Sell Your House The Frugal Way: Well Maintained

The third impression you want your home to convey is that it is well maintained.  The outward appearance of good maintenance reassures buyers that there will not be hidden problems requiring repair after they move into the home.

Make all repairs that are needed in your home.  Update faucets, door pulls, door knobs and other DIY fixes.  If necessary, hire a handyman or carpenter to replace damaged wood trim inside and out.  Shampoo carpets or, if they are permanently stained, replace them.

New paint is an absolute necessity.  It is cheap and easy to do yourself.  Remember to use neutral, up to date colors.  Continue the color theme throughout the house.

Each week take a small brush and walk through the house touching up any nicks or smudges on the paint.  It's a small thing, but continues the impression of a fresh, clean paint job.

This can be a touchy subject, but pet smells are a big turnoff to buyers.  We love our pets, but if you own many of them, this may be the time to see if a friend or relative can take some of them.  Buyers must have access to the whole property, so you may want to day board any animals that are aggressive or may try to escape.  Also, consider the stress having strangers in and out of your home may cause your pets.

Now have that trusted friend do a walk through again.  Can they see or smell anything that needs improvement?

The hardest thing about having a house for sale is that you have to maintain that pristine level of clean.  It is almost a full time job itself, but must be done to present your house in the best way possible.

God bless,
Pam

Heading To The Folkschool

I have decided to treat myself to a visit to the John C. Campbell Folk School.  I will be taking a week long class on tatting, then spend a couple of days with a dear friend.

I Hope To Learn Tatting

I promise to take plenty of pictures (hopefully, of Fall leaves) to share with you.

God bless,
Pam

Sell Your House The Frugal Way: Uncluttered

When you are showing your house you want buyers to be able to imagine themselves living there, while giving the impression of roominess.  This is the time to get a storage unit (temporary) to store furniture and accessories that don't fit into your staging.

Look at your rooms and decide which furnishings and accessories are necessary to show how the room can be used.  We are talking about the bare minimum, but not to the point of looking like a jail cell.

Accenting The Fireplace

Remove any personal items:  photos, handmade items that are not made to a professional level and personalized knick knacks.  Collections should be replaced with one or two decorative items.

When arranging your furniture avoid blocking traffic patterns.  Face couches and chairs to accent a positive aspect of the room, such as a fireplace.  Mr. Big Screen TV needs to be hidden or removed.    Even if you don't have an open plan home try to make the rooms appear very open.

Relaxed and Uncluttered

It can be hard when you have children and their assorted stuff.  Have designated spaces where they can store away their toys.  Toy chest, baskets with covers, and drawers under the bed can help hide kiddie clutter.

Think about how a bed and breakfast feels.  That's the impression you want your home to have.  Get tossing!

God bless,
Pam

Sell Your House The Frugal Way: Light

When buyers enter your home the first impression they should have is of light.  Sun shining through windows.  Lamps on in dark corners or basements.  They should never walk into a dark room.

Take a look at your window coverings.  Do they obscure the light coming into the room even when they are open?  Remove any extra curtains or blinds.  You should only keep the most minimal, lightweight window coverings needed for privacy.  Be sure to open all draperies and blinds before you leave the house.

This one was recommended by my realtor and it really made a difference:  remove the window screens.  This may not be necessary with the new, lighter weight screens, but classic weight screens need to go.  Try it in one of your rooms; you will be amazed at how much light a window screen prevents from entering the room.

Wall color must be a neutral, light color.  I'm not recommending that you paint all your walls white, though white might be appropriate for a very small, dark house.  We don't want the buyers to need sunglasses!  Get rid of the dark paints and very taste specific paint colors.  Remember that the buyers will look at your red walls and think about how much it will cost them in time and labor to repaint.

Trim shrubs and trees that are preventing light from entering your home.  They may keep your air conditioning bill down, but that's not a consideration right now.  Your windows should never be obscured by plantings.

Clean your windows.  All that light will highlight even the smallest amount of dust on the glass.

Remember, winter is coming and there will be very little natural light available on some days.  Do you have a dark corner that the sun never reaches?  Put a lamp on a table in any dark areas and turn them on before the buyers come over.

This is an easy fix. And easy on the budget.  Isn't it worth putting hundreds of dollars into increasing the lightness of your house in order to make thousands more in profit?

God bless,
Pam

I Slept Through Extreme Couponing!

I am such a big, bad blogger (not); I fell asleep before the new Extreme Couponing show came on last night.  I wish they would show it at an earlier time.

Anyway, does anyone want to fill me in on the show or do I need to wait for a repeat?

ZZZZZZZZZZ

God bless,
Pam

Extreme Couponing Returns Tomorrow

Well, the show that I sometimes totally disagree with, but holds me enthralled is starting it's new season tomorrow on TLC.  Extreme Couponing will be on most of the day, with the new show airing at 10:00pm. I wonder why so late?  Is it becoming R rated extreme couponing?

While the show sometimes offers a good tip, it is always good for a laugh.  I plan on snuggling into my jammies early, make some popcorn and enjoy myself with some mindless TV watching.

God bless,
Pam

Sell Your House The Frugal Way: Unbiased Walkthrough

I recently inherited a home from my mother and needed to sell it quickly.  I had an offer on the house one week after I listed it for sale and will be closing on the 29th of this month (God willing).

During the preparation and sales process I received much good advice from my real estate agent and from watching the home staging shows on HGTV.  I am going to share them with you.  They are all frugal, money producing and, hopefully, time saving.

If you are thinking of selling your home you need to find someone with an unbiased eye that will be brutally honest with you.  They should not be someone that is afraid of hurting your feelings.  They may be a friend, family member or real estate professional.

Have them come over to your house and do a walk through.  They should give you their first impressions of your house; both from the outside and inside.

Is the house neat and tidy or cluttered?

Cluttered With Personal Items

Does the house give the impression of being up to date or is it hopelessly old fashioned?

Outdated Southwestern Style

Is it over decorated with a style that is too personal?

May Be Beautiful To You, But Not To A Buyer

When a buyer walks into your home they should feel that your home is filled with light, open and uncluttered and immaculately maintained.  Does your home feel this way?

God bless,
Pam