Selling houses works similar to job hunting. If you want to land that high paying job, you need to follow certain rules. One of those says you have to dress for success. The same is true for when selling your house. The curb appeal of your house is important. Your house has only a one time chance to make a first impression. And the first impression is the most critical one. If your house looks bad from the outside, potential buyers will think the same way about the inside. If your house does not look appealing from the outside it might be difficult to get people inside and you are losing out.
Premium landscaping is nice to have, but it is definitely not in everyone’s budget or financial means. But even with a small budget you can do a lot. Certain things should be standard and can be done by yourself. The lawns should be freshly mowed – preferably twice a week. If it is fall or late summer, leaves should be raked as soon as possible. Nothing destroys the look of a property faster than leafs. Winter time? Start shoveling snow early. Buyers want to be able to a) imagine how your house looks like without snow and b) enter your house safely. Trim trees and bushes and pull the weeds. These items are all low cost, but can really raise the curb appeal in the blink of an eye.
If it is garbage day, move your empty bins back inside the garage as soon as you can. Ask your neighbors to eventually do the same or offer that you would do it for them. As you are the one who is trying to sell your house, it is also up to you to eventually keep the neighborhood a clean place. This is the dirty part of the deal. Somebody emptied their ashtray from the car on your street and the cigarette butts are all over the place – you better get the broom out and at least brush them away. Pick up old newspapers and plastic bags as needed. A clean neighborhood sells much better and gives the potential buyers a better impression of the overall neighborhood quality. Of course if you have a family in your neighborhood that does not have the same standards for cleanness, you might have to become more creative. Sometimes you can “encourage” them to park their trashy pickup truck around the corner. Encouragement means you might have to offer a financial bonus of some sort. It really depends on how good you know them and how well they respond to your inquiries of keeping the neighborhood clean for a while. As mentioned, you have to be look at situations like this from a creative perspective.
Conclusion: Curb appeal is critical in your efforts to sell your house. You only have one chance for a first time impression. Don’t give this chance away too easily. Even with a small budget you are able to go a long way.
Chris Puetz is a successful writer in the online and offline world. Lately he is concentrating his writings on Bread Maker Reviews or Toaster Oven Reviews.
