Thinking of Selling Your Home?

Article by: Darin "Sid" Cameron

Are you thinking of selling your home? Well, the time to start planning for it is NOW!

One of the biggest mistakes a homeowner can make when he or she is thinking about selling their home , When is a Lily Not a Lily? is failing to plan , Viburnums - Landcape and Garden Wonders for the sale in advance. There really is more to selling a home , The $27,000 Toilet Seat - A Funny DIY Story than putting a sign in the yard , Laying Out Your New Landscape and waiting for a contract. If your plan, , Herbs For A Tea Garden for example, is to list your home , Granite is Tough; Taking Correct Care of It Isn't for sale in May or June, then you need to be laying the ground work to prepare your home , Laying Out Your New Landscape for sale in January or February.

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT:

- Does your home , July Garden Chores need repair , Types Of Shrub To Use In Your Garden work or improvements , Supplying Water to your Cabin with a Driven Well that could turn off potential buyers?

When you are about to sell a home, , The $27,000 Toilet Seat - A Funny DIY Story it's tempting to ignore needed repairs , Milling four square lumber and tell yourself, , Reliable Lawn Mowers For Healthy Gardens "it'll be the next guys problem." However that rain damaged basement, , Seed Sowing leaky roof, , The American Arborvitae Grows well in Towanda Pa. or worn out 1970's shag carpeting might be the deciding factor that keeps dozens of buyers from making an offer. The end result is a "next guy" may never transpire and your home , Supplying Water to your Cabin with a Driven Well ends up setting on the market unsold for months until you finally make the needed repairs. , The $27,000 Toilet Seat - A Funny DIY Story

Generally when this happens, you still end up with the cost of the repair , Origin of Lawn Furniture work that you were hoping to pass on, but get a lower sales price because the property , The Right Shower Curtain For Your Bathroom! was "stigmatized" by not selling within the first few months. At the same time, you also have to keep paying the mortgage(s) until the home , Enjoy Rose Gardening sells and have the expense or work of maintaining the property- mowing the lawn, , Orchid Care: How Orchids Grow cleaning the home, , Rose Pruning Tips etc.

- Are there improvements , Rose Pruning Tips that could be made to your home , Quick And Easy Bathroom Decor Changes that would increase the value beyond the cost of the improvements , July Garden Chores and help it sell faster?

If you could spend $2,000 on your home , The Ivy League and earn an additional $10,000 wouldn't you want to do it? Things don't have to be broken or worn out to negatively impact your home's value or your ability to sell it. It's amazing, but sometimes $500 in landscaping , Herbs For A Tea Garden or a quick touch-up on the outside paint , Orchid Care: How Orchids Grow can increase buyer traffic from 2 people a week touring your home , Part 3 - Different Types Of Foundations And When To Use to 20 people a week. A few updates inside , Making Friends With Farmers can mean the difference between a full-price contract the week you list your home , How a Good Bedroom Design Can Boost Your Confidence and a discounted contract several months later.

More important, your home , July Garden Chores may have "hidden value". An unfinished area that could be turned into an additional bedroom or bathroom, , Quick And Easy Decor Changes for example, could increase your property , Reliable Lawn Mowers For Healthy Gardens value by 15-20% or more depending on the market.

- Is your home , The Ivy League cluttered, cramped, or crowded with furniture , Save Time & Money Doing Your Own Basic Electric Wiring and other "stuff" you've collected over the years? Do you have rooms , Making Friends With Farmers not being used for their original purpose? Is your home , Sky Pencil Hollies Are Used in Hatboro Pa. decorated with a "distinct" taste?

Your home , Caring for perennials in the garden is your home. , How To Prune Your Roses For Stunning Results Making your home , Decorating a Child's Room - 8 Simple Strategies to Make Y unique to you with all of your personal touches is one of the rights you get with homeownership. When you want to sell your home, , Making Friends With Farmers however, it's another story. Basically, you are trying to get other people to visualize what the home , Supplying Water to your Cabin with a Driven Well would look like if they made THEIR personal touches.

Unfortunately, the walls , Making Friends With Farmers of family photos or rooms , A New Model for High School Curriculum of antique furniture, , Choosing the Right Garden the blue paint, , How To Prune Your Roses For Stunning Results pink , A New Model for High School Curriculum carpeting, or floral wallpaper you dearly love, or the pool table in the spare bedroom might not only turn off prospective buyers with different tastes, but prove to be a distraction that keeps buyers from really seeing the home. , When is a Lily Not a Lily? Packing up distractions, neutralizing decor, , ating Toolbox 101 and moving out excessive furniture , Granite is Tough; Taking Correct Care of It Isn't to make your home , Sky Pencil Hollies Are Used in Hatboro Pa. seem larger before you list it can not only help you get a quick sale, but can also help with the moving process. Remember, you want buyers looking at the house, , Choosing the Right Pipes and Plumbing System for Log Cabin NOT your stuff. (I've written more on this topic which I've published to my blog at http://www.stlagent.com).

KNOWING WHAT NEEDS DONE:

One of the biggest problems that homeowners face is that they are too attached to their home, , 10 Quick Ways to Change Your Fire-less Fireplace from a Blac and the stuff in it, to be objective on how to , The Ivy League get the home , A Beautiful Carpet Sets The Mood Of Any Room ready to sell. At the same time, without a background in real estate you might not see the improvements , Rose Pruning Tips that could significantly increase your home's value or speed up the sale- like adding that extra bedroom or remodeling a kitchen. , Robot Lawn Mowers: More Than Your Usual Mower That's why you should contact your realtor several months in advance and ask her/him to come by to give you ideas on any repairs, , Choosing the Right Garden Furniture improvements, , How to Design a Recessed Lighting Plan or suggestions that might help you in the sale of your property. , Granite is Tough; Taking Correct Care of It Isn't

Why is it important to do a professional walkthrough with your realtor several months in advance? If there is a project that can significantly increase your home's value, you may need time to raise the money to start the work. It's also not uncommon for good handymen to be booked up months in advance- so you may need time to schedule the project and get the work done before listing your home. , Orchid Care: How Orchids Grow You don't want prospective buyers walking into a construction zone any more than you want your home , Making Friends With Farmers sale delayed several months because of construction.

That's why now is the time to start the ball rolling if you are beginning to think about selling your home. , The Ivy League You can also use this advance time to clear the property , Closet Organizers of junk , A Beautiful Carpet Sets The Mood Of Any Room or debris, do some of the project work yourself, , Seed Sowing pack extra belongings, have a garage , Quick And Easy Bathroom Decor Changes sale, donate items, etc. Plus, doing the work in advance will save , Robot Lawn Mowers: More Than Your Usual Mower you the stress of doing it all later- when you might also be trying shop for a new home , How a Good Bedroom Design Can Boost Your Confidence or pack and move.

About The Author

Darin "Sid" Cameron currently works for the STLagent Team of Real Estate Consultants in St Louis, MO. He publishes The St Louis Real Estate Blog on his website at: http://www.stlagent.com.

Mr. Cameron also moderates the St Louis Community Forum Message Board at: http://www.stlagent.com/forum.

© STLagent.com 2005

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