There are many things you can do to help your home sell faster. The problem, though, is that some of them will produce little or no return on investment – that is, they may cost you more than you can recover when you sell. So it’s better to make those improvements that either cost very little or that you can be assured will yield a good ROI. With that in mind, we offer these 5 projects you can do right now to sell your home faster in Oklahoma City.
1. Declutter . . . Ruthlessly
One simple – and virtually free – thing you can do sell your Oklahoma City home faster is simply to declutter – to get rid all that junk that buyers won’t find appealing. It sounds simple, but many sellers either neglect to do it or don’t do a thorough job.
The ruthlessly decluttering “principle holds true for all items – furniture, knickknacks, area rugs (use a max of 1 per room), pictures on the wall. Just repeat to yourself, ‘Less is more.'” That means you should get rid of anything and everything you don’t plan to take to your new home – and then make another pass and get rid of more. The idea is and your goal should be to remove your stuff and personality so that potential buyers can envision your house as their home.
2. Paint Walls
Painting is fairly inexpensive (requiring mostly time and effort), and it can have a huge impact on how fast you sell your home. Nearly every real estate agent and stager recommend painting interior walls for the simple reason that it works.
Painting will brighten rooms, making them seem cleaner, larger, and more inviting. Just keep in mind that neutral tones and colors like beiges and grays work best. These colors help achieve the blank palette effect to help buyers imagine their belongs in your home and themselves living there, which helps you sell faster and at a better price.
Even if you hire a professional painter, painting will more than pay for itself. It will help you sell your home faster in Oklahoma City, and less time on the market almost always means a higher sale price.
3. Create a Welcoming Entry Area
The importance of a great first impression cannot be overstated. Curb appeal creates a critical first impression, and your entry area is an important element of curb appeal.
“If you don’t immediately impress potential buyers as they enter your home,” real estate pros claim, “you’re setting yourself up for a tough sell. Creating a welcoming entrance is arguably the most effective way to sell your home faster.”
And here are some of the things you can do to create that welcoming entrance:
- Pull weeds, mulch beds, and trim bushes and hedges.
- Put up new, stylish address numbers, which are both easy and inexpensive but noticeable.
- Paint the front door, or replace it if you need to.
- Get rid of objects that clutter the entry area and make it less inviting.
4. Work on Lighting
Working to optimize lighting is also a key ingredient to sell your home faster in Oklahoma City. It will make the interior seem much lighter and brighter, roomier, and more inviting.
Here’s what the experts recommend: “Most of us don’t have enough lighting. You should strive for 100 watts for every 50 square feet. Replace bulbs as needed and supplement if you need to. You usually want to have 3 types of lighting in each room: 1) ambient (overhead), 2) task-specific (e.g., pendant lights, under-cabinet or reading), and 3) accent (table or wall lights).”
If you already have sufficient lighting, just cleaning globes and covers and replacing bulbs may do the trick. But if you do need to add lighting, “high hats or recessed down-lights in the ceiling (ideally with a dimer)” are recommended for most rooms while the addition of a “floor or table lamp and bedside lamps” is recommended for bedrooms.
The pros also recommend avoiding brass and gold fixtures because they will look dated. They advise using brushed nickel or chrome instead.
5. Refinish Cabinets and Update Hardware
The kitchen is probably the most important room in a house for buyers. So a kitchen remodel or upgrade will certainly help you sell your home faster in Oklahoma City. But will it yield a good ROI? Maybe or maybe not.
You can do almost as well with simply spiffing up your kitchen by refinishing or painting cabinets and replacing hardware. If your cabinets are older, painting them will get rid of the dated look and make them look almost new. And installing hardware on the cabinets (again brushed nickel, chrome, or silver) will make the kitchen appear newer and brighter.
And Ask Your Agent
These 5 projects you can do right now to sell your home faster in Oklahoma City are a good beginning, but there’s more you can do (like staging) to sell faster. As we mentioned, the trick is in figuring out which of the many things that will help you sell faster will also pay for themselves. So ask your agent. Your local real estate agent will know exactly what will appeal to buyers.