Common Mistakes to Avoid When Selling Your House

Selling your house is a big deal. If you’re putting your house on the market, you want to sell it quickly, and for the most money. So don’t make the following mistakes:

Don’t paint the walls all white and/or bold colors. A Zillow Digs report found that you could actually cost yourself thousands of dollars by using the wrong paint color. To maximize the sale price, paint your kitchen a yellow hue, your bathrooms oatmeal or tan, bedrooms sage green, the dining room light purple, and the living room light gray. Avoid painting the kitchen white, the dining room gray, the living room orange, and the bathrooms dark brown.

Don’t leave all of your furniture and possessions in your house while it’s on the market. Airy, de-personalized spaces sell best. So even if you have to rent a storage unit, your house should have only the minimum amount of furniture, and personal items like photos should be removed. Like the rest of the house, closets should be neat, tidy and spacious, so take out half of the contents before you put your house up for sale.

Don’t fail to make cosmetic and obvious repairs. Holes in the wall, dirty carpets, and even little things like a loose door knob can cost you a sale. Be sure to fix anything that might distract a prospective buyer, and spruce up your home’s curb appeal while you’re at it. First impressions count!

Don’t leave your pets at home. You might think a pet is inoffensive, or even makes your home, well, homey. But many prospective buyers are turned off by pets – whether it’s because they think your dog must have peed in every room or they’re allergic to cats. Keep your pet’s food bowls and toys out of sight, and if you’re having an open house, remove your pets for the duration.

Don’t skip the research and marketing. It’s not exactly fun or easy figuring out what the asking price for your house should be, but it’s important to set the price in the sweet spot, where you get the most money without turning off potential buyers because it’s too high. Working with a realtor who knows your market can be key to setting the right price. You also want to make sure you’re using all of the marketing tools available to you, especially the internet – and that means fantastic photos that make your house look great.

Don’t think that once you’ve prepped your house for sale, you’re done. Until the house is sold, you need to keep up appearances. That means constantly wiping down surfaces, vacuuming, picking up and putting away anything that’s brought out, etc. But if you avoid making these mistakes, your house will sell faster and you won’t have to keep up appearances!