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Making your home attractive to potential buyers

George Osborne’s autumn statement delivered at the beginning of December 2012 was clear on a few things, such as the increase in ISA allowance (in relation to both cash and stocks and shares ISA allowance), but left the water a little muddy when it came to things such as new homes and affordable housing.

The housing market has been very difficult to predict since 2007, but that hasn’t stopped many Britons looking to sell their existing property and make a move. While you can’t always predict how successful your sale will be, or whether the asking price is what you’d expect, there are a few things you can do to make your home more appealing and help with the sale.

Here are some things for you to consider:

Giving the right impression

Most potential viewers will form an opinion on a house within a few seconds of seeing it, so it’s important you give it the right curb appeal. This includes showcasing the front garden to its full extent and doing simple touches like cleaning the front door (a lick of paint is a good option too), and cleaning the outside of all your windows.

Inside the home you should always make sure you clean thoroughly and finish off any odd jobs that clearly need doing (you need to not only show that your home is loved, but help potential buyers see themselves living there). If you’re a smoker do your best to reduce the smell, and if you have any pets ensure any litter trays are removed before a viewing.

Show off your home, not your life

If your home is advertised as three bedrooms, showcase that – not two bedrooms and a junk room that you can’t even open the door into. When selling your home you need to abandon the comfort of your own home life and show the property to its true potential. This includes rearranging furniture to get the best out of the available space, giving it a lick of paint and removing your collection of family photos – buyers want to imagine themselves living there, not see images of you living there.

Showing viewers around

In most cases this will be done by the estate agent, but on the odd occasion the responsibility may fall on you to show viewers around so you need to be prepared. Always usher them into the room before you as this creates the feeling of space. Share the benefits of the room with them – is it south facing? Does it have a great view or loads of room for storage?

Anything that sells the area will assist with selling your home too, so be prepared to talk about local schools, transport facilities and leisure amenities. Also draw on your own experience of living there as it will help make things feel more real.

Towards the end of the viewing, always try and steer viewers back to the home’s best room or feature and this will leave a great lasting impression.