25 Jun Preparing your home for sale during lockdown
The lock down has been one of the most challenging times we have experienced in living memory. Many people have sadly lost loved ones and their livelihoods and it is likely to take many years to fully recover from this devastating period.
The British economy is affected by many factors and a major contributor is the housing market, which was unfrozen on 12th May allowing more than 450,000 buyers, sellers and renters to complete on their deals and start moving home.
This boost in completion rates as well the new people bringing their properties to market has helped to inject some much needed activity into the economy and the housing market. We are delighted to report that for us business has picked up and is purring along nicely.
We thought we’d take this opportunity to give you some tips on how to prepare yourself and your home for sale while you’re on lock down. When you’re ready to go to market with your property make sure you give us a call on 01344 843000 or email us.
Declutter
We’ve spoken about this on a number of occasions and it remains important. Make sure you declutter your property; not only will it make moving a much less painful task but also will enable you to stage your home to look its best during viewings.
Many public recycling centres are opening now, so make sure you look into how to get in. Some local amenity sites are taking bookings, others are only letting people from certain postcodes in on certain days – it’s important to do your research before you travel.
Functional Rooms
Sellers often overlook this important element when bringing their property to market. If you are marketing your home as a four bedroom home with two reception rooms, try and ensure that your reception rooms are staged as reception rooms rather than an office or playroom which is how it might be used day to day. You want potential buyers to visualise what they could do with a room and imagine living in it.
Minor Repairs
Now is a great opportunity to conquer your habitual procrastination and get to all those odd jobs you’ve been putting off for the last couple of years. Making sure your property is in good condition will show potential buyers that you have looked after it and help you to get the best price.
Some of the most impactful jobs will occur in your ‘tiled spaces’, you wouldn’t believe the difference re-grouting and touching up mastic/sealants in your kitchen or bathroom will make; if you need to, make sure you remove any lime scale from taps or shower heads to make everything look shiny and new.
Kerb Appeal
Keeping the front of your home neat and tidy is one of the most important things you can do when preparing your home for sale. You can give your front door a clean and perhaps a lick of paint. Make sure that your front garden is well-kept with potted plants pruned and bushes and shrubs trimmed; make sure your lawn is regularly mowed to give the absolute best impression to those visiting your home.
Don’t spend the time exclusively on the front garden, often a property’s back garden is a major selling point.
Property Documents
This is more of an exercise in getting yourself prepared for selling than preparing the property itself. When you come to market your solicitor and our teams will ask you for an array of documents; it’s a good idea to get these ready before listing your property as you don’t want to be scrabbling around for documents.
Some of the paperwork you’ll need to start having to hand includes:
- HM Land Registry title documents
- gas checks completed by a Gas Safe registered engineer
- electrical checks – an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) or a NAPIT or NICEIC certificate/report from a registered electrical competent person
- FENSA or CERTAS certificates for windows
- planning permission for any major work carried out
- building regulation completion certificates and builder’s guarantee certificates for alterations or additions
- subsidence guarantees/warranties
- damp guarantees/warranties
- party wall agreements (if relevant)
- if a listed building, listed building consent for interior and exterior works
- if your home is in a conservation area, conservation area consent for works
- any title insurance policies you may have taken out to solve title defects.
Get in Touch
If you are thinking of moving to the area, make sure you take a look at our amazing catalogue of properties for sale in Virginia Water and the surrounding areas.
If you’d like to speak to someone about properties to let in Virginia Water, a member of our expert team would be happy to help. You can call us on 01344 843000 or email us. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.