Prepare Your Home For The Market in Vancouver
Six Essential Steps
1. Make cosmetic improvements.
An attractive, clean and tidy appearance will enhance your home’s appeal.
* Keep the lawn mowed & walks cleared
* Wash the windows squeeky clean
* Open the shades and curtains to create a bright, inviting atmosphere
* Declutter the house, especially the kitchen and bathrooms
For some great ideas and examples of how a house should look for sale,visit Dekora’s gallery of homes before and after.
2. Pay attention to details.
Fixing the minor items can go a long way toward improving that important first impression:
* Repair leaky faucets
* Tighten loose door knobs
* Replace damaged screens
* Replace broken panes of glass – cloudy sealed-pane units can often be replaced inexpensively
* Replace burned-out light bulbs & broken light fixtures
* Secure loose railings
* Patch small holes in walls and ceilings and repaint
* Repair or replace faded or peeling wallpaper
* Repair and coat the driveway
3. Make maintenance improvements.
The maintenance improvements listed below are relatively easy and inexpensive to make.
* Trim trees and shrubs
* Apply new caulking and weatherstripping as needed around windows and doors
* Clean gutters of debris and leaves, repair or replace cracked or broken gutters, downspouts
* Replace bathroom caulk or grout where necessary
* Ventilate & dehumidify closed basements and crawl spaces
* Grade soil around the house to prevent ponding of water next to the foundation
* Replace dirty filters in the heating and ventilating systems
* Have the heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems professionally serviced
* Have chimneys professionally cleaned & inspected
4. Take safety precautions.
Protect your home and its occupants from danger.
Good ideas that create a great impression:
* Install quality smoke detectors
* Install quality carbon-monoxide detector
* Ensure adequate outdoor lighting shows off house too
* ‘GFCI’ outlets outdoors and in wet locations such a bath & laundry areas
* Keep the stairwells tidy and free of debris and obstructions including around
* the electrical panel and furnace
* Keep flammables and combustibles away from the furnace and other utility areas
* If you have direct entry from the garage to the interior of the home, consider installing a hydraulic.
* Check the tension on garage doors
5. Check the major systems.
A primary concern for home buyer’s is the condition of the basic structure and major mechanical systems.
* Roof structure and covering
* Foundation, basement, and/or crawl space
* Central heating and air conditioning systems
* Electrical system
* Plumbing system
6. Prepare for the buyer’s inspection.
Find the various house records that can be used to answer questions from the purchaser and their inspector:
* Appliance receipts, service records and warranties
* Age of major components such as the roof, furnace, air-conditioner, etc.
* Major component warranties
* Heating, water and electric bills from at least the past 12 months
