Top 10 To-Dos Before Listing Your Home

By Danni Duggan

Everyone has heard tell of “that home.” You know, the home that belonged to a best friend’s neighbor’s niece. Story goes something like this:

She listed the home
She had multiple offers within hours
The money truck backed into the driveway
Everyone lived happily ever after

We all want to believe we own “that home.” We decide to sell, then hours later we are counting our piles of cash or rolling around in it like some scene out of a Hollywood movie. Reality, as you can well imagine, goes a little differently. Selling a home quickly for top dollar takes significant work. Either work you hire out or work you do yourself, but make no mistake every bit you put in to it, you will eventually get out – often in money, but sometimes in improved work skills.

If you were to prioritize all the things you should do before listing to get your home sold quickly, follow the suggestions below to help get you there.

Declutter

As many times as I organize and reorganize this list, “declutter” never strays from the #1 spot. I have written an entire blog article on the subject previously, and I encourage you to check that out as well.

Basically, you want a buyer to want to “hang out” in your home. You do not want them to think that the home lacks proper storage space. And you do not want them to struggle to see that the rooms are plenty big. Whether you tackle decluttering room-by-room, drawer-by-drawer, or closet-by-closet, start somewhere and make some progress every day. Reduce all closet volume to no more than 50% full. Store away all small appliances that do not have a daily use in your kitchen. Fold all your linens and towels neatly. Every cupboard or closet door a buyer opens should greet them with a neat, clutter-free promise of what the home offers.

Home Improvement vs. Home Repair

Depending on the amount of time you have prior to going on the market, you might undertake some home improvement projects. Before shelling out thousands of dollars adding a restroom or updating a kitchen, recognize what the home already offers. Make sure it all works. Focus your budget on repairs before you worry about improving an otherwise functional area of the home. Does the furnace work? When was the last time it was cleaned and serviced?

What is the condition of your roof? The roof is one large ticket item that can tank a closing faster than you can say “composition shingles.” A buyer’s bank will require that the roof have a certain amount of life left in it before they will fund a loan. Is there moss on your roof? Treating a roof for moss will showcase the roof in its best possible condition. Use a professional to treat and properly remove moss and to make any needed repairs.

The Power of Paint. I am a Believer.

For your money, there is no chore more transformative than painting. I cannot stress this point enough. New paint brightens a space. It makes a room seem cleaner, crisper, and well maintained. People stand up straighter in a freshly painted room. The subtle scent of fresh paint just makes people feel like you cared enough to present the home in its best possible light. New paint may even encourage a buyer to pick your home over another one because that is one project they will not need to tackle immediately upon moving in. Whether you opt for a single color throughout, or you select a color palette, any time you spend painting the home will absolutely be worth your while and will contribute to your bottom line.

Curb Appeal

You may not be able to change the style of your home. Or the size of your lot. But you can welcome a buyer home long before they ever enter the front door. Some ideas to consider:

What is the state of your front stairs or porch? Structurally sound? Recently painted?
Is there a clean and new “Welcome” mat?
What is the condition of your front door? Could it use painting? Are you willing to consider a dramatic color change?
What is the length of the front grass?
Are there flower baskets?
Are the planting beds freshly mulched?
If you have room for a sitting area on a front porch, is there inviting furniture ready for a buyer to sit down and think about living there?
Has your mailbox seen better days?
When was the last time you cleaned your front porch light or wiped it down for spider webs?

The front of the house – your curb appeal – gets a buyer excited about what they are about to see inside. Generate that excitement, and then actually deliver once they do walk inside.

Home Staging Prior To Listing

One of the easiest ways to deliver on all the psychological excitement that curb appeal generates is to hire a home staging specialist. Staging sells homes faster and for more money because staging sells a certain lifestyle that a home may provide. Staged furniture is often neutral with occasional pops of whatever the current color trends are. By erasing the personality of the current owners, staging allows buyers to more easily picture themselves living in the home.

If you will continue to live in your home while it is on the market, fully staging the home may not be practical. Many home stagers can work by staging only certain portions of the home, or by mixing in staging items with the home’s existing furniture. They can also help you decide which items to pare down to prepare for photo day.

If staging prior to listing is categorically out of the question, then the next best thing to do is to pare down furnishings, decorative items, and all storage spaces to the basics. Closets should be no more than 50% full. There should be lots and lots of clear vertical surfaces – do not jam pack book shelves, or cover every square inch of bureau tops. Buyers should imagine that their own furniture will fit in the rooms and there will be sufficient storage for all of their possessions.

Keep an Open Mind

Having a Realtor or a staging specialist go through your home and make recommendations on what should stay and what should go can be incredibly difficult to hear for some sellers. Remember that they are looking out for your bottom line and providing advice based on their experience in the local market. Their recommendations are not statements about you personally, about your taste, or aesthetic. Your Realtor has walked through hundreds of homes with buyers. We know instinctively what turns a buyer off. If it is just a matter of putting something in a box to avoid that pitfall, that benefits you, the seller. Always.

Don’t Rush To Market

Unless you have truly dire circumstances, take the time up front to address problems that are likely to come up during a home inspection. One of the worst things that can happen is to have a buyer back out after completing a home inspection. Sure, you can immediately go back on the market, but most Realtors will do the math and figure out (1) you had a buyer, (2) that buyer had ample time to conduct a home inspection, and (3) they then subsequently backed out. Why? You do not want your property to be the one that people speculate, “There is something going on with this property.”

Pricing Strategy

Pricing your home comes down to recent listing comps, current market conditions, and strategy. Developing a pricing strategy for your listing is one of your Realtor’s top priorities. We will research the micro market in the blocks around your home to determine if homes are generally selling at, below, or above listing price. We will do our best to compare apples to apples when selecting recent comparable home sales.

It is not uncommon for a seller to “have a number in mind” – what they believe their house is worth based on a recent neighborhood comp. Sometimes, that comp may not be an adequate comparable property, or the seller may believe that their neighbor got what they were asking for the house. In reality, that neighbor may have sold for thousands below (or above!) their initial asking price.

As your partner in the transaction, my goal is to help you select a listing price that adequately reflects the home’s value in the current market. A bank will not lend money for more than the home is worth, so the price needs to be rooted in reality, so that we can justify the price to the bank’s appraiser when the time comes. I do not want you to leave money on the table, but I also do not want you to price yourself out of the market while other nearby homes are snatched up around you. I want your home to be well situated among other active listings when you go on the market, and I want buyers to be excited about your home’s entry onto the market.

Marketing Presence Online and Offline

In addition to selecting the right price, generating buzz and anticipation among home buyers is how to generate offers for your home. Your Realtor should be well-versed in creating internet buzz as well as marketing your home listing off line, to albeit a smaller section of the buying population. According to the National Association of Realtor’s 2017 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, the majority of home buyers found their home online in 2016, so that is where the largest return for marketing your listing will come from.

Make sure that your Realtor has a plan in place to market your home via the internet, across social media platforms, and wherever buyers are most likely to encounter the listing in your marketplace.

Listing Agent Selection

Having the right agent represent you and your home is your ultimate secret weapon. Everyone knows someone who knows a Realtor. We’re a gregarious, people-loving bunch. We get around. Most of us are personable, professional, and ready to leap into action the moment you flash the big Realtor “R” signal into the sky.

In all seriousness, do be sure to interview the Realtor you’re considering hiring.

Is s/he a full time Realtor, or do they only do this part-time?
Is s/he familiar with the market in your neighborhood? I often refer to this as a “micro-market.”
Does the Realtor have any additional certifications or designations? Keeping up on continuing education beyond the routine requirements of the state helps ensure that your Realtor is committed to providing you the best level of service, and treats the profession seriously.

Most of us are required to maintain memberships in the National Association of Realtors (NAR), as well as the state and local level trade groups. There are a number of additional certifications a Realtor can obtain with additional studies and by meeting certain transaction milestones. For example, here is a listing of certifications that I currently hold:

Sellers Representative Specialist (SRS). When I represent a seller, I do it with the highest level of professional standards and personal performance. I align my sales and marketing expertise with your ultimate goal to ensure a successful outcome.
Certified Negotiation Expert (CNE). I approach all real estate transactions collaboratively. I add value by negotiating from a position of knowledge and understanding, and not emotion.
Graduate, Realtor Institute (GRI). I’ve attended over 60 hours of continuing education on important topics such as real estate law and procedures to ensure that my transactions are compliant, smooth, and above reproach.
Earth Advantage Broker +ADU Specialist. Portland is a world leader in both sustainable building practices and ADU construction and conversion. I am well-versed in green building practices, products, and advantages, and I can critically evaluate a property for ADU potential.
Pricing Strategy Advisor (PSA). I’ve received additional training to ensure that when I prepare a market analysis and deliver a recommended price range for your home, it is based on carefully considered comps for your home that I have adjusted as necessary. I never rely entirely on a computer-based model that could not possibly know about a home’s interior conditions.
As part of my GRI coursework, I also obtained the National Association of Realtor’s ePRO designation. I have developed an organized approach to marketing my listings via social media across a number of platforms, which extends the reach and exposure your home receives. I have launched successful Facebook campaigns seeking buyers across the country. Portland is gaining international attention, so being able to market beyond the local market, without ignoring it, can help bolster competition for your home.
Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR). In addition to my certification in seller representation, I am committed to representing buyers in today’s market with an unparalleled level of client service and exclusive representation.

If you follow the guidelines above, you will be well on your way to having a desirable property, well received by buyers, when your home listing hits the market.

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Our real estate practice is built on a foundation of compassion, intelligence, wit, and a genuine desire to help our clients achieve their goals.

If you are looking to buy or sell your home in the Portland area, we would love to work with you. If you are outside the state of Oregon, let us recommend one of our most trusted Realtor counterparts elsewhere in the country.

Curious what your home might go for in the current market? We have a home valuation tool that will ballpark it for you.

Remember that no computer model is a replacement for an actual Competitive Market Analysis provided by a trained Realtor. Contact Danni if you would like a free analysis of your home.

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From For Sale to Sold: Top 10 To Dos Before Listing Your Home