Pro tips for sellers
Whether you are a seller with equity in your home or find
yourself in a short sale situation (you owe more on the mortgage than the
current market value of the property), my commitment is the same to
you…competent guidance throughout the sales process, frequent communication and
a determination to accomplish a successful close of escrow.
Consider the following tips a starting point. Take into account the market conditions in which you are selling your home. If it’s a sellers’ market, where listings are scarce, you may get multiple offers regardless of the condition of your property. In a buyers’ market, every effort you are willing to make to improve your home can help attract an offer when buyers are scarce.
Consider the following tips a starting point. Take into account the market conditions in which you are selling your home. If it’s a sellers’ market, where listings are scarce, you may get multiple offers regardless of the condition of your property. In a buyers’ market, every effort you are willing to make to improve your home can help attract an offer when buyers are scarce.
*CLEAN TIL IT SHINES! Seriously. An old fashioned spring cleaning even if it’s winter. Toss it, file it or box it up; move the furniture and get at those dust bunnies; polish the metal that should shine; take the glass out of the light fixtures and wash it; clean all screens and windows; clean the carpets; you get the idea. Focus extra attention on kitchen and baths. You want the house to smell clean and outshine the competition. Conveying pride of ownership sends buyers a positive message about the value of your home.
*ONCE IT’S CLEAN, LET THE SUN IN! Open the curtains and the blinds when the home will be shown. Let buyers know you aren’t hiding anything unpleasant in dimly lit rooms.
*MINIMUM LEGALLY REQUIRED ITEMS: The water heater is required to be double strapped (earthquake standards); working smoke detectors are required in each bedroom (by Jul 2015 they will be required to be the 10 year non-replaceable battery type); there must be a carbon monoxide detector on each level of the home.
*PAINTING MAY BE WORTH IT. If it needs a fresh coat of paint, this is one of the least costly improvements that can make a difference in first impressions. Fresh paint adds to that clean, move-in ready feel for buyers. For simplicity and to appeal to the widest range of buyers, choose neutral colors if you do paint. Let the buyers add their own choice of accent colors after they move in.
*NEW CARPET? This is an expense you should weigh making if cleaning alone can no longer make your carpet smell fresh or look attractive. No need to put in top of the line quality unless your home is in the price range where only the finest would be expected.
*CURB APPEAL, LIKE AN ATTRACTIVELY WRAPPED PRESENT, BUILDS ANTICIPATION TO SEE WHAT’S INSIDE. After you have done interior cleaning and painting and find you still have funds and energy, show some love on the front entrance. Power washing, mowing, edging, trimming overgrowth, maybe reseeding the grass, adding some color to the landscape. If needed, fix the doorbell, the mailbox and the entry lighting.
*STAGING? This term can represent as little as culling through your current furnishings, paring down and rearranging to accomplish a more updated, fresher appearance, or it could mean spending thousands for a professional stager to come in with furniture and décor to transform a vacant property into one resembling a model home. Stagers believe that the cost of staging is less than your first price decrease. This is a topic we may want to discuss further when listing your home.
*ONCE IT’S CLEAN, LET THE SUN IN! Open the curtains and the blinds when the home will be shown. Let buyers know you aren’t hiding anything unpleasant in dimly lit rooms.
*MINIMUM LEGALLY REQUIRED ITEMS: The water heater is required to be double strapped (earthquake standards); working smoke detectors are required in each bedroom (by Jul 2015 they will be required to be the 10 year non-replaceable battery type); there must be a carbon monoxide detector on each level of the home.
*PAINTING MAY BE WORTH IT. If it needs a fresh coat of paint, this is one of the least costly improvements that can make a difference in first impressions. Fresh paint adds to that clean, move-in ready feel for buyers. For simplicity and to appeal to the widest range of buyers, choose neutral colors if you do paint. Let the buyers add their own choice of accent colors after they move in.
*NEW CARPET? This is an expense you should weigh making if cleaning alone can no longer make your carpet smell fresh or look attractive. No need to put in top of the line quality unless your home is in the price range where only the finest would be expected.
*CURB APPEAL, LIKE AN ATTRACTIVELY WRAPPED PRESENT, BUILDS ANTICIPATION TO SEE WHAT’S INSIDE. After you have done interior cleaning and painting and find you still have funds and energy, show some love on the front entrance. Power washing, mowing, edging, trimming overgrowth, maybe reseeding the grass, adding some color to the landscape. If needed, fix the doorbell, the mailbox and the entry lighting.
*STAGING? This term can represent as little as culling through your current furnishings, paring down and rearranging to accomplish a more updated, fresher appearance, or it could mean spending thousands for a professional stager to come in with furniture and décor to transform a vacant property into one resembling a model home. Stagers believe that the cost of staging is less than your first price decrease. This is a topic we may want to discuss further when listing your home.
Other topics sellers need to consider:
DISCLOSURES: You will
be required to complete a couple of forms on which you must advise buyers of
anything you are aware concerning your property, inside and out, that is
broken, problematic or not operating properly.
You must also disclose neighborhood issues or nearby nuisances that
could affect the value of the home. Plan
to price the home accordingly.
TAX RAMIFICATIONS: Talk to your tax advisor to know in advance what, if any, taxes will be due if there is gain on the sale of your residence (Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997). If you will be purchasing another home, and either you or your spouse is at least 55 years old on the day of transfer of the residence being sold, you may be eligible to transfer your property tax base from your current principle residence to your new principle residence. (CA Propositions 60 & 90). Doing your homework ahead of time is crucial in order to avoid expensive mistakes.
TAX RAMIFICATIONS: Talk to your tax advisor to know in advance what, if any, taxes will be due if there is gain on the sale of your residence (Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997). If you will be purchasing another home, and either you or your spouse is at least 55 years old on the day of transfer of the residence being sold, you may be eligible to transfer your property tax base from your current principle residence to your new principle residence. (CA Propositions 60 & 90). Doing your homework ahead of time is crucial in order to avoid expensive mistakes.
Two important yet often overlooked seller responsibilities specified in the California residential purchase agreement (the RPA) :
1) Utilities must be left on until the close of escrow. Buyers are entitled to do inspections during the early days of the escrow as well as a final walk-through just prior to the close of escrow. Without electricity, gas and water the buyer is hampered in the inspection process to which he/she is entitled.
2) Anything not affixed to the structure or agreed upon in the contract as included in the sale, needs to be removed by the seller prior to the close of escrow. This is an official way of conveying that the buyer is not responsible for having to dispose of old barbeque grills, odd assortments of wood, pottery, paint cans, broken furniture, etc. It is the seller's responsibility to dispose of their own trash and unwanted belongings before the property passes to the new owner.
2) Anything not affixed to the structure or agreed upon in the contract as included in the sale, needs to be removed by the seller prior to the close of escrow. This is an official way of conveying that the buyer is not responsible for having to dispose of old barbeque grills, odd assortments of wood, pottery, paint cans, broken furniture, etc. It is the seller's responsibility to dispose of their own trash and unwanted belongings before the property passes to the new owner.