How to Prep Your Home To Be Listed: Tips From a Top Realtor St. Albert Trusts
Ready to get your home on the real estate market? If you want to stand out in today's competitive local market, partnering with a trusted realtor St. Albert homeowners rely on, like the Robertson Real Estate Group, is your first step to a fast, successful sale.
First Impression Matters
Buyers form an opinion within the first 10 seconds of pulling up. First impressions matter and we recommend starting at the front door. Keeping your lawn pristine in the spring and summer and snow shoveled in the winter, adding fresh potted plants near the entryway and maintaining landscaping will make a big difference. Power-washing the siding, painting the front door, and updating old house numbers will demonstrate your pride of ownership before buyers have entered.
Robertson Tip:
Stand across the street and take a photo of your house. What’s the first thing your eye goes to? Fix that first.
De-Personalizing and De-cluttering
Our strategy for de-personalizng and de-cluttering? Buyers need to envision themselves living in the house, not feel like they are visiting your house. Our advice? Pack away family photos, highly specific decor, and kids' artwork. Next, clear off kitchen counters as much as you can. Clean out closets by almost 50%, packed closets make storage space look small.Robertson Tip: Think of this stage as pre-packing for your move. It gets you ahead of the game anyway!
Address The Minor Fixes
A long list of tiny, unfinished projects signals to a buyer that the home hasn't been well-maintained. Need help deciding what needs to be fixed up and what isn’t worth your money? Call a Robertson Realtor today and we will walk you through what minor fixes will make a major difference in your sale.Minor fixes we typically look for:- Squeaky doors
- Running toilets
- Dripping faucets
- Touch up scuffed paint along baseboards and hallways
- Ensure all doors and cabinet drawers open and close smoothly
Professional Photography & Staging
Almost 100% of buyers see your home online first. If the photos don't wow them, they won't book a showing. Professional staging and photography of your home can make a major difference when it comes to making your home standout in the market.Photography: The difference high-end, professional photography makes vs. quick phone photos is between a buyer scrolling right past your listing and them immediately booking a showing. High-end photography captures the true scale, lighting, and premium feel of your home, whereas quick phone photos can make even the most spectacular spaces look dark, cramped, and overlooked. Having great photos of your home allows your realtor to curate a standout online listing presentation.
Staging: We highly recommend investing in staging your home. By working with our professional stages, we can elevate your home so buyers fall in love.
- Higher Offers: Staged homes statistically sell for more. It’s about showing the full potential of your investment.
- It maximizes your space. Our team knows how to highlight your home’s flow and floor plan, making every room feel larger, brighter, and more purposeful.
- It boosts your digital "first impression." In a summer market, the "scroll" is real. Professionally staged homes photograph better, stopping the scroll and getting more feet through your front door.
After The Contract Is Signed
The biggest mistake sellers make after signing a contract is assuming the job is completely finished. While getting that signature is a massive milestone, the weeks leading up to possession day are just as critical.Here is what you need to keep in mind before you hand over the keys:- Keep Up the Maintenance: The home is still yours until possession day. Whether that means cutting the grass in July or shoveling the walkways in December, the property needs to be kept up.
- Show Pride of Ownership: Leaving your home clean and maintained reflects how you cared for it during your time there.
- The Golden Rule of Moving: Treat the buyers how you want to be treated by your own seller. Ask yourself: How would I want my new home to look on move-in day? Leave it in that exact condition.