Private real estate sale through for sale by owner should get a lot easier during spring. Real estate buyers are usually out in force during spring so as a for sale by owner seller sprucing up your property ahead of a Spring sale can do your real estate marketing campaign wonders.

Private real estate sale and for sale by owner sellers often overlook sprucing the exterior of their property. A for sale by owner needs to understand that when selling real estate they are trying to sell a dream about what it is like to live in the property.

If a property buyer is looking for real estate in spring then most probably they want to spend their summer having bbqs, by the pool or drinking a cocktail not landscaping gardens, painting the house or trimming the hedges. These tasks should be performed by the private real estate sale and for sale by owner before the property is placed on the market.

With the large range of homeware and renovation shops located across Australia means many of the materials needed to spruce up your property can be purchased cheaply. Ikea stocks everything “including the kitchen sink” at unbelievably cheap prices. Lets have a look a few things which can be done to revitalise your property and give it that edge over others:

• A fresh coat of paint - This makes a surprisingly big difference to the look of a property
• New door fittings – Nice new chrome fittings make the property look modern
• New light fittings – These get easily outdated so something modern will do wonders
• New tap fittings – Kitchens and bathrooms have a big impact on buyers decisions.
• Floating floorboards – Are the current trend and are cheap and can be installed yourself.
• Plants/Flowers – At the front door and in the front garden. They don’t have to be expensive just the cheap seasonal flowers will make a big difference.

All of these things can be performed by any property owner and at a reasonable cost which is well worth the investment given the improved look and feel your property will have.

You should attend open home inspections in your neighbourhood investigating competing properties which are on the market around you. This will give you insight into two important things, the first is how your property is priced compared to similar properties and the second is how your property is presented in comparison to similar priced property.

It is important to make sure that if your property is one of the most expensive properties in the neighbourhood you can justify why it is worth more money. Your property could be worth more money because it:
• Is presented better than others
• Has extra features such as a bedroom or pool
• Is in a better location or has views

No matter what you do you can never alter or change the last point. You can change the second point but invariably it will be costly and is usually something you do when you decide not to move but renovate your property. The first point is something you can control and something which allows you to ask that little bit more for your property if it is presented professionally and most importantly is better than competing properties in your neighbourhood.

I won’t go into detail about how your property should be presented or the various aspects of your property you should address when preparing it for a sale. You can see this information in this article on Property Preparation which I wrote a few months ago, all the essentials regarding how you can prepare your property for sale are outlined.

Most of the points discussed in the article above can be performed yourself and are quite cost effective involving a small amount of effort. You can also gather ideas from properties you inspect and use the presentation techniques found in these properties for your property. Even if you can’t get a particular area of your property as good as a competing property, any improve you make will reduce the gap between the competing property and yours which is a step in the right direction towards selling your property.

A point to remember is. Putting emotions to the side, if you can realistically justify to yourself why your property is priced more than a competing property than you will have no problem convincing a property purchaser why they should purchase your property.

The first impression a potential buyer has of your property is what they see from their car when they drive past it in the street. It is essential that the exterior of your property is presented as immaculately as possible. This will create a strong positive first impression of your property and will impress potential buyers passing by. If potential buyers are disappointed with the exterior presentation of your house they may choose not view the property at all.

Once the potential buyer is out of their car and at your front door then the next challenge commences. The potential buyer will now conduct a thorough interior and exterior viewing of your property. Potential buyers will look at all the finer details of the property and look for signs that things are broken, not functioning, leaking, cracked or dirty. Once potential buyers find a default in a property they may question the overall standard of the property. Flaws in your property reduce your bargaining power and weaken your property listing price. This is why it is so important that you focus on the presentation of your property and do not overlook any minor faults it may have. Make sure you do everything in your means to make your property perfect.

Home Improvements
The first step involved in preparing your property for sale is to assess your Property Appraisal and the positive and negative features listed for your property. Any negative features which relate to the physical appearance of the property need to be addressed when preparing your property for sale. In particular, you need to assess which of the negative features can be improved. Perhaps you can get a tradesman to come in and fix the roof up, or lay some new grass, even replace the carpet in the lounge room. Any improvements which will take time need to be addressed as soon as possible so they can be completed before the property is placed on the market.

Note: Before you commit to any significant improvements to your property, you need to make sure that the money you spend now will be sufficiently recovered when you sell your property. A common ratio which is used for home renovations is that for every $1 you invest in improving the property now should result in $2 extra when you sell the property.

Clear Clutter
The next step in preparing your property is to go through your belongings including furniture, clothes, toys, kitchen utensils, and any other clutter around your home and dispose or store things which you no longer use. The reason for this is that buyers are attracted to properties which have a lot of space, so clearing clutter will improve this. This may also have the added benefit of reducing your moving expenses as you will have fewer things to move into your new property. There are a number of ways to dispose of unwanted goods including; having a garage sale, donating them to charity, giving them to friends or placing things in the rubbish.

Clean
The third step is to perform a thorough clean of your property from roof to floor both internally and externally. This is one of the major determinants leading to a successful sale of a property and should not be overlooked by any property owners. Below is a checklist of tasks which you should make sure you perform while cleaning your property:

External
• Make sure all your lawns are trimmed, neat, tidy and preferably green.
• Make sure all hoses, sprinklers, lawn mowers, bikes and toys are packed neatly away in your storage area. Any rubbish needs to be disposed of through your local council.
• All gardens should look neat and tidy and all weeds should be removed. If your garden lacks colour you can plant some bright flowers.
• Make sure all overhanging trees are trimmed and nothing inhibits the house.
• Make sure all gates, fences, entertainment areas, verandas and the like are clean and tidy and have been oiled or painted.
• Clean all guttering and remove leaves from roof. Dust and wash down the roof eves making sure all cob webs are removed.
• Wash all windows on both the inside and outside making sure they are crystal clean. Make sure they function correctly and that fly screens are in tact.
• Paint the property if needed otherwise make sure all walls are clean.
• Make sure the front door, door bell and front door lights are all working. Make sure you clean or paint the front door frame. You can even hire some pot plants to place at the front door.
• Clean the driveway and all other hard surfaced areas.
• Make sure the letterbox is clean and functions correctly.

Internal
• Make sure all leaking taps, cracked windows, mirrors, broken doors, holes in walls, stains in carpet are removed as these are things potential buyers do not want to see.
• Make lots of space in your property by rearranging the furniture.
• Wash all walls and ceilings making sure all marks are removed. If necessary re-paint areas which still do not look clean
• Have your carpet professionally cleaned along with any rugs or door mats.
• Wash all curtains and drapes making sure all dust is removed.
• Check all doors in the property making sure they open and close, are not squeaky and doors knobs and locks work.
• Make sure everything in your bathroom functions and nothing leaks water or makes unusual noises. Clean the bathroom making sure all mould is removed.
• Remove unnecessary things from your cupboards and wardrobes so they look spacious.
• Open curtains and blinds along with windows allowing light and fresh air to pass through your property.
• Make sure you have dusted all walls, ceilings and all furniture.

Once you have performed all the above tasks you will have a property which will be professionally presented to potential buyers.

Disclaimer: All information provided in this blog does not come with any guarantee in relation to its accuracy. This is our opinion in relation to issues relating to the real estate industry. Privatepoint or its employees will not be help liable for any liabilities, expenses, losses, damages or costs, that may be incurred by you or a third party as a result of or in connexion with use of this information.

Step 1 – Property Appraisal
To effectively prepare and market your property for sale you need to perform a property appraisal. A property appraisal is a private document outlining the positive and negative features of the property. This appraisal will enable you to focus your marketing on the positive features while developing strategies to overcome the negative aspects of your property. The property appraisal will also help you decide the market value and listing price of your property as discussed in the article on Property Pricing.

The property appraisal can be performed by yourself or alternatively you can contact an agent who can complete this for you (be aware that after the appraisal the agent will continue to contact you in an effort to gain your listing). This article on Property Appraisal provides an easy step by step guide on how you can perform a successful property appraisal for your property.

Step 2 – Legal Obligations
All properties which are offered for sale require a Contract of Sale. A Contract of Sale is a legal document which must be available for potential buyers to read when they inspect your property. We strongly recommend that you seek the services of a Solicitor or Conveyancer to prepare the Contract of Sale and oversee the signing of the contract along with the settlement of the property. Alternatively, there are online conveyance services available which you can use to create the Contract of Sale yourself.

You are also legally obliged to inform your mortgage provider of your intention to sell your property. We recommend that you also inform your insurance provider that you are planning to sell your property as you need to ensure that your property is covered by insurance during the sale process.

Step 3 – Preparing Your Property
Making sure a property is presented professionally is an essential aspect in the sales process. You need to look at the property through the eyes of potential buyers and evaluate which features of the property they will find most attractive and which features they are likely to find unappealing. Sellers must learn to highlight and emphasise the attractive features and improve upon or minimise the exposure of undesirable features. For a comprehensive guide on how to professionally prepare your property for sale, read this article on Property Preparation.

Step 4 – Pricing Your Property
Setting the correct listing price for a property is an extremely important and strategic part of selling a property. As an owner you must decide the best possible price for your property, without overpricing or underpricing the property. Determining the correct listing price is critical to efficient property sales for the following reasons:

• If a property is overpriced it won’t sell and will sit on the market for an extended period of time costing you an increasing amount of money.
• An overpriced property will scare away potential buyers and narrow your target market.
• If the price must be reduced after a period of time, buyers will realise that the property was overpriced which will undermine your bargaining power .
• If a property is under priced it will sell quicker but you will be forgoing valuable profit.

This article on Property Pricing outlines the steps involved in you successfully estimating the market value of your property and selecting the best listing price.

Step 5 – Advertising & Marketing
One of the biggest mistakes property owners make when attempting to sell real estate is not having an effective advertising and marketing strategy for their property. You don’t need to spend an exorbitant amount of money on advertising. Property sellers instead need a marketing strategy which provides the most exposure in a cost effective way. A combination of a For Sale sign, internet advertising, and marketing material including letter box flyers, brochures and e-brochures are the most successful and cost effective means at your disposal.

This article on Advertising & Marketing provides a summary of advertising and marketing techniques which are commonly used in the real estate industry.

To read about how to prepare yourself and your property for inspections read this article on Property Inspections.

Step 6 – Negotiating the Sale
The negotiation of the agreement of sale includes the negotiation of the terms of offer which consists of the price, any special conditions and the proposed settlement date for the sale. For further details read this article Negotiating the Sale which provides a brief explanation of the process and a few tips to successfully undertaking this important step.

Step 7 – Exchange of Contract, Deposit & Cooling Off Period
Once you and the purchaser have decided on the terms of sale, your solicitor will draft any special conditions that need to be included in the Contract of Sale. Both party’s solicitors will then oversee the signing and dating of the Contract of Sale by you and the purchaser. Each party will then be given a signed copy of the Contract of Sale.

The purchaser is now required to pay a deposit for the property which will usually be held in your solicitors trust account. The deposit is usually 10% of the sale price but is often negotiable depending on the cooling off period selected.

After the Contract of Sale has been exchanged the buyer usually has a cooling period during which they can retract from the Contract of Sale. Each state has different rules relating to Cooling Off Periods which can be found at your state or territory regulatory body.

Step 8 – Settlement
Prior to settlement the buyer will perform all formal inspections including completing a building/pest inspection report to ensure the property is per the Contract of Sale. The settlement date is usually between 30 to 45 days after the exchange of contracts but is negotiable. On the day of settlement the buyer will perform one last inspection of the property making sure everything is as per the Contract of Sale. If the buyer is happy with everything theywill then provide you or your solicitor with a cheque for the remaining amount of money owed on the property. Transfer papers will then be exchanged and the buyer will be given the keys to the property.

Disclaimer: All information provided in this blog does not come with any guarantee in relation to its accuracy. This is our opinion in relation to issues relating to the real estate industry. Privatepoint or its employees will not be help liable for any liabilities, expenses, losses, damages or costs, that may be incurred by you or a third party as a result of or in connexion with use of this information.