vinegar & water and then buff them until they sparkle. Replace any cracked or broken window panes and repair any broken or missing glazing as need to make the windows look good.
7. PUT IN WINDOW BOXES: If your house is a little plain, a great way to add pizzazz is to add window boxes filled with geraniums, ivy and white petunias!
8. INSTALL SHUTTERS: Shutters can also pizzazz up a plain house, but make sure they are appropriate to the style of your house doors and in a color that is a tone lighter that matches your trim and doors.
9. INSTALL WINDOW PANE DIVIDERS: Divided window panes give a friendly, welcoming feeling and add interest to a plain house. You can buy snap in mullions made of wood or plastic!
10. RE-SEAL PAVEMENT DRIVEWAY: If your paved driveway is tired looking, you can buy asphalt sealant from a building supply store and a stiff broom and add a fresh look to your tired pavement!
GOING INSIDE!
When folks go inside your home, they don't want to feel cramped and like they have to file through single-file and don't distract them with lots of collectibles and photos and books. So make it as spacious as possible and try to un-block any doors. And remember to DE-CLUTTER, DE-CLUTTER, DE-CLUTTER! Have a Yard Sale, give to charity, advertise on Freecycle! Box up what you don't need for the next couple of months (that you want to keep for your new home) and put it in a storage unit for later retrieval!
11. FRONT DOOR: Make sure your front door and entranceway is clean since "First Impressions" are extremely important. If your front door has faded from the sunlight or rain, you need to paint it with good quality paint and possibly add a brass "kick-plate" bottom and new hardware to make it "pop". Try to stay away from colors like purple, pink or other non-standard colors (black, white, brown, red, green and gray are the more standard colors). If you have a storm door, make sure that it closes properly and is clean.
12. ENTRANCE & FOYER RUG: The majority of visitors will look down to wipe their feet before going further into your home as a matter of respect, not wanting to mess up your floors. Have an attractive heavy flat exterior doormat outside the door as well as an attractive interior flat rug for this purpose (make sure it does not stick up at the corners and get caught in the door or possibly be a trip hazard).
13. ELIMINATE ODORS: Light scents can entice visitors as soon as they step into your home while bad odors can cause them to want to turn around and walk out! Don't use strong smelling candles or potpourris, but use light vanilla or apple pie type of scents that will make them want to stay! If you have a cat, use a better "multi-cat" scoopable litter instead of cheaper litter that causes that horrid "ammonia" smell that causes people to want to run! Make sure to use due diligence in keeping the litter box maintained and also to take your trash out to a receptacle that is not close to any entry or exit doors that could interfere with folk's perception of your home's cleanliness.
14. BOX UP YOUR COLLECTIONS: If you have a lot of DVDs, VHS Tapes, CDs, Books, Dolls, Nascar, HotWheels, Books and other types of collections, pick only a few very good ones to display and box up the vast majority of them and put them in storage. Take a look at the photo to the right showing the entertainment center. This looks very messy to a buyer and can be a real turn-off on looking at your house. You know that you have already watched those movies and you are planning to move, so why not go ahead and box them up for later and only save a few to watch while you have your house for sale? Besides, you will probably buy the newest and latest to watch anyway! And it will go miles toward creating the good feelings you want potential buyers to have about your home!
15. DE-CLUTTER THE LIVING ROOM: See if you can make your living room feel more spacious with furniture groupings, and simplify on the collections, pictures and other things that distract the eye. You normally have at least 3 people going through to view your house (Realtor and a couple) and you want them to feel like there is more space than to walk single-file in and around your furniture, plus you want to add a focus point if possible - such as grouping the furniture to face the fireplace or TV. The photo to the right shows just too much across the mantel above the fireplace and too many things in the area beyond that distract the eyes of your potential buyers. The grouping from this angle kindof closes off the room instead of feeling open. Now take a look at a similar living room arrangement in the next photo down. A nice grouping of furniture with the fireplace and TV over the mantel as a focal point, open for folks to walk in and plenty of room to walk around and sit down and enjoy the spaciousness of the room. When you are planning a move, it is best to go ahead and box up the majority of your personal items (photos, etc.) and just let the potential buyers see the room for it's potential.
