Minor repairs make your house easier to sell, allowing you to maximize your return or minimize loss on the sale.

• Most buyers are looking for a house in good condition that they can move into straight away.
• Buyers who are willing to do the repairs after moving in automatically take the cost of this work off the price they offer.
• You save nothing by not doing necessary repairs, and you may slow down the sale of your home.

Buyers probably won't even come inside your home if they do not like the look of it from outside.

• Many buyers drive past a house before deciding whether or not to look inside.
• The outside of your house will have less than a minute to make a good first impression.
• Mow the lawn, trim shrubs and trees, and weed the garden. Clear paths and drives of leaves and other rubbish.
• Repair gutters and eaves, touch up the exterior paint and repair or resurface cracked drives and paths.
• Place flowers in pots and/or hanging baskets at the front of the house near the door.

Buyers will not hesitate to walk out of the front door within 60 seconds if the house doesn't look and feel as if they could make it their home.

• Most buyers are looking for an inviting home they can move into straight away.
• Spending some money for necessary work on your home before you sell it usually makes sure you get a better price and sell more quickly.
• Your estate agent will advise you which repairs and replacements are most important to get a sale at the right price.

Do not get carried away with repairs and replacements to your home, as you may end up over-improving the house.

• Be careful that the cost of your improvements does not exceed the amount of additional money they will bring in when you sell. Make sure your improvements to not raise the value of your home too far above that of other similar houses in your area, as you may not get your money back when you sell.
• You cannot expect improvements to increase your sale price in excess of 20% than that for a comparable home in your neighbourhood whatever you do or spend.
• Your estate agent can advise you as to improvements that will raise the value of your home when you sell.

Offering flexibility in financing options may encourage more prospective buyers.

• Consider offering to pay some of the sellers completion costs or include a one-year home warranty, or other buyer incentives.
• Your estate agent can advise about incentives for buyers

Results are poorer for sellers who attempt to sell their homes on their own and find they cannot complete the sale without the help of an estate agent.

• Sellers who sell their home without a real estate agent often do not get the best price for their property.
• As your home is probably your biggest asset it makes sense to take the professional advice of a qualified estate agent when you want to sell it..

Prospective buyers will feel more like the house could be theirs if the current owners are not there.

• If you are in the house during a viewing it can make buyers feel like they are intruding.
• They need to be able to visualize your house as their home. This can be difficult when you being around reminds them it is still your home.
• Your estate agent will be pleased to show people around your home and will know when to leave them alone to look and talk by themselves.

If you approach the sale of your home as the buyer’s adversary, you risk losing a perfectly solid buyer for no good reason.

Both you and the buyer have the same goal: for you to sell your home and for the buyer to buy it. Work with your real estate agent to approach negotiations positively and with a win-win frame of mind.

You should reply immediately to an offer!

When a buyer makes an offer, that buyer is, at that moment in time, ready to buy your home. Moods can change, and you don't want to lose the sale because you stalled in replying.