The first 30 days your home is on the market is absolutely critical, because those buyers who are circling will come look—once—and if your property is not exactly right then they will just continue their circling, and likely will never return to your property. You will anxiously watch the days on market tick up, and the price tick down.  Buyers ARE buying, but they expect a property to be in pristine condition right out of the gate.

To catch the biggest buyer waves, typically you should plan on putting your home on the market in March or April. This year, however, I think there’s a very strong argument to go out early for the reasons outlined above—buyers ARE out there.  However, you can’t just throw your home into the MLS and expect the buyers to pounce.

Here’s a short list of things you should be doing now to get your home ready:

* De-clutter. I can’t stress this enough. If it’s not something you use every day, get it out of sight. Put away out of season clothing. No collections of knick-knacks, no personal photos, no college degrees or awards. You want the buyer to be able to imagine themselves in the property, and trust me, buyers are easily distracted by your personal items. Don’t pile things into closets and cabinets—buyers look there too. Get things out of the property and into storage if you have to. Same for extra furniture pieces. Less is more.
* Paint & Clean. A fresh coat of paint does wonders, and is cheap. And clean like you’ve never cleaned before, especially the kitchen and bath.
* Make all minor repairs. The buyer is going to make you do them anyway and it will be cheaper for you to do it now.
* Start monitoring the market, both broadly and in your specific neighborhood. Pricing is absolutely critical, and you need to be realistic. Work with an agent to start getting property updates now.

When you’re ready to put your home on the market:

* Consult a stager. I hire both an interior stager and an exterior landscape consultant for  my listings. They look at your property with fresh eyes and have extensive training in how to create a neutral, yet welcoming canvas for buyers.
* Photos, photos, photos. Buyers start their search on the internet, and if you don’t have photos they will skip your house completely. Use professional photographers, or at a minimum, a wide-angle lens if you (or your agent) insist on taking them personally.
* If your home has unique features, consider how to best market them. For example, if the house has an unusual floorplan or is bigger than it looks, consider including professionally drawn floorplans in with the photos. (I do this for some of my listings.)

If you’re interested in hearing more about how to get your home ready, or want to learn more about the home selling process, contact us for an appointment.

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We’ll also discuss how to price your home, marketing channels, staging and showing your home, real estate fees and commissions, and how to choose an agent.

There’s never any cost or obligation to attend our classes.

Home Seller Classes in Arlington County
The first classes of 2009 are now scheduled at Arlington County Library. As in the past, there is absolutely no cost or obligation to attend this one hour educational session where we will recap the current market conditions, discuss the future outlook, and provide an overview of the home sale process. Simply email katie@katiewethman.com to register so that we may have materials available for you. Details are as follows:

Tuesday, February 17, 2009
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Arlington County Library
1015 N Quincy St, 2nd Floor Mtg Room
Ballston (Orange Line)

Though there is no cost to attend, you must contact us to register since seating is limited.

Read More: Seller Resources
Read More: What to Expect when Working with Katie as your Listing Agent

Home Seller Classes in Maryland and DC
The class schedule for 2009 has not yet been determined. Classes will begin in February and will be held at various sites in Montgomery County and the District of Columbia.

We’re always happy to meet with first time buyers over coffee to give a quick overview (with no obligation) if the class schedule does not fit your needs. Just drop us a line!

Contact us to be notified of the class schedule when available.

Read More: Seller Resources
Read More: What to Expect when Working with Katie as your Listing Agent

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