Selling Your Home, Part 3: Preparing Your Home

De-Personalize the House

Removing personal items is a very important step in painting a picture for potential buyers. This might seem strange since it means removing things like family pictures, sports trophies and collectible items. It really is best to pack them up and put them in storage.

Remove Clutter

EVERYTHING that is not regularly used needs to go into storage. This can be a difficult thing for you to realize since clutter does not necessarily mean junk, but years of everyday living. Clutter does collect on shelves, counter tops, drawers, closets, garages, basements and attics. Your goal is to showcase your home and emphasize spaces and designs. ALL areas need to be clutter free. Don’t forget knick knacks!

Fixtures and Plumbing - Plumbing and fixtures throughout your house should be shiny and work properly.

Painting and Wall/Ceiling Repairs - Painting can be your best investment when selling a home. It’s not too expensive and often can be done yourself. White and off-white appeal to the widest number of buyers, while expanding spaces. In many cases, it’s better to remove drapes and let the light come in!

Carpets and Flooring - Have carpets professionally cleaned and all stains removed. Repair or replace broken tiles and hardwood floor cracks.

House Odors

If you smoke, anyone entering your home will know immediately. If you follow our suggestions on painting, carpet cleaning and a professional service for a one time clean, then the majority of smoke odor has been removed. Pets also create odors that you have become used to, but are very noticeable. Keep the kitty litter box clean and sprinkle carpet freshener on rugs.

Selling Your Home, Part 2: Listing Your Home

Most of us think we know what our house is worth, but do we really? A professional appraiser can determine the proper value for your home. If you list your home at the appraised value or very close to it, you will eliminate a lot of the competition. Homes priced right are the first to sell in any neighborhood!
A more traditional way of determining value is to ask your realtor to perform a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA). Have two to three Realtors perform a CMA and give you a presentation on how they will market your home.
This is extremely important for several reasons:
· A home priced right sells quickly
· It generally gives you the highest net dollars
· Relieves you of the stress of selling
· Frees up your time to purchase your new home

Selling Your Home, Part 1: Hiring Professionals

In today’s volatile market, it takes professional experience and tools to most effectively sell a home. From inspection and appraisal to marketing and closing the deal, professionals can sell your home for more and save you time and stress to concentrate on your new home purchase!

Appraiser
A Certified Independent Appraisal Company performs a full appraisal of your home to indicate its market value. This is the same type of appraisal done for banks and mortgage companies. This report will substantiate current market conditions and home value, saving you a great deal of time on the market place in finding a buyer.

Realtor
Choosing a realtor is perhaps the most important decision you can make when selling your home. A few tips :
· When interviewing potential Realtors, ask each the same set of questions so that you can compare their answers
· Better to not choose a friend or family member to market your home
· Check referrals and others in your neighborhood who have used the Realtors’ services
· Do not tell the Realtor what you think your home is worth - rather ask them to tell you what they think its worth
· Have all marketing plans for selling your home put in writing
· Always use a Realtor that is a member of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS)

Inspector
A licensed home inspector will inspect your home thoroughly in much the same way that any potential buyer will do. Identifying and fixing problem areas can make your home more attractive and prevent possible pitfalls in the negotiation process.

Foxfield decor

For those of you building your fox collections at Foxfield, check out Horse and Hound. I particularly like the following, all from Horse and Hound, a needlepoint pillow, letter holder, stained glass artwork and coktail napkins.

Foxfield

In case you haven't heard, Foxfield has won some major awards recently. We won three Best of 50+ Housing awards, including silver awards for Best Overall Community and Best Model (the Booth). Pretty exciting!

Four-legged Friends

In honor of our four-legged friends, here are some cool products to help them meet their new neighbors.

Stash your leashes on these cute puppy dog tail hooks from Ikea.

I like the anti-slip material on this food and water dish also from Ikea.

Finally, I couldn't resist sharing this Jeff Gordon doggy wear for all of you race fans living at Champions' Club!

Champions' Club

Check out...

Located in Magnolia, Delaware, Champions' Club is just 7 miles from Dover, Delaware. Residents of Delaware enjoy low taxes and in a McKee community that translates into the financial freedom to spend on YOU! Put in the gourmet kitchen you have always dreamed of, go on a safari with a loved one, take flying lessons! With the extra cash in your pockets and time on your hands, thanks to our maintenance-free living, it is YOUR time to shine!

To learn more about Champions' Club, click here.

Grandchildren in New House

It occurs to me that the first time your grandchildren/nieces/nephews visit your new home, you are thrilled, but also possibly anxious about your freshly painted walls!

Consider this Melissa and Doug easel from Olliebollen on sale for $29.95. It looks sturdy, cute and will keep the crayons off of your walls.

Welcome to Our Blog!

We thought we would try blogging...

With a blog, our customers can learn more about The McKee Group and stay conected before, during and after their home's construction. For the most part you will hear from me, Jennifer McKee, Director of Communications. I will routinely ask others from the company to guest blog.

For now, I intend to blog about a large variety of topics. We could cover everything from selling your house and downsizing to decorating a room for grandchildren and the newest restaurant opening in Garnet Valley. I will ask some of our construction professionals to guest blog as well so that our readers can learn more about the building of a McKee home.

Thanks for reading!