How to Sell Your Home More Easily: It’s Essential to Have Empathy and Put Yourself in the Buyer’s Shoes!
It’s clear—you have to put yourself in the shoes of someone who might buy the property. “What potential buyers are interested in are the spaces, not your furniture or private life,” explains a real estate agent. In short: “Remove those heavy curtains, clear out the massive antique wardrobe from your bedroom, create light and space, and highlight the strengths of your home. With just a few small changes, visitors will definitely have a whole new impression when walking through the rooms of the house.”
The ‘Home Staging’ Technique
In essence, it’s the home staging technique. It helps sell faster and at a higher price. It’s a form of real estate marketing. Concretely, this technique is based on a few basic principles: decluttering, depersonalizing… In other words, you need to provide a neutral decoration so that anyone can easily imagine themselves living there. This will positively influence the selling price. The goal is to appeal to as many people as possible through neutral décor, which involves decluttering the rooms, small repairs, new arrangements, fresh paint, tidying up, and cleaning. It’s estimated that home staging can help sell or rent a property faster and with up to a 15% increase over the average market price. The reason is simple: most potential buyers cannot look past the existing décor and atmosphere of a house or apartment. The idea is to give the necessary neutrality so that anyone or any family can visualize their daily life in the space.
Meeting Buyer Expectations
Beyond that, you need to meet the expectations of potential buyers by placing your home in the right category. The basic characteristics of different property types (row house, two- or three-façade house, detached house, duplex apartment, penthouse, loft, etc.) are obvious. But within these general categories, differences remain. A spacious and detached countryside home, a villa, will stand out by the number of bedrooms or bathrooms; a row house by the garden size; and an apartment by whether or not it includes a parking spot and/or terrace. You need to highlight your property’s features in line with current trends. One example? Since the lockdowns, real estate professionals have seen strong demand for countryside living. Clients everywhere are seeking properties with gardens.
Define an Objective Value and a Fair Price
Define an objective value. To determine the price of your home, you have several basic criteria: year of construction, location, architectural style, and other comparable properties for sale in the area. The memories you associate with your home may be priceless to you… but the future owner doesn’t share them! Therefore, those memories must not influence the asking price.
The fair price. One final piece of advice: propose a fair price when selling your home. On average, individuals overestimate the value of their property by 10%. The home or apartment then fails to find a buyer, stays longer on the market, and ultimately loses value. Those who want to avoid this pitfall can consult a real estate agent. An independent expert can help set an objective value. That expert will offer a balanced valuation based on market conditions. Because if a real estate agent overprices a property, it won’t sell. And if it’s underpriced, the agent earns less. Real estate agencies typically charge a 3% commission when a property is sold.
Visit our services page to discover how Ateliers Thomquin can assist you with your interior and exterior renovation work, or painting before selling your property.
Source: www.maconstruction.be
