We've all heard the old adage....."walk a mile in someone else's shoes", but how can that apply to getting your home ready to put on the Wellesley & Metrowest Boston Housing market and showing it to potential buyers? Easily....you need to start thinking as a "Home Buyer", and not as a Home Seller. Here are a few tips to use before welcoming potential Buyers to your home:
1. Have a Friend Pre-Listing Party. Yes, that's right, invite a few of your trusted friends over, crack open a bottle of wine and go room to room with a notepad. Have them objectively look at each room and give suggestions as to what they would change, or would be a red flag, if they were to seriously look at your home as a potential buyer. 
2. Next...Consult a Great Real Estate Agent! Run your list of fixes, the ones you have accumulated in your your pre-listing party, by your agent and find out which ones are worth the fix for the money, or not. Your agent will also go over your Homes Value and develop a personalized marketing plan with you.
3. De-Clutter! I know, we've said this over and over again. But it bears repeating because it's so important. Let's take a closet as an example: Taking 1/2 of your clothing off of a closet rack and shelves, then neatly reorganize what is left. It will make your closet look much larger. Another area....extra furniture. Extra furniture usually get's shoved to the corners of a room. Instead, rent a storage unit and take out a large majority of the furniture so that you can stage each room to take advantage of the size, space and nuances of that room.
4. Think Neutral. Now, We're like everyone else, We love pops of color throughout the home and think a home feels a lot warmer and cozier with color. But if you're putting your home on the market, you need to go neutral. It is hard for a potential buyer to envision themselves in a home that has "you" written all over it. Neutral colors paint the picture of a blank canvas which gives your potential buyer the feeling that they can create their own painting or oasis of a home.
5. Clean out your garage. We are all guilty of using the garage for storage, but trust me, your buyer wants to know that their vehicles are going to be able to fit in the garage. Again, even if you need to rent a storage unit, get out all those boxes, and seasonal supplies that are not in use. Make it clean and ready for vehicles.
6. Make sure Hardwood Floors are gleaming! People in general love hardwood floors, but nothing is worse than looking forward to seeing a home with hardwood floors and finding a home with dull, scratched hardwood....... that you know you'll have to spend time and money to refinish! A simple soapy wash followed by a rejuvenating floor polish will do wonders to make your hardwood floors look like new....and only cost around $50!
7. Restore your natural stone, tile and grout. If your bathrooms and kitchen tiles have lost their luster you may want to look into getting them refreshed. Professional restoration services are available in most cities and are relatively cheap compared to a complete renovation, and can make your kitchens and bathrooms look new again. Well worth the money involved since these two rooms are the top two rooms of importance in a home search.
Local home improvement stores have trained personnel and many classes available to train you in many of the techniques to restore what you have in place in your homes today versus having to do total renovations. Utilize their expertise to help make the preparation for your selling process go smoothly and quickly.
