How We Live:
I was talking with a friend the other day, and he said he thought it was interesting that when you go into an occupied home for sale, you often get to see how people live. His comment made me smile in a knowing way. What I do as a Realtor representing a seller, is to help the home owner take the “how we live” out of the house, so the buyers can picture themselves living there.
Much of the work of selling a home happens in the weeks before it is listed for sale. Spending time and money up front can turn an investment of $2,000 to $5,000 for listing preparation, into a sales price that’s $10,000 or more above what the home would have sold for if the work wasn’t done. The improvements I’m talking about are cosmetic improvements like paint, carpet, refinishing hardwood floors, replacing cracked tiles and old carpet, replacing dated light fixtures, installing fancy light switch covers, a new mail box, deep cleaning, washing windows and improving the landscaping.
Once all the improvements are done, staging is the next step of taking the “how we live” out of the house. If you want the photos on the MLS to look amazing, the photographer needs to have something to work with. Staging can often be done with the furniture and accessories that the home owner already has. By choosing the best pieces of furniture and moving the other stuff to storage or the garage, the home becomes more organized and visually appealing.
Taking the “how we live” out of the home by preparing it for sale, results in better photos and better home showings, and produces superior sales results with more buyers coming to see your home. The buyers also come sooner because an attractive home creates a sense of urgency and a higher percentage of those buyers make offers. Then when it comes time for your buyer’s appraisal, the home will likely appraise for more too, because it is in better condition. As a result, the home that’s detailed and staged well, sells for more in a shorter period of time, as long as it’s priced right.
Change In Median Sales Price of Single Family Homes in Salt Lake County by City:
Listed below are the results of the change in median sales price, from 2015 to 2016, for a single family home in the various cities within Salt Lake County:
If you have any questions about buying or selling real estate in and around Salt Lake County, or wonder what your home is worth, please contact me. I’ve been a full time Realtor since 1999, and I love what I do!
Thank you!
Kevin Coyle
Realtor Broker MBA CRS
SLC Homes
M: (801) 243-0699
Kevin@SLCHomeBuyer.com
