So, you’ve decided to sell “home sweet home”. The place you lived and started your family, worked so hard to fix up and now you’ve outgrown it. Remember, it’s important to realize that you are NOT selling your memories, you are simply selling the structure that housed them. Once the house goes on the market, you need to decide “it’s just business”, stop thinking about the property as your home.

These tips will help you prepare for the sale.

• Remove extra furniture.
• Paint the rooms a neutral color.
• Remove personal memorabilia and keepsakes.
• Create focal points in each room. By staging, you begin the process of disassociating yourself from the house. You want potential buyers to see “your home” as “theirs.” If you do the preparation up front and price the property properly, you should see results
• Hire a handy man to come in and do minor repairs around the house. Address those things you’ve ignored for years.  The best way to avoid problems due to unforeseen home repairs is to have a home inspection before you list it, not after there’s an offer on the table. Why dread the results of a home inspection when you can be proactive and preemptive? Call your agent, who can surely give you a list of qualified home inspectors. Listen to what he says and fix what’s wrong.

The next step is pricing the home.

It is inevitable that homeowners will not agree with the agent about setting a price on the home. I find that emotional attachment is more a factor, than assessing the sales prices of the comparables in the neighborhood. Remember, an over priced home becomes “market worn”, and costs you far more to carry then to price right in the beginning.

An agent should be able to advise you on:

• How to set an accurate price for your home.
• How to negotiate and get the best price.
• We have no emotional attachment to the home and will not be offended by buyer criticism.
• We sell far more homes in a year than a home owner does in their lifetime. Experience matters.

Selling your home is business and one of the biggest transactions you will ever make. Treat it that way and make the experience smoother for you and for your buyer.

Are you buying, selling or leasing a home in Virginia Beach, Chesapeake or Norfolk? Chris Faircloth can help you if you’re shopping for Hampton Roads homes for sale or planning on moving to or from Virginia Beach in the future. Visit AgentFaircloth.com and browse ALL the homes for sale (and ALL the lease homes) listed in the MLS on one website with no registration required.