We all know in our heart of hearts that, when it comes to romance, love at first sight is just a myth; but, in the real estate sector, the first impression is always the one that really counts. Either buyers will be immediately be seduced by the idea of owning your home, or they will not. Before you think about placing any ads, you must, therefore, do your best to stack the odds in your favor by showing off your property at its very best. It is no secret that selling your home can sometimes take a long time. However, if you are looking for a quick sale, this non-exhaustive list of simple tips and tricks may just help you to expedite the selling process.

Sell at the right price ( What Is My Home Worth ? )

Owners inevitably tend to overestimate the value of their homes, hoping to realize the maximum profit. However an unrealistic price can often simply scare off potential buyers. Typically, more than half of the people who might otherwise consider buying your home will not give it a second glance if the price seems unattractive. Make sure that you price you home right.

Get rid of clutter

It may seem obvious, but you should definitely clean your home from top to bottom and remove all unnecessary junk (declutter). If you are too busy to do it yourself, then pay someone else to do it. If you are too busy to decide what to dump and what to keep, hire a lockup for a couple of months and dump all your junk in there. When visitors come to see your property, the last thing they want is to be tripping over your clutter or holding their noses because of the smell of pets or cigarettes!

Make your home look roomy

As well as removing all unnecessary junk before showing people your home, it is also important to make it look uncluttered and roomy. This can often be achieved simply by rearranging furniture or temporarily moving a bulky item to the house of a friend or neighbor. A sense of space and light is a very attractive feature in a house; and, with a little imagination, it is not difficult to achieve.

Fix anything that is not working properly

On the same theme, you should make sure that you carry out any minor repairs which might have a negative impression on visitors. A defective light switch, a leaky tap; all of these little things can have a subconscious dampening effect on an otherwise enthusiastic visitor. Naturally, this all depends on your budget; but, as a general rule, the more you can do to make the place look pristine, the better.

Make your entrance welcoming

The love at first sight principle can apply as soon as guests enter your home, so it is vitally important that the first thing they see is welcoming and enticing. Curb appeal of your home is very important, the garden should looked well-maintained and the hedges neatly trimmed. When guests enter the property, they should also be impressed by the appearance of the entrance hall and the living room.

Don’t try to hide anything

It is never a good idea to try to conceal anything from potential buyers; once you have made the place look as good as it is capable of doing, you should show them everything. This “nothing to hide” policy should begin with the photos for your ads; the more photos, the better. If one of these photos tells them something about your property that they don’t like, so be it. The chances are that either they or their realtor would have found out any way; or, worse still, you could spend several weeks working on the basis that you have a buyer, only to have them pull out at the last minute, when this feature comes to light.

Depersonalize your home

To you, it may be a home; but to potential buyers, it is a house which they hope to make their home. Depersonalization, the removal of items which are personal to you and your family, is therefore an essential prerequisite to selling quickly. The idea is to allow buyers to visualize themselves and their families living in your home. If your home is dominated by personal effects, such as family photos, religious artifacts or eccentric decorations which enable regular visitors to see your personality; many visitors are going to end up with the idea that only a certain type of person or family can live in that particular house.

Harmonize your décor

The age and style of your home will probably dictate the décor; but it is also important that the style and colors in use complement each other. If there are elements which have simply come about organically or been contributed by different people, at different times; this should all be modified and harmonized, before you start the selling process. As a rule of thumb, cool colors will make the place visually larger and more chic and are unlikely to offend; the idea is to ensure that the place is appealing to the majority of people.

Sell in spring or summer

If your timetable permits it, try and sell your house fast when the weather is good. Buyers are far more likely to have a good experience coming to your house and leaving it if there is some sunlight and the weather is not depressing. In the winter months, when days are short, it is much harder to make people feel enthusiastic about anything.

 Don’t oversell

Finally, when visitors come to your home, it is also important that you don’t do what inexperienced sales people tend to do; oversell. You should give buyers the chance to look over your home, make up their own minds and ask you questions, instead of seeming like a tour guide.