everybody. Every home takes on the personality of the person who owns the house. This is going to happen normally. However, when you put a house up for sale, you need to eliminate as many personal items as you possibly can. Remove all family photos and other personal items that may be on the walls or counters, such as certificates, posters, or trophies. You want all potential buyers to see this house as their next home. If there are items from someone else’s personal life on display, this is difficult for buyers to do. Often, the exterior paint on an inherited home where someone has lived for many years may be in disrepair. Painting the outside of the house might be expensive, but it can be an excellent way to convince potential buyers to pick your house. Carefully calculate whether this is an investment that will provide adequate return (i.e., an increase in the listing or sale price). Work with your real estate agent to decide if investing $15,000 on an exterior paint job will either increase the potential value of the house by that amount, or cause it to sell quicker. It may be worthwhile to have this done in some circumstances, especially if the house is overdue for a paint job anyway. In inherited property situations, it may be better to consider a price concession to adjust for the cost of the new owner repainting. If your whole house does not need to be painted, a touch up might be all that is necessary. Paint the door while you’re at it. This is what visitors will see when they initially come in. Ensure that the mailbox, if outside, is attractive. Other exterior features such as the fence or garage door should be painted as well. Before someone buys a house, they usually get it professionally inspected. You might want to do this yourself. Have your inherited home inspected if you want it to sell; if there are no problems, you can use that as a selling feature.
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