Part III - Spring Forward Ideas

April 15, 2007

Okay, so the last episode was mostly about cleaning the inside stuffed parts of your life, so this week I thought I would speak more about what you may or may not be doing in the yard, landscape, or the patio. So here goes:

You’re going to need to stage certain parts of your home this fall when you go on the market, so here are some things to consider-

Austin may be weird, but yeah… your home shouldn’t be- unless it is the neighborhood standard.  REMOVE THE LAWN ORNAMENTS!  I cannot say this enough, so incase you missed it the first time- REMOVE THE LAWN ORNAMENTS! And yes, this includes the statues in the landscape.  It may be cute to you, but one man’s cute is another man’s grandma- just in case, if you have plastic on the sofa, lose that too!

The patio or deck: Get rid of the clutter, make a place similar to your living space, i.e. extend your living room outdoors.  Open it up, make it inviting by adding things such as planters that will convey in the sale, a nice patio set, a barbque pit (you will get better pricing on these types of items towards the end of the summer)- things that will show potential buyers a larger living area that includes the backyard.  Remember, many first home buyers have never had a yard of their own, and this will be a very large part of their buying decision.

The windows:  It is time to make those repairs to screens and caulking around your exterior windows.  This brings me to another point… do you have a glaring sunlight problem in some of your windows?  It may be time to fix it with some fresh tree plantings. Remeber, it does not take a a giant tree to create shade, but also remember not to kill any possible view with a short tree.  Position the tree with plenty of room to stretch out and watch that nothing too large is planted too close to the foundation- this is a conversation for you and the local nursery.

Shutters:  Did you buy a home that would look good with a nice pair of shutters?  Did you know that this can be done for around a 100 bucks per set?  This one adjustment could add a lot more than that to the bottom line of curb appeal.  Trust me, the curb is where the money is made.  Look at the profile of your home, and picture it.  Need help?  Take a good photo of it, and head down to the Depot to get a second opinion.  Seriously folks, this is a one day project that could bring your home from shabby to chic!
Know your buyer tip of the week; and folks, this is a biggy. Look up!  Do you see those cheap, brass colored fixtures?  If you said yes, I’m speaking directly to you!  If you have about a day, and a couple hundred dollars, you could seriously set your home well above your neighborly competition.  It does not take a rocket scientist to replace those lights, nor the door knobs on your interior doors, nor are the replacments very expensive.  The “in” color right now is gun metal or gun barrel, depending on what your particular hardware store may call it or you could just go stainless or brushed nickle.  The makers vary, and so do prices, so shop around.  And don’t forget the front door.  If you took my earlier advice in Part I, you’ve already painted the front door; wouldn’t it look great with new hardware too?  This can cost anywhere from 59 bucks to $300, so shop around for the most economical option (don’t cheap out and skip the kick plate).  It does not take a lot of investment to bring a return.  And folks, if you’re afraid to mess with electricity, please call a professional.

The last item of the day is staining the concrete.  I want to begin with a warning however; stain means exactly that- it will stain the concrete, so plan well.  This has become very popular and well loved by all who dwell in and around Austin, but it has its limits.  I highly recommend you NOT stain your driveway.  All this does is make your driveway stand out as opposed to your hard work on the landscape (not to mention your HOA may choke and fine you big time!).  Leave that to the buyers.  However, staining the landing of your entry is a definite plus.  Leave the fancy patterns to the pros- more than likely you’ll end up staining over the pattern anyway because you cannot get it perfect.  If you have not stained your back patio, you should add this to your list.  But back to the landing- you’re creating drama here. The landing ties into the landscape, surrounded by your gorgeous lawn you’re working on now.  Done correctly, this can add thousands to your bottom line.  Last but not least, use a local pro or get advice from your local hardware store- these guys know what’s in and what’s out and can advise you in a popular direction on color, wear and tear, etc…  Staining is about a 1.5 day project spread over about 4 days.

See you next weekend for more tips and ideas!

Happy Selling!

That Real Estate Guy

Posted by Benn, Single Pointe CEO | Filed Under Austin News, Blog, Other Stuff, Selling 

Comments

One Response to “Part III - Spring Forward Ideas”

  1. Cara Davis on December 10th, 2007 5:11 am

    ok dude…I’m citing your blog for an essay. If you could get back to be as soon as possibly you would most certainly become my hero. Thanks much.

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