How to Get your House Ready to Sell

This Getting House Ready to Sell Checklist outlines the steps we used and I would recommend tif you are looking for How to Get your House Ready to Sell

Selling your home is an extremely emotional process. This summer I convinced my husband it was time to sell. I was ready for an new adventure. We have learned so much through this process. I wanted to document it all to share with you for when you may be trying to get your house ready to sell.

Make Sure Everyone is Onboard with the Plan

When I came up with the idea to sell our home I thought it would be a tough sell for my husband. At one point we thought this home was our forever home. So, I planned a date night just for the two of us and presented the idea to him. I was surprised when he said he was onboard. Then we shared the plan with our daughter. We made sure to highlight all the benefits of the new place to her. She loves a new adventure so she was on board immediately. And was quickly telling people it was her idea.

Interview Real Estate Agents

Even if you think you may want to list by owner, interviewing agents is a great idea. We were on the fence about listing with an agent, ultimately we did and we are happy we hired a professional to assist us. When you interview potential agents have a standard list of questions ready so you can truly compare them.

Determine if this is the Right Time to Sell

There is a lot that goes into this question. Is it the right time for you and your family. We listed in the summer, which I always thought was a good time because people want to get into new schools over the summer. It turns out that summer was a challenge for two separate reason. Our summer schedule is a little crazy with travel and camps so I really struggled to keep the summer fun and keep the house show ready all the time. And second turns out the summer is really slow for real estate. If I could go back I would have waited until September to list.

Understand all the Fees

We bought our home 6 years ago so there were lots of expenses that we had forgotten about. If you have an agent work with them to get an estimate of the fees so you can determine if is a good time financially to move.

Be Reason About the Listing Price

When the agent gives you a recommendation ask for the comps.

Hire a Handyman and Repair Company

We had a running list of projects we were going to get to one day. Some of them where projects that were identified by inspection when we originally bought the house. We also pulled out the inspection report and added a couple of other projects to the list. Our list included repainting most of the house, repairing a roof leak, replacing some of the hardwood board that were in bad shape, re stretching the carpet, cleaning the carpet and the list went on and on.

Update your Curb Appeal

In addition to our handy man list we also did our yearly weeding, mulching and major tree trimming. I paid special attention to the front porch. Adding additional rugs, flowers and a tree since this was the first impression of our home.

Declutter and Depersonalize

Let's just say when we finally listed our home it had never looked better. We did a major clean out of the house especially toys. We had a garage sale, sold furniture on offer up and donated a lot of stuff to charity. We also took down post of our family photos. The goal is for the new owner to walk in and be able to envision themselves living in your home.

List your Home

Now you are ready to list your home. Either yourself or with an agent. Make sure you are clear on how much notice you need for a showing, if you want your agent to be there for showing and you are truly comfortable with the price.

Now it is a waiting game

This is the hardest part of preparing to list your home. We asked our agent to share feedback with us that was good and bad. After a couple of showing we even made additional updates because we figured if one person said it, other potential buyers were thinking it too.