Tag Archives: selling your home

How to Boost the Selling Price of Your Condo

Buying a property is both a big hassle and excitement, but selling one is too. If you’ve been thinking of selling your home and upgrading to a larger place, it’s essential to make arrangements and have a prepared checklist to follow. Since buying a house is one of the most important steps in one’s life, you should look for ways of getting a higher profit moving forward. After all, the goal of any property investment is to increase its value if you eventually decide to sell. So, if you are wondering how to boost the selling price of your Condo, stay tuned.

What are things that increase the value of homes?

Fortunately, there are a variety of home improvements that help in boosting the value of the property you want to sell. In addition, you can follow simple and low-cost tips and tricks to sell your house for a more significant profit. For example, you can use your social media to attract potential buyers. Engaging and creative social media content is low-cost or free (if you get self-educated), and can bring in many viewers to your property.

On the other hand, some serious investments and upgrades will definitely pay off. Therefore, we covered both areas to help you choose which improvements work best for you and your Condo.

How to boost the selling price of your Condo low-cost

Although the tips you are about to see are low-cost, they will make a massive difference in how your property looks. Therefore, following these tips will increase its value. Some of our top budget-friendly home improvements that increase the value of a home are:

  • deep cleaning
  • painting
  • adding a curb appeal
  • fixture changing
  • staging the property

Do a proper cleaning

A clean and tidy home will get you the best possible price. This step counts for both inside and outside.

Firstly, focus on all the commonly used and visible places, but remember to pay attention to the hidden corners you can’t always see. For example, get behind the fridge or stove and move the furniture to clean what lies underneath.

Another thing to count in this step is decluttering, which also goes a long way. Remove your personal possessions and family photos, remove the keys and medicine from the counters and make everything depersonalized and tidy.

Add a fresh coat of paint

Painting your walls is an easy DIY project that you can do on a limited budget. A fresh coat of paint makes any place look modern, fresh, and appealing.

how to boost the selling price of your apartment is by giving it a fresh coat of paint while having the right painting equipment
You will be amazed by what difference a fresh coat of paint can make.

In addition, before giving your walls a new look, you should examine them for any visible signs of damage. These small improvements will make your Condo look brand new without many innovations.

Change the fixtures

A simple and sometimes neglected house innovation that definitely counts is the fixtures. You will add a new dimension to the place by replacing the doorknobs and cabinet handles, light switch covers, and light fixtures. 

Stage your Condo

This step includes decluttering, which we mentioned earlier, and proper furniture arrangements. Don’t forget the amount of furniture is also crucial since you don’t want the place to feel cramped. Also, remember to make each room functional, which helps potential buyers imagine themselves in their new home.

Moderate and high-cost tips

Since the number of homes for sale is increasing, you want to make sure you make yours stand out. Investing a moderate or high sum of money in some of these renovations will undoubtedly add significant value to your property. So, if you are wondering how to boost the selling price of your Condo, these are the tips:

  • windows or door change
  • change of flooring
  • kitchen or bath updates
  • property renovation

Change doors or windows

Apart from the stylish looks, new doors and windows can make your home more energy-efficient, eventually leading to affordable household running costs. 

Installing new doors or windows can help reduce noise, allow more natural light to come in, and help lower heating and cooling bills.

Replace the flooring

Another thing buyers will look at is the flooring, even if it sounds strange. 

a kitchen with an island table in the middle and high chairs on a wooden flooring
More carpets are being replaced with wooden flooring.

Hardwood floors are the all-time favorite. Any potential buyer will expect the flooring to be contemporary, durable, clean, and stylish. Therefore, it would be a good investment if you have the finances and time. 

It would also be a good idea to use the renovation period for your own relocation. After all, you don’t want to be living in a home you are trying to sell while having to pack and having repairmen in it. To avoid the chaos every moving season brings, it would be good to plan your relocation process and find the best crew for the job. This way, seasonal movers will ensure everything goes smoothly and nothing is slowing down your relocation.

Kitchen or bath updates

The kitchen and bathrooms are known to leave the biggest impressions on home buyers. After all, these are the most widely used rooms and should create a good impression.

A clutter-free white kitchen with a large white island
How to boost the selling price of your Condo is by investing in kitchen renovations.

You can change the hardware, the countertops, and the flooring in your kitchen to make it look flawless and brand new. Of course, buying new appliances would also be a good idea.

In the bathroom, you can change the toilet, the sink, or the bathtub. If the place allows, you can consider adding a shower too. Even changing the room layout will spruce up any bathroom.

Complete renovation

The step that requires the most significant investment and will definitely help increase the selling prices is a complete renovation of your Condo. By completely redoing it, it will have a modern design and materials, which will definitely be more appealing to your buyers.

Conclusion on how to boost the selling price of your Condo

When the time comes to sell, these home improvements will definitely answer your question of how to boost the selling price of your Condo. Remember to do your research, get answers to any of your questions, and invest in a way that will ensure you profit.

Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Lake of the Woods VA or Waterfront property in Virginia we are your Real Estate Advisors for Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Locust Grove, Central Virginia, and Greater Virginia. Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, Pat will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available Lake of the Woods properties, please visit our site.

Photos used:
https://www.pexels.com/photo/exterior-of-modern-house-with-glass-doors-and-panoramic-windows-7031607/
https://www.pexels.com/photo/kitchen-and-dining-area-1080721/
https://www.pexels.com/photo/kitchen-island-and-barstools-534151/
https://www.pexels.com/photo/wood-art-creative-wall-5799100/

Free Virtual Home Seller Seminar on 2/13 From 11:00 AM – 12:00PM EST!

Join the Licata Group team for a fun, informative, and free webinar where you will learn how to BEST prepare your home for sale for top-dollar from leading industry professionals.

Interest rates continue to stay at a historic-low with more buyers than homes that are available! You’ll learn how the current market is affecting the home selling process and how it’s often leading to multiple-offer situations.

A Q&A session will be held at the end to answer your questions.

We understand the need to sell your home for the highest market value in the least amount of time, and you’ll learn how this can be achieved in this one-hour session! Join us for a fun, interactive, and informative webinar on February 13th, 11 am. Click Here to register!

 Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Fredericksburg, Stafford, Orange, Locust Grove, Culpeper, Northern Virginia, or even Maryland or DC, we are your Real Estate team committed to finding the perfect home for you! Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar, and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, one of our area expert advisors will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available properties, please visit our website licatagroup.com

Helpful Tips For Showing Your Home to Potential Buyers

Buying a house is a significant endeavor, but selling one is also a considerable process. Everything from new real estate trends to knowing if you should hire an agent or not can have an impact on your sale. Another point to keep in mind is that presentation matters. To make the best possible impression, check out these tips for showing your home to potential buyers.

Real estate showing

A real estate showing is an opportunity to show the buyers the strengths of your property. For a buyer, it is one of the crucial moments upon which they will base their final decision. With this in mind, it’s easy to see why sight-unseen sales are so rare. Buyers will come to look around your property, and you need to make an effort to show them why they should buy it. If you present your home in the best light, it’ll be easier for buyers to imagine themselves living there, and this is sometimes all that matters. Since these sales are significant and should be based on logic, sometimes a feeling or a hunch can push the buyer in a particular direction.

Ensure that you’re aware of the experience that your potential buyers are going through as soon as they enter your home. Follow these tips to make their experience more memorable.

A living room.
This is the right time to make an impression.

Small renovations

Should you renovate your home, or should you sell it as is? This is a common question people ask themselves when selling their home. They don’t want to go through a home renovation project if it doesn’t pay off, and that’s something everyone can understand. However, keep in mind that sometimes you don’t have to do a major renovation to make a big difference. Before you start, create a step by step plan and stick to it. This will help you not spend more on your renovations than you’ve initially planned.

Touch-ups and repainting

If you have carpet flooring in your home, you don’t have to swap it for hardwood. However, as the carpets are likely to show signs of aging, you can shampoo or change them. Repainting will also freshen up your home, and it’s not too big of an investment. Bold color choices are not the best option here, as not everyone likes them. Even with neutral colors, one, two, or three colors are more than enough for the entire home.

Another good thing to do is to replace old fixtures. Door handles and light switches are inexpensive but can make a big difference. And while you don’t pay attention to these details anymore, be sure that most potential buyers will.

Take care of the exterior

The lawn is one of the first things the buyers notice when they enter your property. Ensure your lawn is well manicured and that the exterior will not contradict the experience the buyers will have inside your home. This means that your front porch or stoop should be clean, as well as the walkway. If you have some plants or flowers, they show that you regularly take care of them. You can use fertilizer to revive a tired lawn, and if bushes need some cutting, take care of that before you start showing your house.

Manicured lawn and a house.
The exterior is just as important.

Clean your house

You might’ve come to realize that a ‘clean house’ is not the same for everyone. If you’re not hiring a professional cleaning company, ensure that your home is clean, even for a germaphobe’s standards. Viewing a messy and dirty home leaves a terrible impression, even though it’s not too hard to clean a house after buying. Knowing its importance, you should make sure that your home is in tip-top share for as long as it’s on the market. This means that you’ll have to clean it even in-between showings. Even more so, having in mind that it’s not a good idea to ask potential buyers to take their shoes off at the door.

Clear the clutter

Remove any unnecessary items to create a minimalist look. You want your home to look larger and to be easy to walk through. This means that it’s better to remove any personal items, like photos, mementos, or valuables. But, having in mind that you probably still haven’t contacted the professionals found at Verified Movers to transport your belongings, it can be hard finding the right place for them at this point. You can put these extra items in bins and assign each room or a family member a container. But, be careful about valuables and ensure they’re somewhere safe.

Tuck away cords and remove unnecessary decorative elements. If an item is in sight, make sure it serves a purpose. Pillowcases, artwork, or candles can emphasize a particular part of a room and remove focus from other areas. With this in mind, use these tricks wisely and sparingly.

A well-lit bedroom.
A well-lit space looks more inviting.

Comfortable temperature

Make sure that the temperature in your home is at an optimal level so that you can create a welcoming atmosphere. An airless environment on a hot day or a cold house on a cold day will make the buyers uncomfortable. It will also leave them wondering if the cooling or heating systems are working, no matter what you say.

It doesn’t end with showing your home to potential buyers

It’s good to prepare for the process of showing your house to potential buyers. However, keep in mind that it doesn’t end here, especially if you have multiple offers. Knowing how to handle getting multiple offers on your home is also part of this process. It’s good to know what details you should consider to make a favorable decision and choose the right offer.

Saying goodbye

There is no reason not to say goodbye the right way. You can put a small note thanking buyers for coming and put it in a candy bowl on their way out. If a buyer needs time to evaluate and think, don’t follow them and describe additional amenities or features.

Thank you notes and cookies, a way to say goodbye after showing your home to potential buyers.
A thank you note is a good way to say goodbye.

 Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Fredericksburg, Stafford, Orange, Locust Grove, Culpeper, Northern Virginia or even Maryland or DC, we are your Real Estate team committed to finding the perfect home for you! Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar, and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, one of our area expert advisors will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available properties, please visit our website licatagroup.com

Photos used: 

https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-wooden-center-table-584399/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/apartment-bed-bedroom-comfort-545034/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/architecture-clouds-daylight-driveway-259588/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/thank-you-text-2072168/

8 Resources for Home Sellers: How to Quickly and Safely List Your Home Amid COVID-19

With mortgage interest rates hitting record lows, homebuyer demand remains strong — even in the midst of a global pandemic. And if you’re ready to take advantage of this situation by listing your home in the near future, there are some steps you can take to do it as quickly and safely as possible. Check out the eight resources below for some tips on finding an experienced listing agent, preparing your home for the housing market, and staying safe and healthy while showing your home to buyers amid COVID-19. 

  1. List Your Home with The Licata Group
  2. 10 Secrets to Selling Your Home Faster 
  3. How to Prepare for Home Services During COVID-19
  4. 15 DIY Curb Appeal Ideas That Will Help You Sell Your Home
  5. The Most Important Repairs to Make Before Selling Your House 
  6. Selling Your House? Here’s How to Prepare Your Home for a Virtual Tour 
  7. Open House Precautions to Take During the COVID-19 Outbreak 
  8. Cleaning Tips to Keep Your Home Free of Coronavirus

As you get ready to list your house, you’ll need to spend some time making a few home repairs and improvements — as doing so will help you to sell your home much more quickly. However, an experienced real estate agent can help you to determine which upgrades are worth completing — while also walking you through the entire process of selling your home in the age of the coronavirus. With these helpful resources and a great listing agent at your disposal, you’ll sell your home as quickly and safely as you possibly can.  

 Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Fredericksburg, Stafford, Orange, Locust Grove, Culpeper, Northern Virginia or even Maryland or DC, we are your Real Estate team committed to finding the perfect home for you! Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar, and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, one of our area expert advisors will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available properties, please visit our website licatagroup.com

How to Sell a House — Messy Kids and All

As your family grows, your starter home is starting to feel awfully full. But there’s one big obstacle standing in the way of you and an upsized home: selling your house. From the crayon you gave up on scrubbing off the walls to the tornado of toys that is your kids’ playroom, there’s a lot to contend with if you’re going to get your house in show-ready condition and keep it there.

You could stay put, but why live in a cramped house if you don’t have to? Instead of avoiding a move, find your dream home and then tackle your upsize head-on with these time-saving tips.

Decide if You’ll Move Out

Moving out makes selling a house much easier, especially for parents. When you relocate while your home is on the market, you eliminate the need for constant cleaning and scrambling to leave before every showing. Before moving out, consider the average days on the market in your area. While renting an apartment or Airbnb is affordable in competitive markets, it could be costly if your home takes a long time to sell.

Sellers who move out should avoid leaving the home vacant. Instead, leave just enough furnishings for staging. Home staging improves listing photos and helps buyers imagine themselves in a home they’re thinking about purchasing.

Start Packing Now

Staging is an even bigger concern for families who don’t vacate. Clutter can kill a home sale, so it’s critical that parents have a plan for eliminating clutter while keeping their house livable. For most families, this means putting most belongings in storage and keeping only the bare necessities. Thankfully, buyers are forgiving when it comes to non-master bedrooms, so there’s no need to leave play areas barren. Instead, downsize toy collections and look for easy yet stylish storage solutions like wicker baskets.

Get Your Home in Tip-Top Shape

With clutter out of the way, you can finally see your home clearly, including all of its flaws. From the little repairs you’ve put off to the dust bunnies in the corner, it all needs to go before your home hits the market. Minor fixes like patching drywall, painting, and fixing loose knobs and cupboards are simple enough to DIY, but hire contractors for anything involving plumbing or electrical wiring. While they get your home in good repair, work your way through a deep-cleaning checklist that will make your home gleam.

Keep Up with Daily Cleaning

Right now, your home looks the best it has in years. But as a parent you know it won’t last for long. You need a plan for keeping your home clean day-in and day-out while your home is on the market. Some parents take the DIY approach, diligently following cleaning schedules to stay on top of dishes, laundry, and other hallmarks of a lived-in home, but don’t rule out hiring a housekeeping service. Letting someone else handle the house can be a huge relief when you have so many things on your plate.

Housekeeping and maid services, for example, can help with tasks such as running errands and meal prep in addition to general upkeep. These services ultimately allow parents to focus on work, parenting, and life instead of constantly tending the house.

Make Showings Fun for the Whole Family

Ask any parent who has bought and sold a home, and they’ll tell you that getting kids out of the house for showings is easily one of the most stressful aspects. Make these disruptions easier on the kids (and you!) by creating a reason to look forward to showings. Find fun places to go as a family and keep a bag in your trunk full of kid-friendly activities, snacks, and other supplies. By creating a positive association, you can eliminate the fight to get out of the house.

Moving may feel like an insurmountable feat right now. But before long, this will be just a blip in your family’s history. Instead of letting the idea of selling a house with kids overwhelm you, take charge of your move. With creative solutions (and maybe a little outside help!), you can tackle your move like a pro and settle into your new, right-sized home.

 Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Fredericksburg, Stafford, Orange, Locust Grove, Culpeper, Northern Virginia or even Maryland or DC, we are your Real Estate team committed to finding the perfect home for you! Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar, and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, one of our area expert advisors will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available properties, please visit our website licatagroup.com

Helpful Tips for Selling Your Home during the Busy Holiday Season

Get ready to hang the lights, deck the halls, and spread some cheer—the holiday season is almost here! Juggling the holidays along with a home sale might be sound impossible (or at the very least, stressful), but we’re here to help you find the best way to balance both.

Here are our top 4 tips for navigating your home sale during the holiday season!

Use Decor to Your Advantage

Snowmen and twinkling lights set up as holiday decor for home sellers.

You don’t have to go all out with holiday decor, but a little seasonal warmth sprinkled here and there goes a long way! Hang some white lights along the staircase, add a wreath to the front door, and string some garland along the mantel. If you do opt for a tree, you’ll want to make sure it doesn’t crowd the room—perhaps even consider a tabletop version.

Bonus tip: scent is the sense most closely tied to memory, so use that to your advantage to appeal to buyer nostalgia! Bake some cookies beforehand, warm up a pot of cider, or light a few seasonally scented candles.

Be Flexible with Showings

A welcome sign hanging outside of a home being sold.

While you’ll probably have a busy schedule over the next month or two, you should make sure it doesn’t affect your availability for buyers too much. One of the biggest reasons people hold off on selling during the holidays is because they can’t be around to prepare their home…but intentionally making room in your schedule will make the whole process much simpler!

If you usually host a holiday party, consider asking a friend or relative to step in for you. If you’re traveling, try not to be gone for too long, and make it clear to your agent and any potential buyers when you’ll be back.

Work with a Home Stager (or Get Tips from Your Agent)

A modern coffee table decorated by a home stager.

If you either: A.) really don’t have time to stage or B.) don’t want to take any risks on your home not looking its best, then working with a qualified home stager is a great option! You might be skeptical, but home stagers have been specially trained and certified to optimize your space with the right decor and furniture—which often leads to faster and more profitable sales.

It’ll also take one more stressful task off of your plate, giving you more time to plan for the upcoming festivities. If you want a few recommendations for home stagers, just give us a call. Of course, we can always do a walkthrough of your home and offer personalized tips and DIY projects, if you’d prefer that!

Practice Smart Marketing

Two women meeting over a marketing plan for holiday home sellers.

Marketing a home is the key to reeling in the right buyer. It’s even more important during the holiday season, since fewer—but more serious—buyers are on the hunt. That’s where working with an agent really comes in handy! You can sit back, relax, and plan for the holidays, while we take care of getting the word out about your home through our comprehensive marketing resources, including our website, social media platforms, local advertising, professional contacts, and more.

And, of course, we’ll crunch the numbers and do the research to ensure that your home is priced at the best number for your interests.

List Your Home this Holiday Season

Balancing a home sale and the holidays can be stressful…but not if you work with a professional! Enlist our help, and we’ll be around to carry some of your workload, reduce your stress, and sell your home for top dollar—and answer any and all of your questions along the way. Ready to list your home? We’re just a phone call away!

Whether you’re looking for homes for sale in Fredericksburg, Stafford, Orange, Locust Grove, Norther Virginia or even Maryland or DC, we are your Real Estate team committed to finding the perfect home for you! Thinking of selling? In any market condition, “what is my home worth?” is the #1 question asked by homeowners. If you wish to sell your home, it needs to be sold for top dollar, and in a timely manner. Pricing your home accurately, one of our area expert advisors will partner with you to make the selling process so much easier. Get started today by calling us at (540) 388-2541 or contact Pat Licata.

To see available properties, please visit our website licatagroup.com

A New Kind of Home Buyer: Tips for Marketing Your Home to Millennials

A young millennial couple standing in front of the home they've just purchased.

Millennials get a lot of flack, but they’re an important part of the real estate market. In fact, they make up the largest generational percentage of home buyers right now!

So, if you’re planning on selling your home soon, it’s important to keep the average millennial home buyer in mind. This generation is unlike any that’s come before it, and the way they buy everything (from laundry detergent to life insurance) is unique.

When it comes to catching the eye of the discerning millennial home buyer, here’s what you need to do:

Create a Strong Internet Presence

It goes without saying that millennials rely on the Internet for, well, everything. This isn’t unusual: the Internet makes every kind of shopping easier and more accessible.

As such, giving your home an effective online presence is key. It needs to be easy to find via the most popular home-buying networks, and it has to look great no matter the screen size. After all, more home buyers than ever before are using their smartphones to find their dream home.

Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Professional Listing Photos

A beautiful modern kitchen.

Because millennials rely on the Internet to search homes for sale, your home’s photos have to stand out in a big way. After all, with the right photographer even the smallest home can look like a palace.

So, don’t skimp on this expense! Great photos could be the difference between a home selling within hours, and a home languishing on the market for months.

Show How Your Home Will Improve their Lifestyle

Millennials are looking for homes that will improve their lifestyles and be close to wherever they need to be during the week. As you market your home online, be sure you’re highlighting both its features and location in your listing description.

Tell an exciting story of how much better their life will be once they buy your home! Craft your listing description to carefully touch on all the best parts of your home and its surroundings, and let buyers know exactly why they need to buy it.

Know What Millennials are Looking for in a Home

A pair of hands typing on a smart phone.

So, what are millennials looking for anyway? Market research finds that millennial buyers are attracted to affordable homes with eco-friendly and smart features. If your home has any green features or environmentally friendly add-ons, you’ll definitely want to highlight them.

In addition, if you’ve outfitted your home to accommodate any smart features that use technology—like a Nest thermostat or other Smart Home appliances—be sure to mention that in your listing description and social media promotion.

Use a Pro to Market Your Home

The easiest way to market your home to millennials? Work with a real estate specialist who understands this unique market—and how to best target real estate’s next generation of buyers.

Give us a call today for more information about selling your home to millennials!