Dear Seller: Are You Sure You Want to Sell Your Home?

The other day I was out showing a Buyer a few houses and the most embarrassing thing happened! We arrived at our final home of the day; I walked to the front door--rang the doorbell and knocked loudly (just in case the Sellers had not left the property yet), retrieved the key from the lock box and let ourselves in...

What we encountered upon entering took me completely by surprise...the stench that flooded our noses was disgusting, no lights what so ever were turned. We creeped in a little further in the living room and about tripped over the mounds and mounds of dirty clothes, toys and other crap haphazardly tossed everywhere.

The place felt so dirty I was hesitant to even turn on the lights! My Buyer and I walked over to the kitchen...we had found the source of the smell!! Stacks and stacks of dirty dishes with leftover food stuck to the plates. Oh gross!

I cautiously looked over at my client to see how he was handling the place--one look at his face and I suggested we leave right then, no need to see the rest of the home! My client wondered aloud as we left "if that's the way they take care of their home, I wonder what maintenance and other repairs they've neglected to take care of." He is absolutely right!

Where is their pride of ownership? Has their agent not explained to them how a home should look for a showing...it's not like I didn't call two days in advance to schedule the appointment!! Do they not want to get their home sold?

I was completely embarrassed that I had chosen to show my client that home!! Especially since we had just come from a home that was perfectly staged and had great curb appeal--the owner of that home is also an agent, but still! Upon entering her home we were greeted by soft, pleasant music, the lights were on and the blinds were opened. It smelled good, but not too overbearing. And except for a few of the closets, it was clutter free! No dirty laundry, no gross dishes, everything in its place so the true features of the home could shine! Now THAT is how every home should look for a showing!

Sellers: If you want your home to sell, make it looks its best for showings! Agents: Please coach your client on what to do before a showing!

(Not an actual photo from the place, we weren't there long enough to take one!)

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It's a great time to buy a home in Georgia, whether you're a first-time home buyer or not, and I would love to walk you through this process. If you are in the market to buy or sell your home in the Bethlehem or Dacula area, I would be happy to assist you! My passion is helping people find their dream home and stepping them through this exciting journey. I serve the Walton, Barrow and Gwinnett county areas. Call or text me today: 404.357.2231!

Changes You Can Make to Increase Your Home's Value

Recently I had a friend request that I write about the best ways to increase your property's value through inexpensive changes that you can do yourself. I think this is something that's very important-there are definitely ways to make your property more appealing to a potential buyer without breaking the bank. However, if you have a little extra cash or you want to ensure that you get top dollar when you put your home on the market, there are more expensive changes you can do as well. I've broken these tips into three categories: Inexpensive, Mid-Priced, Expensive.


Just a couple of thoughts before I share these tips:

1. Kitchens and bathrooms are going to bring you the biggest bang for your buck


2. Curb appeal is important-make sure your landscaping looks fresh and clean


3. You don't want to completely out-do your neighbors in renovations and remodeling-that will make your home the most expensive in the neighborhood, which will be harder to sell down the road. If no one in the neighborhood has granite countertops, custom cabinets and hardwood floors, you may want to make small changes but save your cash to put into your next home.

INEXPENSIVE:

• Paint, paint, paint!-I can't stress this enough. Putting a fresh coat of paint on your walls instantly makes the home feel cleaner, fresher and newer. Also, if your current paint colors are outdated or "loud"-now's the time to update! In fact I wrote an entire article about this very subject, so if you need help choosing paint colors, please check it out: Sellers: Are Your Color Choices Keeping Your Home from Selling?

1. You may also want to consider repainting all your baseboards and trim-this is a cheap way to make your home look crisp and newer-it can take years off!
2. Take a look at your ceilings-do they need to be repainted too?

• Take down that wallpaper-Wallpaper is an extremely personal preference and becomes outdated quickly. Some people, such as myself, really dislike wallpaper. The goal when putting your home on the market is to get it in the best shape possible and eliminate as many "potential objections" as you can. Consider this: a potential buyer has narrowed their selection down to two homes-yours with wallpaper in the kitchen that they really can't stand and another home where they don't like the paint color. So, holding all other things equal, which home will they choose? Well, in my opinion, they will choose the ugly paint color because it's much less painful to repaint rather than peel wallpaper off, sand and repaint. Do you see what I'm talking about?


• Change out your doorknobs-Most new homes come with brushed nickel doorknobs and door hinges; changing out your gold knobs is a cheap way to make your home look newer.


• Take care of your carpet-Getting your carpets steam cleaned is a great way to make your home look better; if your carpets are in good shape except for needing a good cleaning this is much more affordable than buying new carpet.


• Update your cabinet hardware-Maybe you can't afford to completely renovate your kitchen or bathrooms, but you can change out the handles or knobs to something trendier. Take a look at interior design magazines or watch HGTV to find out what's in style-or walk through homes that were just built and see what kind of knobs they are using.


• Change your light switch plate covers-If your light switch plate covers are gold colored or cracked or they once were white but now are beige-change them out. This is an inexpensive way to keep your home in line with newer ones.

MID-PRICED:

• Replace flooring-Consider replacing your linoleum kitchen floor to tile or a beautiful laminate flooring that resembles hardwood. If your family room carpet looks worn, either replace it with new carpet or switch it out to laminate wood flooring. Linoleum in the bathrooms or laundry room? Replace it with tile.


• Update light fixtures-Light fixtures can immediately date a home because trends change so often in this department. Watch HGTV and flip through design magazines to determine what's in style and what will work best for your home and price range.


• Change out faucets-This is another area that can add value through updating. I have the same advice as above with the light fixtures-look at magazines, go to Home Depot or walk through newly built homes for ideas.


• Buy new appliances-For most kitchens, white appliances look outdated, if you can, buy new appliances-either stainless steel if you can afford it or black if you need a cheaper option.

EXPENSIVE:

• Put in hardwood floors-True hardwood floors, not the laminate type, are fairly expensive but they are very beautiful and long-lasting too. (They are allergy friendly too because they don't trap dust and dust mites like carpet does). Hardwood flooring can definitely increase your property value.


• Replace your kitchen and/or bathroom cabinets-Again, if you have the money, getting new cabinets that go with current styles is a great way to get more money for your home when you sell.


• Change your countertops to granite-If you can afford to switch out both your cabinets and countertops, then do it! But if you can't, often your home would look great with new granite countertops and new knobs on the cabinets. (For a less expensive option, you could replace your laminate countertops with corian).

Those are the suggestions that I feel will give you the most for your money when you are trying to sell your home. One thing you may wonder is when to make the changes? If you aren't planning on moving for at least three years, you may want to wait until three to six months before you put your home on the market to make these changes. Trends change and if you want to be competitive with the brand new homes on the market you should make your updates according to the current styles. However, I also feel that if you plan on living in your home for let's say, ten years, you may want to make major changes now so that you can enjoy them while living in the home. I hope these tips helped you!

Thank You for Reading!

If you are in the market to buy or sell your home in the Bethlehem or Dacula area, I would be happy to assist you! My passion is helping people find their dream home and stepping them through this exciting journey. I serve the Walton, Barrow and Gwinnett county areas. Call or text me today!

Sellers: Are Your Color Choices Keeping Your Home from Selling?

Are you thinking about selling your home? Or maybe your home is already on the market, but is not getting shown as much as you would like. It may be time to take a look at the color on your walls and in your home decor and make changes if necessary. Did you know that color can have an emotional and psychological impact on a potential buyer? Which is why it's important that you learn which colors create certain feelings in a person and carefully choose the colors in your home. In turn it can lead to a faster home sale...which is the goal, right?!

Photo by Tanakawho

Tips and Suggestions for helping your home sell:

*Off-White and Beige Walls: Most people will advise that having off-white or beige walls is great because it gives the potential homeowner the opportunity to envision how their furniture and decorations will look in the home. Having a "blank canvas" is great, but may not bring on any of the positive feelings that a well-chosen wall color can elicit. To solve this dilemma, you might want to paint an accent wall or use certain colors in your accessories. We'll talk about which colors work best in certain rooms a little later.

*People's Moods are Affected by Color: People's moods are influenced by color, so if you want to create a sense of coziness, excitement or energy choose colors such as red, yellow or orange. If you are trying to calm someone down or relax them, the cooler shades of blue work. Green was found to be the number one color to lift people's spirits--but be wary when choosing the shade, stay away from lime-green tones as those often had the effect of making people feel sick. Medium green shades such as sage is a better choice. I once had a listing where the hallway was painted lime-green, from the minute I walked through the home I advised the homeowner to re-paint it a lighter neutral shade of tan. Not only was the lime-green color not pleasant to look at, but the rich, dark shade made the hallway feel much narrower than it really was--a neutral tone would make the hallway feel more open. (By the way, they did not re-paint and the listing expired before it sold.)

*Make Sure the Colors Flow from Room to Room: A home will not flow as well or transition as smoothly throughout the home if every room is a different contrasting color. Instead, choose variations of the same color for a seamless design that promotes a sense of balance. An easy way to do this is to find a paint card at the store that has four or five shades of the same color. If you need a hallway color use the lightest shade and then move two or three shades up on the paint card and use that color for the family room or kitchen. This also works well for bathrooms attached to bedrooms.

Photo by BobJudge

Effects of Colors and Which Rooms they Work Best in:

*RED: stimulates the appetite, increases energy and heart rate, enhances excitment.

Best in: Dining Rooms

*ORANGE: when used in moderation it can create feelings of comfort, warmth and cheerfulness.

Best in: Family and Living Rooms

*YELLOW: enhances positive thinking, encourages happy and welcoming feelings.

Best in: dimly lit or dark hallways and entry ways; buttery tones are good for Living Rooms

*GREEN: most peaceful color; diminishes nervous system activity and muscular tension; helps to calm and relax.

Best in: lighter shades in Living Rooms and medium shades in Kitchens and Dining Rooms

*BLUE: encourages feelings of cleanliness, calmness, tranquility; cools down a room; suppresses appetite; lowers blood pressure.

Best in: Bedrooms

*PURPLE: enhances creativity and imagination; many adults don't like purple walls though.

Best in: Play Areas and Children's Bedrooms

I hope this has given you more insight into which colors to choose when painting your home or getting it ready to put it on the market. Color is a personal preference and the colors that you really enjoy may not be what a potential buyer would put on the walls. I always advise my clients who are purchasing a home to keep in mind that paint is not permanent and is pretty cheap! Not liking the color on the walls should generally not be a reason as to not buy a home; however, if you're trying to sell your home, you want to make it as attractive as possible--so if changing the paint color will help it sell faster, why wouldn't you do it?

Thanks for Reading!

If you are in the market to buy or sell your home in the Bethlehem or Dacula area, I would be happy to assist you! My passion is helping people find their dream home and stepping them through this exciting journey. I serve the Walton, Barrow and Gwinnett county areas. Call or text me today!