The biggest property myths

There are a number of things you can do to increase the chances of selling your home. But they might not be what you think they are...

If you’re currently trying to sell your home, you’re bound to want to get the very best price for it and to sell it quickly. And there are, of course, several things you can do to help this happen.

Obviously there are larger tasks you can carry out such as getting a new bathroom put in or re-carpeting every room, but what about the smaller, less expensive stuff? What really helps to sell a property at a decent price, and what makes very little difference at all?

The experts vs homeowners

A recent HSBC Home Improvement Survey questioned householders and property valuation experts to find out which simple home improvements they thought would make the biggest difference to how quickly it sold - and in several cases, the opinions varied a fair bit.

So let’s take a closer look at some of the biggest house-selling myths it uncovered.

Clean the windows - but not your car!

One of the biggest house-selling myths highlighted by this survey is that washing your car will help to sell your house. Indeed, 16% of homeowners believe this would make a difference, but in comparison, a tiny 3% of property experts say this would help.

However, if you do want to carry out some cleaning, cleaning the windows in your property will be far more beneficial. While only 15% of homeowners reckon this would make a difference, 39% of property experts believe it would help to sell your home! 

So make sure you focus your energy on your windows, not your car!

Tidy the garden

Homeowners also believe that buying new plants for your garden is more likely to help sell your home than experts do (21% of homeowners versus 13% of experts).

But while this won’t necessarily help, what is likely to encourage a speedy sale is keeping your garden neat and tidy, with 75% of experts and 70% of homeowners saying this would make a difference.

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If you ask me, that’s pretty great because it means you don’t need to spend hours and stacks of money at your nearest garden centre. Instead, carry out simple tasks such as cutting the grass and tidying flower beds!

Your rubbish!

Before you have prospective buyers over, do you place all of the bins out of sight? Well, nearly half of homeowners believe that doing this would help to encourage offers on their property. In contrast, only 30% of experts believe this would make a difference.

Personally, I think potential buyers expect a few rubbish bins to be around (although preferably not overflowing ones), but they are certainly worth removing from the room if you’re having photos taken of the property for your chosen estate agent’s website.

Electrical work

When I was recently viewing properties, it amazed me how many of them seemed to be stuck in the 60s or 70s – and this can act as a major deterrent to prospective buyers.

So take a look around your home to see what needs revamping. Amazingly, only 15% of homeowners believe replacing old fashioned light switches and electrical sockets could make a difference when it comes to selling your home, compared to 32% of experts!

So clearly, it is worth doing if you have the time and inclination. That said, you should only do this if it’s fairly simple work – don’t do anything too complicated. After all, you don’t want to give yourself an electric shock, or find that you’ve blown all of the electrics! If it is going to be complicated, get a professional in.

A splash of paint

The front door is one of the first things prospective buyers will see and as a result, it’s well worth ensuring it’s in good nick! Despite this, only a quarter of homeowners think repainting the front door would make a difference, compared to over half of experts who say it would help to sell your home faster.

And it makes sense – after all, if you arrive at a property with a rundown front door, you’ll be less inclined to go inside, presuming the rest of the property will be just as rundown. So give your front door a splash of paint and make your buyers happy! 

Repair work

Everyone expects a little wear and tear to be present when they move into a new home – and many new homeowners will repaint their new property anyway.

However, only 57% of homeowners reckon that repairing paint chips and patching up areas of wallpaper would help to sell their home more quickly. In contrast, 73% of property experts believe this would make a difference.

What’s more, you might not think so, but repairing fences and gates in the garden should also improve your house-selling chances. So ensure you make the necessary repairs before putting your property on the market.

De-clutter!

Finally, the best way to help sell your home quickly and at a good price is to simply de-clutter it! Interestingly, both property experts and homeowners believe this, with a whopping 85% of experts saying it would make a difference, and 74% of homeowners agreeing.

Removing furniture you don’t strictly need can make your home feel far more spacious – and therefore more attractive to prospective buyers. It’s also a good idea to get rid of any knick-knacks you have – if you’re an avid collector of gnomes, you’ll need to try and do without them being on display for a while. It’s far easier for potential buyers to imagine living in your property if they don’t have to look at all your junk everywhere.

Pack up items you want to keep and store them and get rid of anything you don’t need any more. After all, you’ll need to pack up all of this stuff before you move anyway, so you may as well get a head start.

And if you’re still struggling to sell your home, read How to sell a problem property.

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