Preparing your home for sale- Part 1

Thinking of selling?  Here are a few hints and tips.

Since modern buyers can look up how much you paid for your property you will need to convince them that you have added value through improvements, or that prices generally have gone up. Don’t imagine that simply because you have done lots of work you will automatically get it back as added value. There is a “value ceiling” set by neighbourhood average property values and no matter how much you have spent improving your property it may not exceed this ceiling.  Work which adds space such as a loft conversion will almost certainly add value, but cosmetic work such as a new bathroom may not add value although it may make your property easier to sell.  An en-suite bathroom can add 5% to the property’s value but don’t do it at the expense of a double bedroom as this will devalue your property. The number and size of bedrooms is still the preferred indicator of property size and therefore of value for most people.

Maximise the space you have on show. No matter how big or small your property is it’s the available space that sells it.

You can maximise that feeling of space by showing more of it! Think about buyers being able to see under furniture, leaving space under beds, sofas on legs. And don’t use the space to store things – buyers will see it and think there is not enough space for their own stuff.  Store excess furniture, ornaments and general ‘stuff’ out of sight, preferably in a storage warehouse. The investment will pay off; buyers will see space and will not notice the odd missing chair or side table. You can make do with what is left whilst you are selling.  Don’t use the garage to store excess. Buyers will want to see the garage and won’t be fooled if they find it’s full.  Using the loft for storage is what people expect – but make sure that it is well organised, as a buyer wants to see that it is useful space which can be easily accessed.  Floors need to be clean and tidy to increase the sense of space. If you have a carpet, get it cleaned. If the flooring is badly scuffed or marked think about changing it.  All surfaces, shelves and tops of cupboards to be kept clear. If you can’t make room for items out of sight then think about putting more into storage. No-one will notice if the toaster is missing from the worktop but they will remember there was not a lot of kitchen worktop space.

Move furniture around so that when you enter the room you see more floor space. 

There is no harm in leaving out your Gucci bag so the buyer see’s the ‘sort of person’ that lives in a house like this one. If you have a home office make sure it is spotless, no bits of paper lying about and no dust on a printer that is rarely used.

Remove as much of the clutter as you can – don’t imagine that because you are selling a family home the next buyer wants to see a rooms full of children’s toys. This includes the paintings and drawings that are on display around your home, they appeal to you but may be getting in the way of a buyer seeing how they might organise and use the space.

Depersonalise

Neutralise strong colours and decor. Orange kitchen walls may look lovely to you, but will put off more people than they attract. Magnolia might be dull, but it won’t offend anyone. The aim is to appeal to as many people as possible.  Store away quirky, personal items as they might be distracting. If you are a collector put away the collection. It is personal to you and not relevant to the buyer. Restrict the number of photos on display. A few will help to give a ‘lived’ in friendly feel, but too many will clutter up the rooms.

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Will your rental comply?

The Communities Minister Penny Mordaunt announced recently at the Local Government Association annual fire conference that, following years of campaigning by various bodies, it would become compulsory for Landlords to install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms at all rental properties.

It will be the Landlords or Agents responsibility to ensure that these alarms are working on moving in but will be the tenants’ responsibility to test them throughout the tenancy and report any failures.

The British Property Federation, who have been campaigning for this law to be brought in, believe that this will force those few remaining Landlords who do not have these fitted to now get this work done.  They believe that this will save 36 lives a year.

There is further clarification awaited regarding this law but it is believed that Landlords have until October 2015 to ensure their properties comply.

For more information head over to the government website

'Winterise' your property to avoid unnecessary damage

Not preparing your house for the winter months can cause a lot of damage- to you home and your wallet! 

I’m sitting here writing this and the rain is lashing down – winter is definitely on its way.  Although it has been mild recently, there are a few tasks that should be undertaken now to hopefully avoid any nasty surprises further into the winter:

1.        Check guttering – now that most of the leaves are off the trees it’s a good time to check and clear gutters.  In our experience a lot of damp issues are often caused by blocked and overflowing gutters and down pipes.
2.        Check roof tiles and chimneys – you can take a look in the loft initially as this will show any possible damp spots.  If there are issues, get the roof checked for cracked and slipped tiles.  Another favourite area for letting in damp is chimneys.  Do they need capping?  Is the flashing in good order?  All these tasks can be checked by a good roofer or builder.
3.        Ensure all pipes are adequately lagged– this especially applies to external pipework, even a short run to an outside tap.
4.        Switch off the supply to outside taps and drain them down to avoid pipes freezing and bursting.

Always remember though that buildings need to breath, so ventilation is still very important to avoid a build-up of condensation.