PREP YOUR HOME FOR SALE DURING COVID - Guest Post
Hello Friends!
Welcome to 2021 - A Seller’s Market! Finally!
Home prices are rising as supply is limited, interest rates are low, building materials are backordered and inflated, and people are restless from staying home! That means it’s a great time to sell….but it also means more people touring your home and more difficulty mitigating the risks for Covid-19. If you are retirement age and looking to move on to your next stage in life, the risk is higher.
Fortunately, Bob Shannon from Seniorsmeet.org, is here to help guide you through selling your home during this hot market, but also provides us with great resources to help prep your home during a pandemic. He also shares market-ready ideas to ensure you get a top offer. Read on for great tips for a great selling experience!
A Quick How-To Guide for Prepping Your Home for Sale
If retirement means a smaller home or moving to a new locale this year, the time will come to put your home on the market. These days, selling a home is more involved than it used to be. And when it comes to attracting potential buyers, you need a plan, one that helps them imagine living happy, healthy lives in your home.
Preparing your home for sale means setting buyers up to have such a pleasurable experience inside and out that they leave feeling like your home is already theirs. If you aren't sure how to go about the process while dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak, then these tips and advice can be a great way to start.
Prepare for Pandemic-Related Challenges
The landscape of selling a home has significantly changed the entire process from start to finish.
How to Sell Your House When There's a Pandemic
Virtual Tours Become the New Norm in Selling Homes
Transaction Guidance During COVID-19
Contactless Buying: Closing Real Estate Deals Remotely
Clean and Declutter
Clearing out your home, staging it and keeping it clean are crucial parts of this process even if you won’t be having in-person showings.
Free Yourself From Clutter | A Simple Guide
Work with Haymount Homes Staging Services
How to Maintain a Clean, Healthy Home During COVID-19
Why You Should Hire a Professional Cleaning Service When You Move
Boost Curb Appeal
Even though people aren’t attending showings or touring homes, they will still drive by, and you’ll want to make a great first impression.
Increase Your Curb Appeal and Get a High Return on Investment
8 Easy Yard Care Tips to Help Sell Your Home
Top 32 Best Curb Appeal Ideas for Every Budget
Outdoor Living Spaces on a Budget
Find Upgrades with Great ROI
If you’re in a position to make updates or upgrades prior to listing, see what people are looking for and discuss options with your real estate agent.
7 Kitchen Trends That Will Takeover in 2021, According to Designers
How a Bathroom Remodel Can Increase Your Home Value
40 Decorating Tips for Anyone on a Shoestring Budget
Use Kohl’s or Macy’s Coupons to Save on Home Decor
Selling your home in retirement can be an exciting adventure, but it’s one that no one wants to last too long. Prepping your home for sale, from remodeling kitchens to landscaping your gardens, is your best chance of standing out in a busy market.
If you’re not keen to sell your home, consider turning it into a rental so you can generate income you can put toward a new home or vacation spot. Haymount Homes can teach you how to be your own property manager, and help guide you toward offering a beautiful rental.
Retire Big For A Simple Life
Moving to Fayetteville? Resources to help you unpack - Guest Post
Reduce the stress of moving to Fayetteville with easy resources!
Happy Sunday, Y’all!
Are you moving to Fayetteville or know someone that is? Our friend Kristen Louis @parentingwithkris has done us a favor and compiled a great resource list with links to help smooth the moving transition.
The challenge of moving is hard enough, but when you add re-organizing your life into the mix, it only gets harder. Not only are you trying to minimize the stress of moving and the impact it has you and your family, but you also need to quickly figure out what services you need….or even where the darn grocery store is. It can be overwhelming and time consuming.
Fortunately, Kris Louis, from Parentingwithkris.com, has a wonderful game plan for busy people who are trying to minimize the drama of relocation. Following her tips (even just some of them!), can really help ease the work and the stress of moving to Fayetteville. Read on for her ideas and strategies that are sure to decrease the stress and hopefully increase your sleep during your move! If you want more tips from Kris, please be sure to visit her website! While the list is not fully comprehensive, it is certainly a good start and time saver for you.
WELCOME TO FAYETTEVILLE - WE’RE GLAD YOU’RE HERE!!
-Casey
8 Types of Resources That Can Make Your Move to Fayetteville, NC Go Smoothly
Buying a new home and moving to a new city can leave anyone feeling exhausted. If you’ve been dealing with offers, paperwork, closings, and moving prep, you may not have any energy left for anything else once you are moved into your new home. If you want to get settled in faster, however, you may need to take care of a few more tasks before you begin relaxing. For folks that are moving to Fayetteville, this list of local resources can make completing those moving checklists less of a hassle, so your new city feels like a home much faster.
Keeping Your Lawn & Garden Green
A bright and tidy lawn can brighten up your spirits, so here are a few top garden resources for you to consider:
Local plants near Fayetteville, NC
Lawn Maintenance & Mowing Services in Fayetteville, NC
Organizing & Decorating Your New Home
Keeping your home tidy can also help you feel less stressed, and these cleaning and organizing resources can certainly help you out:
11 Ideas for a Clutter-Free Home
10 Best Places to Buy Organizers (Besides the Container Store)
Professional Decorating Help near Fayetteville
Self-Storage Units in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Finding Care for Children & Pets
Whether you need a date night or your dog walked, these directories will help you find the help you need for your human and furry children alike:
Daycare or Preschool — What's Best for Your Family
Find a Babysitter in Fayetteville, NC
Directory of Pet Businesses in Fayetteville, NC
Find a Local Pet Sitter in Fayetteville, NC Online
Looking for Deals at Local Stores
Moving can be expensive, but shopping the discounts at local retailers can help you save some stress, cash, and time:
Moving soon? Save Hundreds with These 21 Housewarming Discounts
The 7 Best Supermarkets in Fayetteville
Add Coupons to Your Grocery Card
Searching for Self-Care Services
You’re going to need to unwind after moving into your perfect new home. So treat yourself to a local yoga class or spa session:
The 7 Best Gyms in Fayetteville, NC
Enrolling Children in Local Schools
When the new school year starts, these resources will help you find a welcoming place for your child to learn and grow:
Cumberland County Schools Enrollment
Moving Your Business
If you are a maker, a consultant, or a small business owner and plan to bring your business with you, here are some tips on how to ensure a smooth transition:
North Carolina LLC Instructions
Marketing Tips for Business Relocation
How to Update Your Online Presence
Hooking Up Essential Services & Utilities
Your new house isn’t a home until you can take a hot shower and surf the internet in peace. So use these links to connect your basic utilities:
Fayetteville Public Works Commission
Cumberland County Public Utilities
Feeling at home in Fayetteville can take some time, but it doesn’t have to require a lot of stress. Use the links, resources, and tools above to ease this transition, and you will feel like a local in no time. Congratulations on your new home, and welcome to Fayetteville!
Photo Credit: Rawpixel
Selling your home? How to keep it clean for showings - Guest Post
Reduce the stress of keeping your home clean for showings - especially if you are a busy parent!
Happy Sunday, Y’all!
We have a hot real estate market for a change, which is welcome news for all of us. However, that can lead to additional stress with last minute showings and narrow time windows. How is a busy family supposed to keep pace? The last thing you want is your potential buyer scared away by greasy dishes, dirty bathrooms, and that lingering “what smell is that?” feeling!
The challenge of keeping your home clean is hard enough, but when you add kids into the mix, it adds another layer of complexity. Not only are you trying to minimize the stress of moving and the impact it has on them, but also they have stuff…like lots of stuff…and it seems to reproduce on its own. I am pretty sure every room of our home has at least 3 nerf gun darts, 3 crayons, and who knows how many legos stashed around. What’s a busy parent to do?
Fortunately, Kris Louis, from Parentingwithkris.com, has a wonderful game plan for busy parents who are trying to sell their home. Following her tips (even just some of them!), can really help ease the work and the stress of selling your home. Read on for her ideas and strategies that are sure to decrease the stress and hopefully increase your offers! If you want more tips from Kris, please be sure to visit her website!
-Casey
How Busy Parents Can Keep Their Homes Looking Clean and Clutter-Free for Real Estate Showings
Image via Unsplash
You may be wondering how you’re supposed to keep your home looking clean and organized for realtor showings while you’re still living there—especially when a typical day consists of food messes, sticky doorknobs and walls, and dirty paw prints on your hardwood floors and carpeting. But with a few smart strategies, even busy families can be ready when house hunters call. Here’s what you need to know.
Upgrade Your Household Products
Cleaning is obviously going to take a starring role in your daily life for a while, and when you’re busy parenting, working, and attempting to sell your home, there are a few household products that will help keep things simple when you’re short on time or preparing for a last-minute showing. For instance, a robot vacuum can keep your floors clean and free of crumbs, pet hair, dirt, and dust—even on days where you don’t have time to run a traditional vacuum cleaner.
If your realtor contacts you about a last-minute showing, however, you’ll need a tool that’s on deck for quick tidy-ups. As such, a stick vacuum may be an excellent investment—especially if you’re looking for something lightweight, cordless, and easy to operate. Some will even convert to hand vacs, which is a serious boon in any busy family household.
Lastly, purchase an apron with large pockets in the front and store your essential cleaning supplies in them. This way, you can grab the apron in a hurry and get to cleaning your home in no time.
Focus on the Areas That Matter Most
After working with Haymount Homes to stage your home beautifully, your next step is keeping it that way. But with kids and pets in the mix, you’ll need to take a few minutes out of each day to clean, organize, and keep up on household tasks—such as cleaning the kitchen, bathrooms, and entryway to your home.
By moving much of your personal belongings into storage, however, you’ll make life a whole lot easier before showings—especially if you only keep the items that you and your family use on a daily basis. SmartBox Moving and Storage recommends pulling extra furniture, personal things like mementos and photos, and taste-specific decor. With these things out of the way, buyers can focus on your house, and you’ll have more elbow room for breezing through those speed cleaning sessions.
If you receive a call about a last-minute showing and don’t have time to clean the entire home, Redefy Real Estate recommends taking a few minutes to focus on the kitchen, bathrooms, and main living areas. Deodorize the home, wipe down the counters, fixtures, and mirrors, move dirty dishes into the dishwasher, and re-arrange throw pillows and blankets in all living areas. Then, turn on the lights, open the blinds or drapes, take out the trash, and head out the door before your potential buyers arrive.
Set a Few New Household Rules
As you show your home to potential buyers, you’ll keep your living areas clean, organized, and clutter-free if you establish a few ground rules for your family to follow. On showing days, for instance, avoid cooking odorous foods like broccoli, cabbage, eggs, or fish, and skip messy breakfasts like pancakes with syrup. You might even want to prepare make-ahead breakfasts that aren’t messy and are easy to grab and heat.
Moreover, you’ll keep your home cleaner if you banish food from all areas except for the kitchen table. Then, have everyone load their dishes into the dishwasher immediately after they finish with a meal or snack. To minimize kitchen messes, however, you may even opt for disposable plates, cups, and silverware when showings are scheduled.
Lastly, you’ll reduce clutter throughout the home if you set a new rule that requires your kids to put their personal belongings away after each use. For storing these stray items, purchase empty baskets and bins that can easily be hidden away during showings.
As you can see, living in a home that you’re trying to sell can get complicated—but there are a few things you can do to make it more endurable. Select a few smart tools, enact strategies with simplicity in mind, and get everyone involved. With these tips in mind, your home will stay clean and show-ready—and you’ll manage to keep your sanity while you sell your home.