Remember, first impressions always make difference. If you like to strive for the highest possible price for your valuable property. Consider, few key areas to focus on when preparing your home for sale:

1. Pay basic repairs - One of the biggest turn-offs for buyers is wear and tear such as chipped tiles, cracked windows, scuffed paintwork, stained carpets, and other obvious signs of damage. These unsightly areas instantly alert buyers there is work required, which can diminish their initial enthusiasm for your property and lower the price they are prepared to pay.

Discuss with your agent which areas you should overhaul before holding open homes. You want to ensure you are increasing appeal without overcapitalising.

2. Clean and declutter - Study other houses currently on the market and you will see they have been decluttered, cleaned thoroughly, and may even have been styled to look modern and pristine.

Removing lots of clutter makes the prospective buyer able to see the room properly while more importantly, making the room appear larger.

Cleaning the house, even hidden areas such as under the sink, makes the house look well-cared for. This gives the buyer a subliminal impression that the house has been well-maintained and there should be no hidden problems.

3. Stagging your home – Stagging or styling is another instant facelift that can give your property a fresh look which appeals to buyers. You can hire a stylist to take care of this for you or hire furniture and accessories and do it yourself.

How to fix up a home before putting it on the market.

If you’re handy and have good DIY skills, you can undertake many of the small jobs around the house yourself, bringing it to peak condition and ready for sale. If not, you can hire a local handyman to help you.

Walk through the house with a notepad and create a list of all the areas which need improvement.

Let’s start your own initial assessment to check:

• Front fence - Is it in good condition? Does it need vines pulled away, a paint job or repairs?
• Front lawn - Is it lush and tidy?
• Pathway - Are there cracks that need to be fixed? Would paving paint give it a nice facelift?
• Front door -Is a new door required, or does it need to be painted?
• Windows - Are they clean and do the surrounds need filling or painting?
• Facade - Does it need to be pressure-washed or repainted?
• Interior walls - Are they all looking pristine or freshly painted in neutral tones?
• Architraves - Are they chipped, dented, or need new paintwork?
• Flooring - Are the carpets clean and in good condition? Are there floorboards underneath which can be polished?
• Kitchen - Are the cabinets in good condition? Would painting them improve and modernise the space? Would replacing the benchtop make it look contemporary? Does the splashback need to be replaced?
• Bathrooms - Are the tiles in good shape? Does the grouting need to be cleaned or replaced? If the tiles are dated, would they be better painted with tile paint?
• Laundry - Is there ample storage and useful counter space?
• Back yard - Are the plants trimmed and garden beds weeded? Would planting some flowers and pots of colour add some wow factor?
• Pool - Is it clean, properly fenced, and surrounding areas furnished with an inviting setting?

These are some of the areas to consider revamping to create a positive impression of a well looked after house. Talk to your agent about any areas needing improvement, but make sure you don’t overcapitalise.

Consider value adding UPGRADES

Not all renovations will increase your profit margin when you come to sell your property. Some projects will cost more than they will ever return. So, what are the most lucrative projects to add value to your home and give you the best outcome?

1. Exterior - Buyers get the first impression of your home from the exterior. Grab their attention with fresh-looking cladding materials or colours on the facade. Make the home more visually appealing by painting the trims, gutters, fascia and bargeboards. Replacing the front door with a modern door can add a wow factor while painting the existing door adds a pop of colour. Simple landscaping can also make your home look more appealing. Ensure the front garden is tidy, lawns mowed, and flower beds weeded and mulched. Modernise, repair or paint fences, awnings, porticos, and porch details, and consider adding a new house number and letterbox to update the exterior. If there’s no fence, consider adding one along the front boundary to add definition.

2. Kitchen - The kitchen, being the heart of the home, is important to buyers. Giving a good impression here could make the difference in a great sale price. You don’t need to replace the entire kitchen, as this can be expensive, and you may risk overcapitalising. Instead, look for ways to bring your kitchen up to date. This could include painting timber and laminate cabinetry, changing the tapware and adding on-trend lighting to modernise the space. Ensure your appliances are in good working order and are clean.

3. Bathroom - Buyers prefer bathrooms to be modern with clean and stylish fixtures and fittings. Although it is easy to overcapitalise here, easy facelifts can make the difference. Replacing the taps and shower head with modern, good quality tapware is an easy update. If the tiles are dated, they can be painted with tile paint for an instant revamp at little cost.

4. Repainting - A fresh coat of paint always gives a home an instant lift, so choose neutral but modern colours. Have consistent colour shades throughout the house to create a modern flow-through effect, as opposed to jarring colours in every other room.

5. Outdoor area - Buyers love indoor-outdoor living as an extension of the house. Creating a well-designed all-weather area can help buyers can imagine themselves living here and enjoying the lifestyle it offers.

6. Neat and tidy backyard

A backyard should be well-maintained and ideally have an entertaining area.

Should you stage or style your house before the sale?

Having a home that does not present well could end up costing you in the long term, so target the styling to showcase your property’s selling points.

An empty house or apartment looks cold and uninviting while a poorly furnished one is a turn-off too. But you can alter the perceptions of your property easily with staging.

Home staging involves bringing furniture and homewares in to create a space that appeals to a broader market. Styled houses not only look more appealing, but they also photograph better – a bonus in today’s competitive market.

You can hire a professional home stager, or if you have an eye for design, you can do it yourself. You must take the emotion out of the equation and look at your home as a prospective buyer would. Fresh, modern, clean, and bright should be your aim. Let's talk to ensure you are getting the best outcome.

Final Inspection or Pre-settlement inspection checklist

As settlement approaches both seller and purchaser excite and start the preparation. Seller prepares the property to hand over on settlement and purchaser plan to takeover. To avoid any nasty or unexpected surprises, it is highly recommended to schedule the pre-settlement inspection which is usually 1- 4 days before settlement happening. 

We also know it as the final inspection, this step is a crucial one – especially if someone has been living in your new home since you signed the contract of sale, as this makes it more likely that the home won’t be in the same condition as when you bought it, which it’s required to be.

Should you go to the FINAL INSPECTION or Pre-Settlement Inspection?

Honestly, we highly recommend scheduling the final inspection to avoid any nasty surprises or any blame game on each other (seller and purchaser). The reasons you should conduct a final inspection include:

To ensure furnishings and appliances haven’t been removed from the premises. The most common items that are often removed from the premises are appliances like dishwashers, microwaves and telephones. Often light bulbs are removed and batteries are taken out of remote controls. That’s why it’s important to not only check that the fixtures and appliances are still in or on the property, but also that they are in working order.

To ensure nothing is left behind from the previous owner like old furniture or rubbish. You also don’t want them to have forgotten anything precious to them.

Make sure everything is in working order. Items can break down from the date of purchase to settlement. It’s important to have these items fixed before moving in.

Damage to the property can occur when the vendors move out of the property. Walls can be damaged or floors can be scratched. A little bit of wear and tear is to be expected, however, if there is major damage that was not visible when the house was first inspected, or after the building inspection, take photos of the damage and give these to your solicitor.

Your solicitor may be able to negotiate a reduction in the house price or get the vendors to fix the damage. This is why a final inspection is so important. If the damage had been found after settlement, the cost to repair would be from your wallet and that’s not fair to you.

When to inspect?

Each state has different laws regarding pre-settlement inspections. Some, like Victoria, stipulate that buyers are entitled to inspect the property at any reasonable time during the week before settlement.

Before settlement, call the selling estate agent to book a Final Inspection usually 2-4 days before. By this time usually vendor vacate the property and is mostly ready in the handover state.

It’s best to do it several days before settlement, too, so that the vendor has time to make any necessary repairs.

Who should inspect the property?

You should conduct the final settlement inspection yourself with your family and real estate agent even invite the seller so notes can be taken or any minor thing can be discussed to avoid any issue. 

What to inspect or your checklist?

Your primary checklist should include but not be limited to:

• Rooms, Floor and all area
• lights and electronics
• plumbing
• water heaters
• air conditioners, evaporative cooling and heaters system
• door handles and locks
• Kitchen appliances like Stove, Oven, Cooktop or dishwasher
• Bathroom – Shower or tiles etc
• Laundry / Toilet / Sinks
• curtains and blinds
• windows and glass
• pool and spa filters
• check for pests
• smoke alarms/letterbox / doorbell
• light fixtures including pendants
• landscaping features (properly maintained)
• garage door (check that works + remote)
• rubbish bins (check that present and in good condition)
• any items that may have been governed as part of the sale including display furniture.

You should check that the property is in good condition, that all rubbish has been removed from the site, and that any special contract conditions have been met.

If the property is in a worse condition than when you exchanged contracts – for example if there’s a new hole in the wall, broken window or burst water pipe – you can ask the vendor to make repairs accordingly and MUST report to your Conveyancer and Estate Agent to protect your interest.

Apart from that, you should ensure the property is clean and tidy… MOSTLY, the seller needs to do professional cleaning (Steam Cleaning throughout) and that all special conditions included in the contract of sale have been met.

You should also bring the contract of sale with you so that you can make sure the property contains all the items the vendor agreed to leave (inclusions) and is free from all the items the vendor agreed to take away (exclusions).

What should you do if you find a problem?

If you find something is broken or in a worse condition than it was during the first inspection, the purchaser MUST raise it with their legal representative immediately.

They will try to negotiate it as a special condition on the contract, which means the vendor must fix it before settlement or equivalent compensation amount MUST be withheld until that issue is fixed or if it cannot be fixed before settlement then the sale price can be reduced to cover the cost of repairs.

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