Making the Most of a Winter Sale

If you sell your home in the fall or winter, there are a few specific things that you really need to pay attention to.

First, don't forget about curb appeal. Make sure you rake up the leaves and make sure the flowerbeds have some dark, rich mulch in them. Your trees and bushes will lose their leaves, so you need to make the house look as good as you can from a curb appeal perspective since your home might not look as good in the winter as it will in the spring or summer.

You can also help out your entrance by painting the front door and taking a look at the weather stripping. This is especially important in the winter when selling because you don't want a buyer walking in your home and feeling a big draft immediately after.

Since it's the holiday season, go easy on the displays. Some pumpkins and gourds are nice for Halloween and Thanksgiving, but you need to know the difference between decorating for the festivities and making your house look like a farmers market. As for Christmas—you don't need to compete with the Griswolds, you just need to keep it tasteful. Buyers want to enter a home and feel like they could see themselves living there, so don't overdo it.  

Next, focus on making your living space comfortable and inviting. After living in your house for so long, you forget what it's like; it's like sign-blindness in that you see things so often that you forget that they are there. Invite over a friend who can be candid with you and give you an opinion on the furniture and clutter situation in your house. You want your space to be open and bright. Keep the windows open and sparkling clean, and get some lamps to add light indoors if need be.

If you have a fireplace, don't forget to clean the covering, especially if it's glass. You want buyers to come in and feel a nice, cozy fire and not see a dingy screen. If you have a wood-burning fireplace, clean out all the ashes and paint the back if necessary, as well as stacking the logs nicely for an inviting situation. It just gives a warm feel.

Finally, use the holiday scents to your advantage. Don't go overboard since some people have allergies, but have a nice, subtle winter scent going to make the house more inviting.

If you have any other questions about preparing your home to sell in the fall and winter or you have any questions about real estate in Utah, give me a call or send me an email today. I'd love to help you out!