You can easily make a few adjustments to present your house in the best light to attract potential buyers.  Remove as much “clutter” as possible to simplify the house, showcase the house’s best features, take away extra furniture, throw away trash, do a thorough cleaning of the kitchen and bathrooms and tidy up the lawn.  Ask your real estate professional and even some friends for suggestions on showing the house and visit open houses in your neighborhood to get an idea of how other homes are “staged”.

 

Not necessarily.  Remember, for your safety, do not keep valuables out.   Put them in a safe place or at another location.  If you are in a fast market, people may want to stop by within a couple of hours notice and you or your agent may not be able to be there for the showing.  Buyers may feel rushed and not want to take their time to look through the house if they feel they are “intruding” on your time.  By allowing the buyer’s agent to escort them through your house, potential buyers can speak freely about their likes and dislikes, take their time to get a feel of the house and dream about turning it into their own home!

 

Anything that will adversely affect the value of the property will have to be disclosed to the buyer.  Normally a real estate professional will ask you to complete a disclosure statement and the buyers will have access to this disclosure within 10 days of their offer being accepted.  Typical things that need to be disclosed include: major repairs done to the property, any leaks or cracks that have not been fixed yet, anything that could deem the property structurally unsound, easements that are not recorded on title and any type of termite damage.  Remember you are required to disclose anything that you personally know of at that particular moment.  Usually if you find a problem after you have completed the disclosure statement, you will be required to report this problem within 5-7 days and give notice to the buyer.

 

Island Realtors®, LLC is a company with expertise in closing short sales, HUD sales, REO sales and has worked with first time home buyers and sellers in all price ranges.  Please click on how to contact us and include your contact information so we may call you and set up an appointment to discuss your home selling goals!