Photography Donna Griffith
Jillian Harris, co-host of W Network’s Love It or List It Vancouver, offers up her best budget tips for prepping your house for sale.
1 Fix up the front entry A polished front entrance is sure to make a good impression. For instance, when I saw my house for the first time, the seller had displayed a gorgeous wrought-iron urn filled with pumpkins on the stoop, and the front door had been freshly painted a glossy black. I fell in love before I even went inside. Needless to say, the seller’s strategy worked!
2 Clean the house Tidying up the rooms in your house is something I strongly recommend to every home seller, and it should be the first thing you do before you list your home. Regardless of what you do, getting rid of clutter – selling it, storing it, recycling it – won’t go unnoticed. The only investment is your time, and cleaning is therapeutic, too!
3 Paint the walls This one might seem basic (or even cliché) but a great paint job goes a long way toward attracting buyers. Keep it simple by painting the walls white – it’s an excellent option that goes with almost everything. If you want to have some fun in one area, try a striped effect in your entry using a crisp white and an off-white. A fresh, clean house appeals to pretty much everyone.
4 Refresh the kitchen The kitchen is typically the focal point of any home, so most buyers are going to go gaga over a turnkey kitchen. Depending on the state of your cabinets, spray painting them with a good-quality paint is a relatively easy task – but do your due diligence and pull all the doors and hardware off and prep properly. Then update the hardware and replace the backsplash. A white subway tile is perfect for resale: It’s inexpensive, easy to install and timeless.
Source: http://www.styleathome.com/homes/real-estate/real-estate-prepping-your-house-for-sale/a/58871
