Make your mark on your home to sell

Preparing your home for viewers, or staging as it’s called, is important.

It will not only ensure your property is sold faster, but can potentially add thousands of pounds to its value

Declutter – but don’t depersonalise

Get rid of all the excess stuff that has accumulated in every nook and cranny. Put it in storage or give it to a friend. People need to be able to envisage what the property would look like if they were living there. People often find this difficult, so make it easy for them to see all the fantastic living space you’re offering them.

Don’t make it look like a generic hotel; leave some personality. Apart from anything else it gives unimaginative buyers suggestions as to what they might do

People are often buying into a lifestyle as much as a property.

Consider removing any bulky furniture that makes the room feel small and replacing it with smaller furniture.

A fresh lick of paint Giving your walls a fresh lick of neutral paint will make your home seem lighter and bigger. It will enable the viewers to more easily imagine how they would adapt the rooms to their needs. It will be easier for the buyers to move in and use the rooms immediately than if the walls were still bright purple or lime green. Create a good first impression by giving the front door a new coat of brightly coloured paint

Fix and clean

Make any minor repairs necessary – holes in walls, broken door knobs, cracked tiles, torn or threadbare carpets. Many buyers want to move in without making changes, so allow for this. Clean everything until it sparkles. Get rid of limescale, clean and repair tile grout, wax wooden floors, get rid of all odours, hang up fresh towels. This will make the place more appealing and allow viewers to imagine living there. Tidy up the garden: cut bushes back, clean the patio and furniture of lichen and dirt, and cut the grass. While this doesn’t add much value to your home it makes it more likely to sell as people visualise themselves using the garden.