5 top tips for getting your home ready for downsizing.
Are you considering downsizing your property, selling the big family home, and opting for a smaller, more manageable, perhaps cheaper property? Read this article for the top 5 tips for preparing for a downsize.
Many of us choose to reduce the size and value of our homes around retirement age. Releasing equity, reducing or maybe even paying off your outstanding mortgage, and having less property to keep clean and manage is a tantalising thought after so many years on the hamster wheel. Regain hours of your life where you don't have to maintain the garden or keep the house clean, and put money back in your pocket from released equity and reduced monthly living costs. Sounds great, doesn't it?
But, after spending so many years in your home, moving to somewhere smaller is a daunting prospect. How will you fit everything in? It's human nature to fill the available space in our homes, and you may not feel as if you could cope in a smaller property. Following these top 5 tips will prepare you for your downsize in no time.
Get those odd jobs done:
Viewers who visit your property will be hyper-critical, and any area that needs maintenance will stand out to them. Getting these odd jobs done before launching your home to the market can pay dividends. Take a good look at your home, as if through a viewer's eyes, make a list of all of those little DIY tasks and get them done. This is not a total renovation, but tackling those door handles that are a bit loose or wallpaper that is lifting in the corners so that your property doesn't come across as needing work. This will allow viewers to envisage themselves living there rather than creating a to-do list.
Declutter:
Cluttered homes look smaller and can distract viewers' attention from the property if there is too much going on, so it makes sense to declutter your property and eliminate unnecessary items. But this is an essential task if you are downsizing because the home you will be moving into will be smaller. There is no way you can take everything with you, so make an effort to clear out some items before you put the property on the market so that your home looks as well presented as it can.
Pre-packing:
You're going to move house and have to pack, which will likely be a mammoth task. So why not get ahead? If you are marketing your home in winter, pack up all of your summer clothing. Box it, or bag it up and store it away in a wardrobe in one of your spare rooms or in the loft. If you sell your home in the summer, you will likely not need winter clothing, Christmas decorations, bed throws and heavy quilts.
Gardening:
It's likely that your garden is difficult to stay on top of and is usually the root cause of homeowners choosing to downsize. With that in mind, there are likely many jobs that need to be done in the garden. Consider hiring a gardener to help you to get on top of everything. Your buyer needs to see the fabulous outdoor space your home can offer them; they do not want to see a huge challenge to tackle.
Staging:
When you are almost ready to put your property on the market, consider staging certain areas to showcase the lifestyle that your home can offer a buyer. Set the dining table for a glamorous dinner party, place sumptuous throws and blankets over the end of the sofa, coffee pots, and matching mugs placed just so on a tray in the bedroom can all be done on the day of the photoshoot. Before the photoshoot, you can arrange the furniture to show the rooms off in the best way.
Don't let this process become a form of procrastination, delaying the sale of your home, but following these tips will undoubtedly improve your experience and ensure that you achieve the optimum price for your property.
If you are ready to get your home on the market, or at least make those initial first steps to the valuation, contact your By Design Agent today for expert advice and guidance.
