Spruce Up To Sell Home Fast ...
by Joanne Matzen
An advertising supplement to City Pages and the Minneapolis Star and Tribune
Spring has sprung and with it househunting season draws nigh. It’s time to spruce up your home especially if you plan to put it on the market. You’ll never convince potential buyers that your home could be their castle if all they see in it is a restoration project.
Steve Groves, owner of Attention To Detail, a service specializing in professional cleaning de-cluttering and organizing, says you should invest one half to one percent of the total selling price of your house in fixing it up for resale. That $1000-$2000 on a $200,000 home goes towards a thorough cleaning, interior paint, obvious repairs, or if necessary, new carpet and flooring
Will it pay off? According to one home repair specialist, home-buyers are looking for things that are wrong. They’re concerned about making a big investment only to find they need to spend more in unexpected maintenance and repairs. Marjorie Ford of Edina Realty says cleaning and simple repairs will pay off in shorter time on the market, if not also in dollars.
Look at your house through a buyer’s eyes. Are the shrubs overgrown? Is cement work cracked or exterior trim peeling? Unkempt exteriors make otherwise potential buyers drive past you “For Sale” sign muttering about how the interior must look. Without what realtors call “curb appeal”, you’ll have a tough time getting house-hunters inside. And if you can’t get them inside, you won’t sell the house in a timely manner or for what you’re asking.
If they do come inside, those first impressions are critical. Although the house should be tidy, a surface cleaning is not enough. Spots on carpets, fingerprints on walls, and even dusty woodwork suggest to buyers that simple maintenance and repairs may also have been neglected.
Give your house the white glove test yourself before the buyer gets the chance, or let a firm like Steve Groves “Attention To Detail” do the dirty work for you. Steve will clean every nook and cranny, including inside windows and ovens, within one or two days. Nor is he afraid of basements and garages - those catch-all dust collectors for miscellaneous, no-where-else-to-put-it items.
Doing one room at a time, Steve starts at the ceiling removing cobwebs and grime, and works his way to the floor, stopping in between to wash walls, polish woodwork and vacuum floors. Although some cleaning services promise to zip through your home, Steve says they can`t do much more than dust and vacuum. It takes time, he says, to thorougly clean each room, to create a first, lasting impression to the homebuyer.
Bathrooms and kitchens, being the most used rooms, need special attention. Look at the grouting btween bathroom tiles. Buyers will. And isn`t it time to clean up the crumbs long fall since fallen in crevices between counters, the refrigerator, and the range? If possible, Steve likes to clean behind the refrigerator and stove. Shiny appliances and clean fllors add extra sparkle.
Carpet and drapery cleaning, however, should be saved for fabric experts, says Mr. Groves. Look for companies with longevity and references.
Few things turn off buyers like ceiling stains from a leaky roof, even if the roof was recently fixed or replaced. But disparagement can be prevented with a little whitewash. While you’re in paint clothes, check for stained or fignerprinted walls. They may worth painting also.
Clean rooms and newly painted walls make even an old house smell fresh. Because a dingy odor can detract from a house’s actual beauty, Mr. Groves will often use a neutralizer and fragrance.
If your carpeting or wallpaper is in bad shape, Ms. Ford suggests replacing it. A new carpet, ideally one in a light neutral color, she says, is a big selling point and usually increases the resale value of a house beyond the cost of the replacement. Antique gold and olive greens are harder to market. So are flocked and garish wallpapers. If you’re going to hang new paper, she recommends small, subtle prints. Consider just painting the walls instead.
Minor decorating and a thorough cleaning can make a world of difference in the apparent value of your home. Impression is everything. A clean and inviting interior will create that first, lasting impression to buyers. As a finishing touch, one realtor even suggested getting several medium size houseplants to dress up the rooms.
To spruce up your home and leave a lasting impression to buyers, contact Steve Groves, Attention to Detail Cleaning and Organizing Service at 763-572-9509.
