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There are few certainties in this world, but there are surefire ways to sell your property faster regardless of market conditions. These strategies have been proven time and time again. So, if you’re thinking of selling this year, take a good look at these recommendations:

1. Clean and tidy up. Making your home “guest ready” is the easiest way to ensure buyers are impressed during a viewing.

2. Declutter. The more spacious your home looks, the more impressive it will be to buyers. You can box items and give them away, sell them or put them in storage.

3. Price it right. Deciding on the right listing price is crucial. If it’s too high, you’ll discourage otherwise qualified buyers from seeing your home. If it’s too low, you might send the wrong message to the marketplace.

4. Optimize curb appeal. The better your home looks from the street, the more buyers will become interested. Curb appeal is important because it’s the first impression a buyer makes, and that impression lasts.

5. Stage your home. You don’t necessarily need to replace all the furniture. However, studies consistently confirm that a well-staged home sells significantly faster than a comparable un-staged property.

6. Leverage the latest marketing and selling tactics. You want the marketing of your home to bring in the most qualified and interested buyers. You then want sales strategies that turn those buyers into offers and negotiation skills to turn the right offer into a sale.

Keep these proven strategies in mind when putting your home up for sale.

Remember the last time you were in a furniture store or other major home retailer? Remember the fully decorated displays of furniture, appliances and other products? Some of those may have even been organized as model rooms.

What did most of those displays have in common?

Chances are, they were well lit.

In fact, in the retail industry, there are professionals who specialize exclusively in display lighting. It plays such an important role in showcasing and selling home products successfully that the stores are willing to absorb the expense.

The same holds true for your home.

If you want to show your home well, and sell it quickly and for the best price, make sure every room is well lit.

There are probably some rooms in your home where the lighting is adequate, such as the kitchen and bathrooms, and perhaps the foyer. But there are other areas where the lighting may be mediocre. Take a close look at:

• Closets
• Storage areas
• Bedrooms
• Laundry rooms
• Hallways
• The garage

If there are areas in your home that are dark or shadowy, the solution may be as simple as installing higher wattage bulbs, provided your fixture can accommodate them. Keep in mind that brightness can vary significantly from one type of bulb to another. Your goal is to make the room feel bright yet comfortable on the eyes.

Also, don’t forget to open drapes and blinds. Often the best and most pleasant source of light for a room is the sun shining through a window.

New countertops have always been a major contributor to kitchen makeovers, and the range of choices has never been greater. Beyond laminates and tile, or natural stone, wood and bamboo, some durable acrylics have become quite popular.

But, there are also newer composite materials that offer advantages which might make them an ideal compromise between natural and synthetic countertops. Generically known as solid surface, engineered stone or quartz composite, they go by many different brand names, and have unique features not found in other surfaces.

For example, they tend to be harder and more durable and stain resistant than traditional countertops, because they are formed with a combination of natural materials and synthetic bonding compounds. The solid-surface types appear seamless, are made of about 2/3 mineral powders and 1/3 resin, and are available in a range of pigments and designs that sometimes mimic nature (e.g., white marble). The quartz types are closer to 90% natural stone fragments with about 10% resin, so they are even harder by comparison, although the range of pigment and design options is narrower.

Nowadays, with so much to consider, it’s wise to consult a countertop expert about your material options and installation costs.

When you purchased your current home, chances are it was a good match for your lifestyle. It had the space you needed, the features you wanted, and a location that worked for you.
But for most people, lifestyle and needs evolve through the years. Kids get older. Jobs or careers change. People take on new hobbies and other interests.

As a result, the home that was ideal a few years ago may not fit with your current lifestyle.

That doesn’t necessarily mean you need to shop for a new home! However, it may mean that it’s worth taking a look at the market and seeing what’s possible.

Think about the kind of home that would support your lifestyle today. Ask questions like:

• How many bedrooms do we need?
• How easy is it to travel to work each day?
• What special features do we want in our home? (Big backyard? Rec room? Quiet area?)
• What do we want nearby? (School? Playground? Walking and biking trails? Shopping? Entertainment? Golf?)
• What else does our home need in order to support our lifestyle?
• After asking yourself some of these key questions, ask other family members for their opinions too.

You may, in fact, find that the property you have now is still ideal for your lifestyle.

If, however, your home is no longer a good fit, you have options. You can stay in your current home despite it no longer being ideal; you can make some changes (a renovation, perhaps); or, you can see what’s available in the housing market.

If you need help with any of these options, call today.

There’s an interesting psychological characteristic of clutter. We tend to notice it more in other people’s homes than in our own. In fact, we may not even realize a room in our house feels cluttered and uncomfortable to visitors.

That’s why making each room look neat and spacious is so important when you’re selling your property.

Although the task may seem daunting at first, decluttering is relatively easy to do.

The simplest technique is to box things. You’re going to move anyway, so boxing makes sense. You can store the boxes of items you’re keeping in your garage. If you have a lot of boxes, renting short-term storage is an option.

When decluttering, you’re bound to come across items you no longer need or want. You can create separate boxes for items to trash, donate, or sell online. Deal with these right away, so they’re not included in your stored boxes.

An uncluttered home shows dramatically better to buyers. When they see a cluttered space — even if it’s neatly organized — it creates a reason not to buy. So, declutter your way to a faster sale at a higher price!

Want to save money in 2025? There are many money-saving opportunities — including tax savings — that you can realize if you take action before the year ends. Here are just a few examples of what to consider:

• Do you own a business? Even if it’s just a side-hustle to make extra money, you can save on taxes if you make planned purchases this month. For example, if you need a new printer, buy it in December. That way, you may be able to take a deduction this year.
• Check your subscriptions. Many types of subscriptions — publications, online apps, memberships — automatically renew in December. If you subscribe to something you no longer want, cancel it this month. Otherwise, you might be stuck paying the renewal fee.
• Review your investments. Sit down with your advisor and go over your investments and other savings. You may be able to take advantage of year-end opportunities. Also check for investments or financial instruments that may be set to automatically renew this month.
• Watch for price hikes. It’s common for companies to raise prices at the beginning of a new year. Review your bills for announcements of fee increases. Some of those may be negotiable. You might also want to make other changes to reduce the impact.

Taking time this month to review expenses and investments could save you a bundle in 2025. It’s worth the effort!

Usually, a home inspection is done after an offer is made to buy a home. The offer will typically include a condition that the property must pass such an inspection. The buyer then hires the inspector, who goes through the home, top to bottom, inside and out, looking for issues.

However, you can also get an inspection done as the seller. In this case, you are paying for an inspector to produce a report on your home — before you sell. In fact, this is often called a pre-sale home inspection.

Why would you do this?

A pre-sale home inspection can make your property more attractive to buyers. This is especially helpful if you’re selling in a buyer’s market, where there are more homes like yours for sale than there are buyers. The report serves as an enticing feature of your listing because it reassures buyers that there are no unknown issues.

So, getting a pre-home inspection is something worth considering. For a buyer deciding between your listing and another home for sale, it can be a determining factor.

Imagine you find a home on the market that checks all the boxes. There’s only one issue. It needs work. Perhaps the paint has faded, or the kitchen is old, or there are repairs needed.

Should you make an offer on that home? That depends on many factors, of course.

The first thing you should consider is whether or not the home is otherwise ideal. If it has everything you want — location, size, style, number of bedrooms, etc. — then you may only be a few improvements away from a real gem.

You should also consider how much those improvements are likely to cost. Cosmetic projects — such as painting, replacing light fixtures, etc. — tend to be more affordable. In many cases, those projects are also DIY-friendly. However, major improvements, such as upgrading the kitchen with new countertops, sink, and cabinetry, can be expensive.

Fortunately, homes that need work don’t show as well as pristine listings. So, the cost of doing the improvements you need might be offset by getting the home at a lower price.

The bottom line is, buying a home that needs work is definitely worth considering.

When you sell your property and buy your next dream home, closing day can come faster than you might imagine. Before you know it, it’s just weeks away! So it’s important to make the proper plans to ensure everything goes smoothly.

Here are the most common plans you’ll need to make:

• Contact the post office to get your mail forwarded. No matter how thorough you are in updating your address with companies you deal with regularly, you’re bound to miss a few. Using the mail forwarding service will ensure you get that mail.
• Double-check that your home insurance will be transferred on closing day, so your new home is covered from day one. Also, don’t forget to update vehicle and personal insurance (medical, life, etc.)
• Make arrangements with utility companies – phone, electricity, heating, etc. – as soon as possible. Remember, you might be closing some accounts and opening new ones. That can take time.
• If you are upgrading your internet at the new home, a visit from a technician might be required. Make that appointment now.

There may be more arrangements to make before closing day. Create a checklist to make getting it all done easier and less stressful!

Is it really possible to improve your kitchen’s look for about the cost of a takeout gourmet dinner with the family?

Obviously you’re not going to be able to do anything major, such as replace the cabinets within that budget. But, there are many surprisingly low-budget ways to spruce up the kitchen. Here are a few ideas:

• Do you have old cabinets? You’d be surprised by how much newer they can look simply by replacing the knobs and/or handles. Pick a style that blends, rather than contrasts, with the cabinets.
• Does your sink have a few stains? That’s not unusual! There are special cleaning products available to get out the toughest stains without damaging or scratching the sink’s finish.
• Lighting can have an enormous impact on the look and feel of a space, particularly the kitchen. Experiment with new lighting ideas. Try different bulb wattages. Consider a new lighting fixture that looks good and distributes the light more pleasantly.
• Often you don’t need to upgrade anything – you just need to do a little redecorating. Consider new window coverings. Declutter to create a greater sense of space. Play with design touches such as placing trendy cookbooks on the counter, adding a plant, or putting an attractive fruit basket on the counter.

Sure, depending on your choices, some of these ideas may cost you more than $100. However, any of these low-budget improvements can make your kitchen look considerably more attractive.

You’ll notice the difference. And, if you’re selling, so will buyers.