Selling a home is a tricky undertaking. As the seller you have a responsibility to make sure that the home and property are in top-notch shape in order to improve the presentation of the property as a whole. It is hard to sell a home that is not properly presented and the goal here is to sell the home as quickly as possible. Getting the home itself and the rooms in order will be another article, this piece will focus on getting the property itself into shape and getting the yard into selling condition.
The yard is usually a fairly big place so it's good to break the jobs up into portions that you can tackle at one go. This of course; is different in the case of building a new fence, painting the house or other large jobs. Now, the lawn is likely one of the largest jobs that you will have to take care of so let's get that out of the way first.
Start by giving it a good cut & trim to make sure it looks good. If there are any bare spots you may want to re-seed them and follow up with a good watering and then fertilizer. Well kept lawns form a critical part of the overall picture of a property and can really make a yard look great, or messy if it is not tended to properly. After the lawns are taken care of let's consider the driveway and entranceway. This is going to be one of the first things that any buyer sees when arriving at your home so we should give special attention to this area. If your driveway is suffering a bit from the stress of cars and weather abuse, try recovering the area with an asphalt surface. This will make it look much newer and more welcoming to discerning buyers. Also consider the rest of the home's front as that will form a huge part of the first impression that buyers get of your home. A good measure for any home before selling is a new paint job. This can help to cover any bare patches or areas where the current paint job has faded over the years. Also make sure that the gardens (if there are any) are tended, weeded and planted with nice flowers.
Now take a step back and try to look at your home like a buyer would. Does anything stand out? Are there any negative things that you may have missed. Are the windows clean and clear? Is the walk swept and free of dirt and leaves? Are the hedges or bushed trimmed neatly? All these things may seem small but when considered as part of the greater picture they have huge significance.
