Selling Your Home in Summer: Top Tips for Seasonal Sales
By John Voket
With Summer upon us, I tapped a couple of experts for tips to help home sellers present their homes with maximum effectiveness this season.
Our first raft of seasonal sellings tips for summer come from frontdoor.com:
Highlight outdoor areas. Clean the deck, porch, patio or outdoor kitchen, and repaint or make repairs if necessary.
No deck? Arrange chairs or outdoor furniture in your yard to create the illusion of an outdoor room.
Make necessary repairs to a home's exterior, including siding and windows.
Play up the pool. Keep it clean and debris-free, and create a seating area near the pool where buyers can imagine themselves floating through the cool water.
Make sure lawn and flower beds aren't languishing in the summer heat. Add pops of color to your entryway with potted plants.
Add value and security with lighting. Frame walkways and driveways with lights for a stylish touch.
Don't skimp on the air conditioning. House hunters will want to escape the heat so make sure the home is nice and cool.
Provide refreshments. Even though you likely won't be home for a showing, greet buyers like you would party guests with a cool pitcher of lemonade.
Additional summer staging tips from designer Dave Ramsey (daveramsey.com) include:
Send clutter on vacation. Give buyers — and their imaginations — room to breathe by creating loads of open space.
Bring the outdoors in. Place vases of garden blooms — or bowls of fresh fruit — in every room.
Fill your home with natural light by throwing curtains and blinds wide open.
Keep base colors neutral, but cheer things up with a few bright accents.
Dress up outdoor spaces.Dust off porch and patio furniture, and punch things up with colorful pillows and table settings.
Make sure your yard sets a lush but trim backdrop.