When you’re selling your home, things can get really busy, really fast. You want your home to be in tip top shape to give it the best chance of selling in a timely manner. There are a few things you can do in a short time frame that allows you to spruce up your home without breaking a sweat. Below, you’ll find some tips to help you bring your home to another level of wow before the open house. 

Check Your Front Door

All you really need to do is put a fresh coat of paint on your front door to brighten the look of your entryway. There’s something about a freshly painted front door that really makes a home look like new. 

Spruce Up The Landscaping

You can really do a minimal amount in your yard and make your home curb-appeal ready. Just rake some leaves, add some mulch, mow the lawn, and voila. It might be an all day project, but in the end, it will be worth it. As long as people have a good view and feel that your yard has been taken care of, the outside of your home is in the clear for an open house.  

Check The Outdoor Lights

Even though an open house will be happening in the daylight hours, people may be curious that there is adequate lighting on the outside of your home. Buyers can either check this while they are at the open house or they could go a step further and drive by the property at night. Adequate lighting allows for a sense of security and safety all throughout the outside of the property.  

Care For The Mailbox

Few places in your home are as neglected as the mailbox is. Add some fresh paint to your mailbox. You can use the same color as your front door for consistency. At the very least, clean up the mailbox to give it a better appearance. Make sure your house number is present somewhere on the box as well. This helps the property to have a sense of being a bit more inviting. People will also be able to find your home easier. 

Make Use Of Flowers

You should place flowers around your home on the day of the open house. Add a fresh cut bouquet to the kitchen table. Bring some potted plants and florals around your entryway. These simple touches really can make an impression when potential buyers visit your home. 

Remove Your Personal Stuff

From the outside in, traces of your life in the home should be put away. This means pet items, toys, games, photos, and celebrity shrines. The more free space a buyer has to envision themselves living in the home, the better.          

With these small extra touches, your open house is bound to be a success!

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If you've lived in your home for more than a couple years, chances are you've grown rather attached to it. Whether you're selling your house because your family has outgrown it or your company has transferred you to another location, you're probably attaching a lot of sentimental value to the price tag. Unfortunately, sentimental value does not translate into dollars and cents in today's real estate market.

The emotions of prospective buyers will often play a role in their decision to make on offer on your house, but they're probably not going to pay more than the market value for your property -- unless there's a bidding war situation going on. One of the best ways to determine a fair and reasonable asking price for your home is to have it appraised by an experienced real estate agent. Their appraisal will be based on objective data, such as the selling price of comparable homes in your area. The location and condition of your home will have a bearing on pricing your home effectively, as will the prevailing market conditions and other factors. Although online estimates can sometimes give you a ballpark figure of what your house may be worth, a local appraisal is more accurate

A common misconception among homeowners is that a $10,000 home improvement expenditure should justify a $10,000 increase in the selling price of a home. Although that concept may seem logical, it unfortunately doesn't work that way in the real estate market. An updated kitchen, bathroom, or roof may make your house more appealing to prospective buyers and help it sell faster, but it probably won't have a dollar-for-dollar impact on the price buyers would be willing to pay. Since each selling situation is unique, however, your local real estate agent is the best person to consult regarding a fair asking price for your home.

Avoiding Home Seller Mistakes

In addition to overpricing their home, another mistake home sellers make involves three related activities: decorating, staging, and attempting to create curb appeal. In spite of a homeowner's best intentions, their decorating and home staging ideas may clash with those of the house-buying public. When you attempt to tackle home staging on your own, several things could go wrong.

• You could either spend too much or too little on making repairs and sprucing up your home's appearance.
• You could spend your time and money upgrading inconsequential features of your home, while overlooking the real important changes that need to be made.

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Planning to sell your house in the next few weeks or months? If so, you likely will want to declutter to improve your house's appearance and make it easy for potential homebuyers to envision what life might be like if they purchase your residence.

Ultimately, donating items may prove to be exceedingly valuable, particularly for those who want to declutter and move in the near future.

By donating items that you no longer need, you can quickly and easily remove clutter from your residence. Plus, you may be able to secure a tax credit for your charitable contributions.

Before you donate your items, however, you should take a close look at your personal belongings and decide which things to keep and which to give to charity.

Now, let's take a look at three items that you can donate to charity:

1. Clothing

If you intend to move from Florida to Alaska – or vice-versa – there may be a wide range of clothing that you can donate before you move.

Ensure that any clothing that you plan to donate is clean. If necessary, wash any dresses, t-shirts and other apparel that you intend to donate.

Also, it is always better to err on the side of caution when you donate clothing. And if you have clothes that are faded or torn, you should dispose of these items.

2. Electronics

For those who plan to downsize, donating electronics is ideal. That way, you can get rid of electronics that won't fit into your new home and do a good deed at the same time.

Evaluate your electronics and make sure they work correctly before you donate them. In addition, it often pays to tape any electronics cords, wires and accessories to the items themselves.

Check out a charity's electronics donations policies prior to scheduling a donation pick-up too. By doing so, you can guarantee that a charity can pick up and use your excess electronics.

3. Appliances

In many instances, an individual may move into a new address that comes equipped with a new refrigerator, washer, dryer and other appliances. If this happens, you may want to contact local charities to see if they can pick up your current appliances.

Reach out to a local charity to find out whether it can pick up your current appliances – you'll be glad you did. If the answer is "Yes," you may be able to avoid having to move big, heavy appliances on your own.

As the aforementioned list shows, there are lots of great items that you can donate to charity. Conduct an in-depth search of charities in your city or town, and you can work with a local charity that can use your excess items.

Lastly, if you ever have questions about which charities in your area will accept donations, don't hesitate to reach out to these organizations directly. And if you're looking for extra assistance as you declutter your residence and prepare to list your home, it certainly helps to contact an expert real estate agent as well.

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