A fresh coat of paint can make even a hundred year old home look brand new. If the paint on the outside of your home is dirty or peeling chances are that many potential buyers will not even make it inside the front door. If your home has vinyl siding, take the time to power wash it. A clean and fresh exterior will make a huge difference in your potential buyers first impression of your home.
On the inside of your home, fill in nail holes from some of the things that you have taken off the walls and repaint your rooms. Nicks and marks on walls make a home look dingy and uncared for. Wild or dark colors will not sit well most homebuyers, so stick with light, neutral colors.
3. Breakout the Steam-Cleaner
Shampoo your carpets with a professional steam-cleaning machine. Stains in the carpet will distract potential buyers from the over all look of your room. Shampooing your carpets can dramatically brighten a room and is a must when your carpet is next to freshly painted walls. A dirty carpet in a freshly painted room is like a little boy all dressed up in his Sunday best, but with dirt all over his face.
No one wants to move in to a dirty home. If a buyer sees stained or dingy carpet in your home they are not thinking about cleaning it, they are assuming that it will need to be replaced. Which, of course, is a very costly venture and can deter many buyers.
4. Clean and Polish Everything
It is so important to clean and polish everything in your home. Everyone likes his or her surroundings to look bright, shiny, and clean. It is human nature to want something that is clean and shiny. There is also a sense of “if you can keep it this clean, then I can do it too” when looking at a clean and shiny home.
Some of the small detail items I notice that homeowners neglect time and again are light fixtures, door handles, and light switch and electrical outlet plates. These small details can make a huge difference. Take a look around your home right now and then take another look around your home after you have done some cleaning and polishing to these items.
Don’t forget the big things either. Clean your furniture as best you can. No one wants to live in a home that is smelly or dirty. If your furniture is stained, has a musty smell, or tobacco smell, your home itself will seem as though it is not as clean as it could be. This is a very important point for pet owners as well.
I cannot stress enough the importance of shiny wood and stain free fabric furniture. If you have a special chair or other piece of furniture that you just cannot get clean or free of that musty smell, move it out of the house and in to storage. Do not let even one piece of furniture slide; details count!