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Home is where your heart is. Houses, on the other hand, are commodities sold on the open market. Most people do not see their houses after living there for a while. They do not notice the effects of gradual physical deterioration and junk accumulation. Little stuff to the seller; not so little stuff to a buyer! If you make the right improvements when preparing your house to sell, you increase the odds of selling it quickly for top dollar. If you do something wrong or make the wrong changes to your property, you waste the time and money you spent, prolong the sale or reduce the ultimate sale price.
Buyers generally decide if they want to see the inside within 20 seconds of viewing your property’s external attractiveness (curb appeal). No matter how magnificent your house is on the inside, many buyers will drive by without even stopping if the curb appeal doesn’t say, “I’m loved, and I’m cared for.” The following, at a minimum, should be addressed when you put your house on the market:
Exteriors attract, but interiors sell! Curb appeal draws buyers into your house, but appealing, well-cared-for interiors make the sale. Usually, you do not have to spend thousands of dollars on your home prior to putting up the For Sale sign. On the contrary, the little things you do generally give the most significant increase in value.
Clean it up, clear the clutter and make cosmetic improvements.
Your stove, oven, refrigerator, microwave oven and other appliances must be spotless inside and out. Scour walls, floors, bathtubs, showers and sinks until they sparkle. Buyers will notice strong smells as soon as they enter your front door, so eliminate smoke, mildew and pet odors. Cleaning drapes and carpets help get rid of odors. Dehumidifiers help musty basements. If you are a smoker, clean all ashtrays daily. Use air fresheners or citrus-scented potpourri to keep your house odor-free. Whether you do the work or hire someone, ensure your house is spotless and odorless.
Clutter can reduce your house’s value. Clear away kitchen counters and keep dirty dishes out of the sink. Eliminating clutter and excess furniture makes rooms appear larger. Recycle those stacks of old magazines and newspapers you have been saving for no good reason. Dump all that junk you have accumulated in your attic and basement over the years. Closet space sells houses. Clean those closets out and organize them. Get rid of all those clothes you do not wear anymore. Make them look large and roomy! Do the same with built-in drawers. Like it or not, serious buyers will inspect your closets and built- in drawers.
Painting isn’t expensive if you do it yourself, but be careful when selecting colors. Avoid bold colors with strong visual impact. Stick to conventional soft whites and neutral colors that will not clash with most prospective buyers’ tastes. If your finished basement is dark and gloomy, paint the walls and ceiling a light color.
Pay attention to everything in your house that could cause the buyer to “reduce your price.” Find it and repair it before you put it on the market. Look for hairline cracks over doors or windows and nail pops in sheetrock. Locate any ceiling stains and the source of the leak. Check for windows with cracked panes that don’t open and shut properly. Watch for doors that stick, do not close or slide properly. Examine bathrooms for signs of mildew, rust stains in sinks and toilets, missing tiles or grout or inadequate caulking around tubs. Check for drippy faucets, slow-draining sinks and tubs, broken mirrors, etc. Check all kitchen appliances that remain with the property.
Expect inspectors to poke into everything — your house’s roof, chimney, gutters, plumbing, electrical wiring, heating and cooling systems, insulation, smoke detectors, all the permanent appliances and fixtures and the foundation. They will also check for health, safety and environmental hazards. You can bet they’ll also look for damage from wood-destroying insects (carpenter ants, termites and powder-post beetles), dry rot and fungus infections. Whew! The question is, what do you, the seller, do about inspections? Pre-inspect before the buyer, or wait until the buyer inspects to respond?
In the State of Georgia, a seller must disclose any known defects to prospective buyers via a Seller’s Property Disclosure made part of the sales agreement. For this reason, some real estate agents argue against getting a house inspected before putting it on the market. These agents point out that you can’t tell buyers about problems if you don’t know the problems exist. They also believe that handing buyers a long list of repair problems as they enter your house will turn many of them off. They recommend getting buyers emotionally committed to the property first before their own inspectors drop the bomb.
That line of reasoning is based on an ostrich-like logic: What you don’t know can’t get you into trouble – for a while, anyway.
Some agents may also use a second argument to convince sellers to refrain from getting pre-inspections on their property. Buyers generally won’t believe anything in reports paid for by sellers. According to these agents, buyers suspect you will hire a go-easy inspector to falsely report that your house is as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar. So, why spend several hundred dollars on an inspection report that buyers won’t believe? Or worse yet, the buyer will still inspect and come up with more.
You can find a nugget of truth in both these arguments. On the other hand, the best defense is a good offense. Beat buyers to the punch. Get your inspections before they get theirs. Discover everything wrong with your house before putting it on the market. Defusing a crisis begins by discovering that a problem exists. Consider these four reasons for having your property thoroughly inspected before marketing.
Suppose that your house has a structural defect. Why wait passively for an ultimatum to fix the defect after you have already negotiated your best price or else kiss the deal goodbye? If you discover the problem before marketing the house, you can either disclose it to prospective buyers with a repair estimate and price accordingly, or you can have the work done by a competent specialist (with work orders, costs and guarantees) before putting the house up for sale. Either way, your negotiating position is much stronger if you know about problems in advance and accurately know the cost to correct them.
SPECIAL NOTE: It’s a safe bet you will not be invited to join the buyers when their property inspector goes through your property. Having your own pre-inspection gives you and, if you like, your agent the opportunity to tag along with the inspector. There is no substitute for seeing defects with your own eyes.
Chances are you are going to be buying another house. Therefore, it is essential to have a realistic estimate of your net proceeds of sale before committing to buy your next home. Flaws hidden out of sight, behind walls or concealed in inaccessible areas, such as under your house or in the attic where you can’t see them, are time bombs. Defects you cannot see and do not know about, such as faulty wiring, termite damage, a cracked heat exchanger in your furnace, dry rot, asbestos insulation, lead in your water pipes and so on, are potential deal killers. A good pre-marketing inspection can reveal all these problems. Asking prices aren’t sales prices. If your house needs significant repairs, you will pay for them one way or another. You can have repairs done before the sale, reduce your asking price to reflect the cost of repairs or give buyers an escrow credit to do the work themselves. Remember, buyers will always ask for more dollars than the repairs may cost.
Professional property inspectors can help you spot minor defects such as dirty filters in the heating system, ventilation problems in the basement, garage or crawl space, blocked gutters, loose door knobs, stuck windows, a missing chimney hood or spark arrester and so on. Eliminating minor maintenance problems like these gives prospective buyers who tour the property a favorable and correct impression that your house is exceptionally well maintained.
The inspector alerts you to the health and safety precautions you should take. Install smoke detectors and ground electrical outlets, and keep flammable products away from furnaces, heaters and fireplaces. These examples make your house safer for the next owner and safer for you as long as you continue living there.
Locating house inspectors is usually relatively easy. One good source of property inspectors is your real estate agent. Ask for a list of property inspectors who perform only property inspections. Good professional inspectors earn their living solely from inspection fees and do not do corrective work.
While caveat emptor (buyer beware) is still generally the law in Georgia, there are three situations where a seller of residential real estate can be held liable if they fail to disclose defects in the property.
The Georgia Association of REALTORS® developed a unique tool to help a seller disclose defects in the property. It is a list of questions relative to the physical condition of the seller’s property called the Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement. The GAR contract provides that this form becomes a part of the sales contract and assumes that the buyer will see this list before making an offer on that particular property.
Sellers are not obligated to complete this form since we are still a caveat emptor state, but the seller should be aware that:
Not all homes are created equal and neither are all REALTORS®. What sets Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty apart is our dedication to the highest level of performance for our clients. The marketing of your property is of utmost importance. Our marketing plan aims to touch every possible prospect for your home through internet promotion, direct mail and focused distribution of information to agents in your area.
It has been reported that over 95 percent of all first inquiries regarding real estate are through the Internet. Therefore, we have placed critical importance on the use of both technology and fundamental applications to ensure you the most satisfaction throughout the process of marketing your property.
We have developed a comprehensive media campaign to introduce your property to the market. It includes direct mail to neighbors and past clients and email promotion to agents in the community who are most likely to have clients interested in your property.
Teamwork is a vital component of a successful campaign to sell your home. Your responsibility is to make sure that your house is in the best showing condition possible before we begin our promotion and advertising. We can assist you with a checklist of important details and the names of resources to help you complete any needed repairs.
Effective marketing with consistent promotions is the key to success. In selling real estate, there needs to be a comprehensive strategy designed to attract buyers to your property. At Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty, marketing your property involves more than just an ad in the paper, a sign in the yard and waiting for a buyer. In reviewing the various forms of marketing, the internet has been proven to be a very effective means of marketing your home. Research by the National Association of REALTORS® shows that nearly 100% of all home buyers use the internet to shop for their home. Rather than tackling the complicated buying process alone, 89% of internet home shoppers worked with a real estate agent. Therefore, we will use a comprehensive plan to promote your home to colleagues throughout the area to expose your home to the most buyers.
There are numerous manufacturers of synthetic stucco. A group of Wilmington, North Carolina, building officials implemented an extensive study of hundreds of homes clad with synthetic stucco. They found that many of the homes studied had problems with moisture in the wall cavities, contributing to the decay of structural lumber.
Synthetic stucco is a type of Styrofoam sheeting glued and nailed to the structural sheathing (usually plywood) on the home’s exterior, with a factory or field-applied fiberglass mesh installed over the outer surface, then finished with two to several coats of the stucco-like material. Properly installed, the system is waterproof. The coating is waterproof not only on the outside but also on the inside. Water cannot get out if it gets behind the coating through a breach. As long as the system is properly installed, it is effective.
The most common sources of water entry are joints between sections of synthetic stucco and dissimilar materials, unsealed bottom edges of foam, gaps around decorative trim, and windows and doors that need to be flashed and caulked. Water intrusion can lead to swelling, loosening and buckling of the foam substrate, as well as cracks and general deterioration of the foam and coating. Continued water intrusion may lead to water stains on interior walls and eventual decay of structural lumber in the leakage area.
Louisiana Pacific is a national manufacturer of building products and hardboard siding. A national class-action lawsuit was filed against the company’s “premium-grade” of siding, called “Inner-Seal.” A trained eye may be able to identify the product because it has an embossed wood grain surface with a randomly located, small, embossed 2.25-inch knothole design. The siding is constructed of thin wood wafers bonded into planks with resins. The bottom edge of the installed siding is rather rough and porous. The siding is usually installed with seven inches of the width of a panel showing varying lengths.
Consumers and home inspectors report observing water damage to the siding. The wafer construction of the siding seems to increase the potential for rainwater to be absorbed by the material at butt joints, joints with other wall materials, nail holes, joints with window and door frames and at the bottom edges. When the material absorbs moisture, it swells, separating the wafers and encouraging more water absorption, leading to decay and damage. Much of the damage appears to result from improper installation of the siding, e.g., improper nailing, lack of flashing over windows and doors, improper caulking and failure to paint the bottom edges properly. Additionally, homeowners may not have adequately maintained the siding, mainly neglecting caulking and painting the bottom edges.
Radon is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas, but it can be harmful when inhaled in large quantities. It comes from the natural decay of Uranium that is found in nearly all soils. Radon is especially high in areas where granite is present. Atlanta sits upon a large reserve of granite.
The gas emitted from decaying Uranium enters a house through small cracks and openings. It typically moves up through the ground and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation.
Your home traps radon inside, where it can build up. Any home may have a radon problem. This means new and old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements. The good news is that testing is inexpensive and easy.
Contact your agent or state radon office about obtaining a list of qualified testers. You can also contact a private radon proficiency program for lists of privately certified radon professionals serving your area. For links and information, visit www.epa.gov/radon. EPA believes that any radon exposure carries some risk - no radon level is safe.
Lowering high radon levels requires technical knowledge and special skills. You should use a contractor who is trained to fix radon problems. A qualified contractor can study the radon problem in your home and help you pick the right treatment method.
Numerous homeowner complaints have been lodged about leaks experienced with polybutylene water piping. This type of plastic piping has been used for several years but is fading from the construction scene in light of the adverse publicity.
The material is seen in two forms in residential properties: a bright blue piping used underground from the street water meter to the house and a medium gray color piping used inside the house.
There are numerous opinions as to why the material is defective. However, two theories predominate. One theory is that if the piping is stored outdoors for some time or exposed to sunlight after installation, ultraviolet light alters the chemistry of the plastic, causing it to deteriorate. The second theory is that chlorine in the water attacks the plastic chemically, causing deterioration.
While there is no maintenance of the piping required of the homeowner, the reality is that most in- house leaks occur at the pipe joints caused by improper installation of the clamps. However, numerous homeowners have had to replace the blue pipe buried in their yards and, upon digging it up, have reported observing the deterioration of the pipe itself, lending some credence to the theories about chlorine and sunlight contributing to pipe decline.
Interested in learning more about selling? Our free Seller's Guide provides valuable insights and practical advice to help you navigate the selling process with confidence.
Our team’s unprecedented professionalism, skill, and attention to detail has allowed us to set sales records for the past 30 years. We will ensure your buying or selling experience exceeds your expectations.
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