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20 - Real Estate: The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday February 8, 2006 The condition of your home: Learning to showcase for a successful sale The first five minutes are critical in selling your home! It has been said that buyers make up their minds in five minutes, then spend the rest of the time rationalizing their decision. The closer you can bring your home to impeccable move-in condition, the eas ier it will be to get the best price for your home. Home-buyers inspect many houses, all within the same price range. They begin making value judgements from the moment they drive up to a house. Their first impressions begin with the yard, the driveway, and the front door. Once inside, buyers can feel the pride of ownership of an attractive, well-maintained home, or its absence. If you are buying a car, and see two cars of equal performance, equally mechanically sound, and both priced the same, yet one is impeccably clean, and the other has nicks and scratches, dirt on the doors, and a couple of miss ing floor mats. Which one do you choose? How much does the dirtier one have to be reduced in price before you will consider buying? Quite a lot. A car is for a few years. How much more, then, a house? So showcase your house. Here are nine steps to make your house ready for viewing. Attending to them can make a difference of literally thousands of dol lars in the market value of your proper ty. buyer who is starting to make judgement from the moment they step out of their car. Is the front yard clear of toys, tools, building supplies? Is the lawn and the shrubbery's property cut and attended to? Are the flowers blooming? Are there oil stains in the driveway? Is the barbecue dull and rusty, or bright and black? 2. The exterior of the house. Is the paint fading or chipping? Is there any mildew or mold? If the paint needs a new coat, the most important place to freshen up is the trim and the front door. If the paint is new, then have the exterior of the house and the decks, pressure washed. 3. Inside the house. Go through your house room by room and pack up 30 per cent of the accessories. The family who wins the Housekeeping award probably sells their house first. The cardinal rule is this: The way you live in a home and the way you sell a home are two dif ferent things. Remember, you are in competition with all the other properties your prospec tive buyers are looking at'Look at it this way. You are going to move anyway, so just consider this advance packing! Remove as many items from your stor age areas as you can, and hang clothes neatly and tidily. And any furniture which might be a bit too much for the room. - 4. Tctke a look at the paint. If painting is required, use flat latex and neutral colours. Make sure wallpaper is clean and up to date. If walls are dirty, experi ment to see if scrubbing them is easier than painting. Repair cracked plaster, loose door knobs, crooked light fixtures and faulty plumbing. 5. Now, make your house sparkle. If you do not have the time or the inclination, hire someone to thoroughly clean the house. Clean windows inside and out, curtains and drapes, and appliances. Have your bath rooms scrubbed to pass a white glove inspection. If tubs or sinks are discoloured, have them re glazed. Re-caulk the tub and DAN COOPER Real Estate ...The Bottom Line Nine steps to start with: 1. Start with the outside. Look at your front yard through the eyes of the LYNN O'GRADY Sales Representative r o y a l lepa g e $ 4 2 4 ,5 0 0 Really sharp 4 bdrm on m ature College Park crescent. Lots of upgrades includ ing roof, furnace, pool liner & pump, hardwoods, windows, massive lot & inground pool, part. fin. lower, beautiful decor & impeccable. Call Lynn'today! This 3 bdrm gem will be totally gutted top to bot tom. Stunning maple kitchen with granite break fast bar, potlites, hardwoods, 3 baths, gorgeous deck, main floor study, fin lower level, 2 fireplaces, everything done, one block to the lake. Call Lynn today for private showings ready in March, can still choose some finishings. Sales Representative Burloak Real Estate Services INDEPENDENTLY OWNED & OPERATED Spectacular "Arts and Crafts" Totally amazing renovation/ addition by "Englelake" as seen in Canadian House & Home. Totally loaded, master with 5 piece ensuite. One of a kind home with best of finishes throughout. 5 bedrooms, 3 baths. shower if necessary. And above all, make sure you get rid of all your kitchen odours. 6. Pets out of sight and out of smell. If you have pets, you need to get rid of pet odours. And the pets themselves should be kept out of the way, and out of the house during showings. Make sure you hide away all litter boxes and feeding bowls every time there is a showing. 7. Now, tackle the basement. The basement is the catch-all area where everything goes that has no place else to go, so it's usually a mess. Don't forget, buyers are liable to be just as interested in the basement as they are in the rest of the house. So try and straighten it out and clean as much as you can. You might consider a coat of paint for the walls, or even the floors. 8. Finally, straighten out the garage. Empty as much An Independent Member Broker as you can from We are. a husband & wife team dedicated to providing B the garage, hose the most positive real estate experience for our down the floor, clients! We help you ... Get Informed ... Wmf ** paint the walls if Get Prepared ... To Sell or Buy your Home! 114 ^ necessary. Call Oliver Today! If your garage Ania Matas Oliver Matas is neat, it reflects Real Estate Salesperson5 Email: oliver@realcstateoliver.com Home staging Consultant** on the way you take care of your home. 9. When buy ers come to visit. Open all the cur Oakville^VS 13774, $369,900 Oakville, W 820387, $338,500 Oakville, W 811064, $434,900 RECENTLY ON THE MARKET! · East Oakville! NEW PRICE! Near TVafalgar & tains and blinds Near Upper Middle & 3rd Line! Well maintained on a quiet tree Upper Middle Rd.! (closed at night). Upgraded and meticulously clean, lined crescent. Walk to schools & Just move in! This home is This West Oak Trail beauty shows parks. Call Oliver today or click exceptionally well maintained, Turn on the to perfection. Call Oliver today or `Hot Properties' on my website Call Oliver today or click `Hot lights. click `Hot Properties' on my for more details. Properties' on my website for website for more details. more details. If rooms are dark, or your www.reaIestateoliver.com * Registered Real Estate Salesperson of Sutton Group Realty Systems Inc. ** A free consultation is provided by Ania with every listing with Oliver! lighting is dim, replace the bulbs with higher Exclusive South East Oakville wattage. The television should be off, but a little soft back ground music helps to set the tone. Leave the house for the Sales Representative realtor to show it. $409,000 Outstanding location on "quiet cul de sac. Situated on an irregular lot Looking to Buy Dan Cooper is approx. 65 x 95 with mature trees this lovely bungalow awaits your cre or Sell a Home? ative touch. Roof, furnace and air-conditioner have been updated. Main an award-winFor dedicated level has hardwood floors, 3 bedrooms and lower level is suitable for ning associate many uses including rental. Call today for additional details. professional help call me at broker with Royal College Park- Renovated Condo Townhome 905-8454267 LePage Real (24-hr pager); visit my $192,500 First time buyers Estate Services website or email me - don't wait - renovated Ltd. Dan can be thru-out - replaced windows, roof, furnace, air-condition reached at 905royallepage.ca er, carpets, light fixtures, 338-3737, direct www.frangarrett.ca upgraded kitchen, w/mirrored backspash & ceramic line at 849-3360, President's floor, neutral decor, walkout GOLD or through his from LR to new deck. i Award J Finished basement with 2 pc web site at www. washroom. Call for a private r o y a l le p a g e dancooper.com. tour today. A FRESH APPROACH TO REAL ESTATE! 905 896-3333 FRAN GARRETT