Selling your home this year? Do you know where to start? There are many home improvement projects that will not only help you sell your home, but will help you get organized if you decided to stay and keep it. The basic upkeep of your home, and the declutter you must do before putting your home on the market are the basic chores you must do first. Fresh paint in some of the rooms in your home might be good idea as well. Staging your home before selling seemed unnecessary for some homeowners, but nowadays staging solutions businesses think that staging your home can give you an edge when you are ready to move on.
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10 Home Maintenance Tips for Spring
After a long, dark winter, spring’s bright sun and warm winds are, well, a breath of fresh air. The only downside? All that sunshine spotlights your leaf-filled gutters, cracked sidewalks and the dead plants in last year’s flower beds. Dwight Barnett, a certified master inspector with the American Society of Home Inspectors, shared this checklist to help you target the areas that need maintenance so you can get your chores done quickly, leaving you time to go outside and play in the sunshine.
Examine Roof Shingles
Examine roof shingles to see if any were lost or damaged during winter. If your home has an older roof covering, you may want to start a budget for replacement. The summer sun can really damage roof shingles. Shingles that are cracked, buckled or loose or are missing granules need to be replaced. Flashing around plumbing vents, skylights and chimneys need to be checked and repaired by a qualified roofer.
The History of Spring Cleaning and Why It’s so Important for Your Health
Spring cleaning is kind of awesome. If you’re the type of person that enjoys cleaning, then the process is fun, but even if you don’t enjoy cleaning, it still means spring is here. The trees start leafing out, and daffodils and tulips start popping through the dirt. People are finally getting a bit of energy back with longer daylight hours. As a result, it’s time to clean!
The History
Spring cleaning is not unique to the U.S. It’s actually practiced all over the world, in one variation or another. Spring is the most popular time, which seems to have roots in religion. Passover is a traditional time for those of Jewish faith to remove all leavened foods from the house, which are forbidden during Passover. Leavened foods are anything made with wheat, oats, barley, spelt, rye or yeast. This eliminates a lot of foods, and the tradition is usually expanded to include a general cleaning of the entire home.
In addition, Catholic churches usually clean their altars during spring. This may not be exactly what you think of during spring cleaning, but you can see how it would easily translate to a general cleaning at home. More directly, the Greek Orthodox Church has spring cleaning during Lent, called Clean Monday. Because the church was the main governing body for so much of history, it makes sense that its influence became a sort of worldwide phenomenon.
Staging to sell a home is worth every penny
Every home seller wants two things: top dollar and a quick sale. Reaching those goals may hinge on how the home is staged, no matter its style, size or price point.
“If all things are equal and you go see three to seven homes in the same price range, with the same square footage and location, the shiniest penny is what’s going to sell,” says Kent Welch, owner of Showhomes of Kansas City, a company specializing in staging vacant homes from its warehouse of furnishings.
Sheen comes from a carefully edited environment that highlights architectural features, layout and flow.
“It puts the eyes of the buyer looking where we want them to look,” Welch says.
Even in this seller’s market, sellers need to help buyers envision themselves living in what is currently someone else’s home. Visualization is an important tool in real estate: An empty home can leave buyers wondering how to use space, while too many belongings in an occupied residence can distract them. Home stagers find the right balance of furniture and accessories to give buyers a good idea of the opportunities in the home.
