Lorraine Ryall
You may have heard it’s a sellers’ market and we are coming into Arizona’s high selling season. If you have been thinking about selling, this may be the perfect time to sell your home and cash in on a hot market or make a change. But there are many things to do before you make it to closing day and it can be difficult to know where to start.
I just went through the selling process myself a couple months ago and over the next three months, I am going to lay out a step-by-step plan to help guide you through the selling process, from how to get your home ready to sell, to finding the right Realtor, and how to make your home shine above the rest of the homes for sale.
How Much is My Home Worth?
When you are thinking about selling your home, the first thing you want to know is how much your home is worth. You may want to jump on Zillow or other real estate sites, which may be great to get a really rough idea of your home’s value, but I urge you to get a market analysis from a local Realtor instead.
While Zillow will instantly give you a Zestimate, their values often are way off, as they can only look at statistics, usually use a larger area to pull those statistics from and the data can be outdated. Our neighborhoods are very different in East Mesa, and the values are skewed when the data is pulled from other neighborhoods.
There are many other factors that affect your home’s value that the computer cannot calculate, for example, what upgrades you have, if you have a pool, location, views, golf course lots, single-story versus two-story homes and many more, all these make a big difference in your home’s value.
If you do want to go online to get a quick value, you can get an accurate home estimate at InstantHomeValueAZ.com, which takes you to my website, and I will personally run the report for you. However, the only way to get the true market value of your home is to schedule an appointment for a free
home valuation.
Getting Your Home Organized
Getting organized is one of the top 10 New Year’s resolutions. If you are planning on selling your home, it is also one of the best ways of getting your home ready to list. Buyers want as much space as they can afford, whether it’s living space or storage space. Decluttering opens your home, and will make it look and feel more spacious. A well-organized home lets the buyer see the space it has to offer without trying to look past all the clutter.
Go through your home room by room, and try to see it for the first time through the buyer’s eyes. Does the room feel open and spacious? Instead, is it cluttered with knick-knacks and cramped with all the furniture? Taking a large chair out of a small room can change the entire feel of the room and open it up. Taking all the knick-knacks off the mantel will draw the buyer’s eye to the decorative stonework around the fireplace rather than to the knick-knacks on top.
Remove most of your photos. I am not a believer that all photos need to be removed. You want it to look clean and tidy, but not sterile. Having some family photos shows it is a family home with happy memories. If you have a wall with a bunch of pictures on it, take down all but a couple of them, and don’t forget to patch up the holes left behind.
The kitchen—This is the best room to declutter, as it is one of the top rooms that makes the buying decision. You want to show off how much workspace there is and how much storage it has, with all the cabinets. Put away any small appliances, such as coffee makers, toaster ovens and blenders, etc. Pack away any saucepans or serving dishes you haven’t used in the past six months and probably won’t use in the next few months.
Arrange what you have in your cabinets and drawers so it all looks neat and organized with plenty of room. Go through your pantry and pack away any non-perishable goods you won’t use in the next few months. Neatly stack what is left, and turn all the labels facing out. Trust me, buyers will open cupboard doors and drawers to see inside, especially in the kitchen.
Should I Do Any Upgrades Before I Sell My Home?
This is one of the top questions I am asked when I meet the homeowner the first time. The answer depends on so many factors. For example, how quickly do you want to sell? Are we in a buyers’ or sellers’ market? Do you want a good price for your home as it is or the highest price you can get if you do some upgrades?
Then, we will go over which upgrades get you the best bang for your buck where you will be able to recoup the investment from the sale. Kitchen and bathroom remodels should get you 100 percent return on your investment if they are done right. Sometimes, upgrades are not the way to go, but freshening the home with new paint, changing out some old light fixtures and staging the home can make all the difference. Having a free market analysis of your home will answer these and many more questions.
If you are thinking of selling and want to know how much your home is worth, if you should do any upgrades, or if you have any questions, please contact me directly to set up a free no obligation consultation, or visit InstantHomeValueAZ.com.
Lorraine Ryall has been a Multi-Million Dollar producer for the past nine years. If you are thinking of buying or selling and would like more information or a market analysis, please contact her at Lorraine@Homes2SellAZ.com, or call (602) 571-6799. Visit her website at Homes2SellAZ.com.