6 Ways To Spruce Up Your Long Island Home For An Open House

Written by Posted On Friday, 14 December 2018 05:23

Your home reflects the love and attention you have poured into it over the years. Colors and furnishings that make you feel at home may not be as attractive to a prospective buyer. When you prepare for an open house, consider how it looks from a buyer's perspective. You can easily augment what you have or make minor adjustments to improve its marketability.

Our real estate agents have compiled a list of six straightforward steps to spruce up your Long Island home for an open house.

#1 Clear away the clutter
This can be an excellent opportunity to begin purging in anticipation of a move. Pack up your personal trinkets, photos, and other items that you don't use on a daily basis. Clear off the countertops and coffee table. You want buyers to see the home, not the stuff. Store the boxes neatly in a closet or the garage.

#2 Clean the house thoroughly
This step takes extra effort on a daily basis, but it pays off. Keep the bathrooms sparkling. Wash the windows. Clean behind the refrigerator and under the sinks. Potential buyers may check those areas prior to making an offer.

#3 Add a warm touch to the front entryway
Curb appeal is so essential. A potential buyer may drive right by the "for sale" sign if the front entryway says "stay away." Add some inviting touches and color.

#4 Freshen the décor
A little paint will cover scuff marks on the walls and make your home more saleable. Consider some warm neutral colors rather than bright accents to make your rooms look clean and fresh.

#5 Consider space and furniture
This can be part of your de-cluttering efforts. Now is the time to remove old, unused furniture that has grown roots in its space. Rearrange the remaining pieces and focus on traffic flow. You can make your rooms appear larger and more spacious with careful placement of your furnishings. Our agents can advise you on furniture placement to optimize the impact on potential buyers.

#6 Eliminate unpleasant odors
The smell that potential buyers encounter can linger for a long time. The emotions that those smells evoke can be pleasant or unpleasant. If you have pets or smoke, take time to clean the carpet with a deodorizing shampoo. Painting the walls may help with cigarette odors. Some paint stores sell scent packets to add to the wall paint prior to application. The scent is time-released and can be a worthwhile investment in prepping your home for its open house. A time-honored method of creating warm, inviting aromas is to bake cookies or bread, boil cinnamon, or light scented candles. Do whatever you can to keep the air smelling clean and fresh.

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Laffey RE

Laffey Real Estate is Long Island’s largest independently-owned family real estate company with 16 offices in Nassau, Suffolk & Queens Counties. Headquartered in Greenvale, New York, Laffey and its wholly-owned subsidiaries provide all of the tools and resources that buyers and sellers of residential real estate need to experience a smooth and timely closing.

www.laffey.com

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