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802.253.4994
Contact Us
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Home Improvements on a budget

When it comes to selling your home, the goal is largely to get the most out of your investment. Therefore, making small updates can help to bring a buyer into the head space as the new owner. Most buyers don’t want to see a “project” but rather a finished, move in ready home. How can you accomplish that task with minimal effort on your end? After all, who wants to spend the money making something look amazing and then move? Remember the reasons you’re selling. Perhaps your house just doesn’t work for you in its current state. Maybe you’ve outgrown the square footage, or you’d prefer a neighborhood closer to work? Here are some small updates that can bring immediate value without breaking the bank AND can bring you top dollar.

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Paint! 

Will a can of paint amount to thousands of dollars added to your sales price? It could but you may not need to spend hundreds of dollars meticulously painting every room of your house.

Instead, focus on brightening the trim. All trim from baseboards to crown molding, and doorways, and windows. Do interior trim first and if you feel you have additional resources, paint the exterior trim as well. The new paint will cover previous imperfections and will take half the time of painting the entire room. New paint easily brings new life back into your home. All the buyers will see is a fresh space that looks cleaner and smells new


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Hire a Professional House Cleaner

I can’t tell you how many sellers miss this point, but it is so important. Not only does it get rid of unwanted smells potentially, but it can also make a space feel more organized and approachable. You want buyers to focus on those things your home offers and not a dirty, disorganized space. Unless you’re excellent at deep cleaning, you should seriously consider investing a few hundred dollars in hiring a professional house cleaner. It is small money for the return. If you’d rather clean yourself, fine. But please, hire someone to at least clean the windows. You will not believe the difference a clean window will make. Not only can you see more of the outdoors, but you also create a feeling within the buyer when they can see the view of the mountain, as opposed to a dirty window. Open every window blind and curtain, to maximize the natural light that pours through. Keep the lights on in every room during open houses, so that every space appears bright and inviting.


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Steam Clean the Carpets

Vacuuming the carpets is a good start, but when was the last time you had the carpets in your home professionally steamed-cleaned? Check the carpet / rug to make sure the fabric can accommodate steam cleaning. Once verified, steam away!

This type of cleaning can lift the smallest stains and make carpets will look as new as possible, at a substantially cheaper price than the cost of a replacement.

If you’re having trouble finding a professional in the area (your Red Barn Realty agent can provide a name for you too!) then you can rent a carpet cleaner from a hardware store and take the DIY route. You may get better results by hiring a professional company to take care of this on your behalf.


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Clear the Clutter

Most of the items we tend to display are associated with some of our best memories – that snow globe from the Vail ski trip, the refrigerator magnet from the Bahamas –but a buyer will view this as clutter.

Clutter overwhelms a space, making it feel smaller, creating a sense of disorganization which may distract from your home’s more beautiful elements and perhaps, make the buyer think the home has not been cared for. That can reduce your home’s value in their minds. Many people won’t notice the high ceilings or large windows or beautiful view, if their attention is refocused on a pile of old newspapers, heaps of junk mail, random hanging wires, and other times scattered about .

Focus on areas where buyers will want to see their personal items. For example, your walk-in closet might be amply sized, but if it’s overstuffed with old clothes, boxes, suitcases and old handbags, your prospective buyers will think the closet space is insufficient. It doesn’t matter that the closet is actually bigger than the buyer’s existing primary bedroom if all they’ll see is the mess. There is a careful balance though. You don’t want to showcase an empty closet either so include daily wardrobe choices where each has it’s own dedicated storage space to get the best presentation.


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Stage the Home

Professional investors often hire ‘staging companies’ to fill a home with furniture in order to showcase its potential.

If you’re still living in your current home, your space is already furnished! Consider proper furniture placement to maximize sight lines and open up the space.

Place a bouquet of fresh flowers in the kitchen. Place matching towels next to the bathroom sink. If you have a bathtub, set it up as if you’re coming home after a long day and you are set to enjoy a glass of wine in a hot tub. Arrange the bedding so that it creates a sense of peace and tranquility as a buyer walks into the room.

Pay attention to aromas within your home. Light a neutral, scented candle in the bathroom and bedroom. Anything that allows the smell lingers in the kitchen. Alternatively, avoid cooking foods that leave a strong scent like bacon just before a showing .

Taking just a little bit of time to spruce up your home may result in better, faster and higher offers. You want potential buyers to feel like they’ve just come “home”. An open, brighter look goes a long way toward helping you close the deal and walk away satisfied.