Winter Curb Appeal

In Utah, trying to sell your home in winter can sometime be more challenging. One difficulty is showing off your home's exterior during these cold, snowy months. Here are some tips from Realtor magazine for improving your home's curb appeal during the winter:

• Use evergreens and tall grasses, such as fountain grasses, to add splashes of green to your landscape.
• Make the front door a focal point with a large wreath adorned with a colorful ribbon. You can also place large planters full of evergreens beside the front door.
• Transform an unused bird bath or fountain into a seasonal display by adding twigs with red barries, sparkly baubles and/or winter greenery. For extra sparkle, roll twigs in glitter!
• Use clear floor spotlights to focus on the home's architecture. Keep exterior lights clean and clear of snow.
• Shovel your backyard deck or patio and leave your grill uncovered so that the buyers can envision themselves in that space. 
• Set up outdoor tables and chairs as you would during the summer months. (Just during showings.)
• Keep your front walkways and driveway clear of snow!

In addition, display pictures of your home and landscaping as they are during the summer months. This will help show prospective buyers the value of your landscaping and get you on your way to owning your new home by McArthur Homes.

Photo Source: etsy.com via Heather on Pinterest

10 "To-Dos" That Will Help Your Home Sell Faster

So you've found the perfect home builder in Utah and you can't wait to get started building your new home. What's the hold up? For many people, it's selling your current home.

Many new homeowners that I've worked with at McArthur Homes need to sell their old home and they want it to sell quickly for as much money as possible. What they aren't sure of is how much they should spend getting it ready to sell. Here are some great tips that our preferred lender, Scott Smith found:

From an advice piece in the Wall Street Journal, we learn of 10 basic home improvement projects that will help your home have better showings. The advice requires almost no technical skills, and the projects can be tackled in a weekend.
The theme? Handle your home's delayed maintenance.

1. Repair or remove screen doors with holes and tears
2. Pressure wash windows, sidewalks, and siding
3. Paint your front door and polish the doorknob
4. Pull weeds, seed bare spots, and lay down mulch
5. Touch up holes, dings and cracks in paint
6. Clean grout and re-caulk sinks, bathtubs and showers
7. Buy new cabinet hardware
8. Fix leaky faucets and toilets
9. Spray lubricant on squeaky doors
10. Get clutter into storage and out of the way

Now, you'll notice that none of these projects can be considered "major". By contrast, each is minor; they're the items you'd add to your to-do list for work on "another day". However, they're extremely important for a home that's about to be listed.

Here's why. A prospective buyer doesn't notice that the above repairs were made. He only notices if they weren't made. When a buyer sees ripped screens or chipped paint in your home, it makes him wonder what else hasn't been cared for. This is the why you should also hire an exterminator prior to selling your home. If a buyer spots a trail of ants in your home, it's unlikely you'll get an offer.
You don't need to spend big bucks to get your home ready for sale, but you may have to apply elbow grease. The good news is that time spent up-front can be worth it in the end. Homes that show better tend to sell faster, and at higher prices.


If you have questions about this post, or you would like to be pre-approved for a new home, please visit my site, my online loan application, or call Scott Smith at 801-209-3850 for a quick phone consultation.

Happy fixing!

Scott

The (Negative) Power of Pink

Recently I was reading an article on SmartMoney.com about the psychology of sales in real estate. The article sighted several interesting studies. One study showed that buyers were significantly less likely to buy a home where the living room was painted pink. This surprised me because it would take buyers only a few cans of paint to redo the room, but it still impacted their decision to purchase. So, if you're looking to sell your home, don't underestimate the power of staging your home and using neutral colors.

On the other hand, if you do repaint your home to make it more appealing to buyers, DON'T mention that on your listing. According to the article, listings that mentioned new paint sold, on average, for slightly less than those that did not. Apparently buyers feel that advertising new paint means that something had to be covered up.

Click here for more tips on selling your home. 

Check out the article here, to read more about the psychology of real estate.