Real Estate expert and author Barbara Corcoran says there are certain things that most homebuyers want. If you can deliver them, you have a better chance of selling your house. Here are 5 things she says sell houses faster:
1. White Exteriors. Lighter colors are more attractive than dark ones to the majority of house hunters. “People don’t like brown houses,” she says. (If the house is as charming as Fig Tree Cottage, shown above, then all the better! Pics of it here.)
Coming in a close second to white houses: yellow ones. I believe it! When we painted our house yellow, it sold almost immediately.
2. A Beautiful Front Door. Forget the aluminum storm doors or cheap-looking doors with faded or chipping paint. Corcoran says that buyers decide within the first 10-15 seconds of seeing a house whether they’ll buy it (or not). That makes the front door important.
3. Stainless Steel Refrigerator. When people see a stainless fridge, they assume the whole kitchen is more updated and modern. She says it doesn’t matter if the rest of the appliances are stainless or not. Most people focus on the refrigerator, so spend your money there.
4. Clean and Clutter-Free Rooms. This should be a no-brainer, but based on the houses I see in the real estate listings every day, there are a lot of people who still don’t get it. Pack everything away that you can do without, including your dolls and stuffed animals.
5. Light. Homebuyers want to see rooms that are light and bright. Clean the windows, remove heavy drapes, paint rooms lighter colors, cover dark upholstery with white slipcovers, and replace colored carpet with a pale neutral if you can afford it. Corcoran says that after curb appeal, light and bright rooms sell houses faster than anything else.
Have you bought or sold a house recently? Do you agree with her 5 points?
In the current market, she says it takes 3 bids on average before a sale goes through, and it takes at least 8 showings to get a bid. If your house isn’t priced right to begin with, you’ll never get the traffic you need to sell it, so that’s important to keep in mind, too.
Check out Barbara Corcoran’s website to see her most recent interviews on video. She also has an entertaining memoir about how she made it big in real estate.
In Case You Missed It: 5 Things Buyers Want in New Homes Now.
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We sold a house 3 years ago and got 3 offers on it very quickly. We had all of the above, except the stainless steel refrigerator. Of course, we moved the refrigerator with us and it’s now in our garage now. Before we listed the house, we rented a storage unit to make our rooms look less cluttered. I always opened all the blinds and turned on all the lights when I knew someone will be looking at the house.
I totally agree! As well as a neutral palette in house. A red room can be a deterrent. Also, a few fresh cut flowers in the common areas is a super nice touch. Sometimes the little thoughtful touches can make a huge difference! We sold our house in the height of the real estate market. There was a bidding war. Someone even sent us a personal note as to why we should take their offer over another. We ended up selling to a real estate agent and she bought the furniture too! I swear it was the fresh orchids in the house!
~Kristin
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Most of those things, are kind-of-no-brainers, aren’t they? People like light, in a house. Why not like white on the outside? No clutter! Of course! Etc. Etc.
So often, people need the obvious, to be pointed out to them, though. Thank you for so doing.
And thank you to the link to the adorable cottage!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
.-= ‘Aunt Amelia’´s last blog ..Mrs Santa Claus says Good Morning!!! =-.
I agree with the list. The only one that I found a little odd is the one about the refrigerator. That is usually the one appliance that does not sell with the house (in the South, at least). I completely agree about how white and yellow houses sell faster. We were thinking about whitewashing our red brick before we try to sell.
Thanks so much for posting this, Julia. We are planning on listing our house in a year, and I am sure I will refer back to it (we want our youngest daughter to attend a high school across town).
.-= Ricki Jill Treleaven´s last blog ..Santa Are you paying attention =-.
I thought the refrigerator thing was interesting, too. I assumed all the appliances should match, for one thing! She insists that she sees homebuyers walk straight to the fridge in a kitchen every time, which makes it the most important. Who knew?
Yea, I agree about the matching. But, hey, she’s the expert, and it’s certainly something I’ll think about before we list our house! It might even be worthwhile in the long run just to sell the house with a brand new stainless steel fridge (especially in this economy).
.-= Ricki Jill Treleaven´s last blog ..Santa Are you paying attention =-.
I must definitely agree!!! Curb appeal is major, as is the whole clutter factor. My old boss used to have to delicately ask clients to move all their crap.
Certainly these are tried and tested suggestions, but I am definitely an anomaly. I looked at the bones of our house: good light, yes, but also a flow I liked and room sizes I could live with plus a nice backyard and a fireplace. The house was a mess when we first viewed it. Frankly, parts of it were downright gross. Once the home was ours, we replaced everything in two bathrooms, installed hardwood floors, ripped out closet fittings. The whole upstairs level is almost unrecognizable while the main floor got what I call a “spit and polish”. With the nitty gritty behind us, for the most part, I’m finally starting to focus on decorating. But I do watch a lot of home selling shows and people do tend to zero in on what is easily changed or not going to be theirs anyway (paint colours, linens, even furniture). Because we are selling in a few years, I’m trying to implement common suggestions: less clutter, bright rooms with neutral paint colours, modern fixtures, etc. If our fridge fails us, I will heed this advice and purchase a stainless one for sure.
.-= Tanya´s last blog ..Cute But Ewww =-.
Our house sold in three weeks, and other than being a large brick Georgian, rather than a white house, we had the other four. There are houses in our neighborhood that have been on the market for months and months, so, we are feeling pretty proud. Now we are packing up for the move that takes place the week between Christmas and New Years. Yikes!!
.-= down-sizingboomer´s last blog ..Bourbon Slush- Anyone =-.
When we were house-hunting a few years ago, one thing that turned me off was kids’ toys. Even if they were neatly arranged on shelves or in bins, I couldn’t keep from thinking that surely the kids could do without most of them while the house was on the market. And when seeing all those toys, I would envision them scattered on the floors, which also made me wonder about dirty fingerprints, soiled carpet, smeared toothpaste, broken hinges, etc. that maybe I wasn’t seeing.
Yellow exteriors? I’m having nightmares now that home sellers will now be painting their exteriors daffodil yellow and I’ll be seeing glaringly yellow homes for sale! I love soft yellow with white trim and black accents — very crisp and clean looking. Your list seem elementary, but taking a look at listings online will show that most agents and home sellers still aren’t getting it! Great blog!
These things SHOULD be common sense; but sadly, they are not. I can’t tell you the number of just dirty, grimy, nasty houses we looked at…in nice neighborhoods where you just weren’t expecting it. People, make your bed and DO THE DISHES before you have a house showing!
Oh, and putting the toys away and flushing the toilet (ICK) would help a lot, too. *shudder* Sadly, I could write a book about the weird/disgusting things we found while house hunting. (We looked at a lot of houses.)
.-= Handy Man, Crafty Woman´s last blog ..15 Wicked Cheap Christmas Activities =-.
I seriously don’t get the appeal of stainless steel appliances. I don’t want my kitchen to look industrial like it belongs a restaurant. And then there are the FINGERPRINTS!
.-= jennie w.´s last blog ..I fought the gun and the gun won =-.
As an accredited home stager I can tell you that this is an excellent spot-on article.
The curb appeal (including the front door) is really critical. First impressions are lasting impressions. Clutter is a real turn-off, too.
She’s right about the stainless steel refrigerator except that the other appliances do need to be updated and in excellent condition. Otherwise, people will notice them and it won’t matter how nice the refrigerator is.
.-= CherylK´s last blog ..Two Irresistable Chocolaty Holiday Sweets =-.
I love the couch and the windows in that third picture!
I’ve no experience with selling a house by the way, I just bought my first home two years ago and I’m not planning on selling it any time soon. Luckily most walls inside my house are white or yellow already
.-= Maaike Quinn´s last blog ..Day 21 – Check out Ask FlyLady =-.
We sold our house 2 years ago, just as the market had tanked. It only took one week and we had two serious offers and one from a very sweet lady who just couldn’t quite afford it. I agree with everything. Although, we didn’t have a SS refrigerator. We did rent a storage room, had the windows cleaned, and our front door while not new or extremely fancy, was painted a really nice green and fit the style of the house.
On a related side note, here in Texas it has become very popular to change out the front door for these ones with iron scroll work all over them (even when they don’t go with the house at all). Is this happening anywhere else? It’s very strange.
.-= Nichole´s last blog ..Suggestions- Please! =-.
These are all great tips but from my experience as a decorator (who also stages homes), the appliances should match. I think all white or black appliances (newish and spotless) would sell better than a stainless steel refrigerator and mismatched, older appliances. Maybe it’s a different market here?
Decluttering and cleanliness are most important, oh and a bowl of green apples in the kitchen!
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.-= Vanessa@Decor Happy´s last blog ..Meeting Up with Sarah Richardson and Tommy Smythe =-.
Yes I agree! Beautiful pictures!
.-= Lisa´s last blog ..Pet Store Flah Back =-.
I haven’t sold a house yet, but I have bought one! And I must say that all of your suggestions made a difference in my opinion of the house I bought–most especially the LIGHT. The house was unoccupied when I saw it, but all of the rooms were painted in creamy neutrals, and the windows were all clean and bare, and the house was filled with wonderful light and views. I was sold immediately!
.-= Sharon~Serendipity´s last blog ..Ho Ho Ho! =-.
We bought a foreclosed Victorian with chippy white paint- and painted it a soft yellow. A couple people told us they thought we should have kept the white, but MANY people have emailed or stopped by and asked for the color names- to paint their house. We could sell it in a heartbeat- just by the paint job. I totally think most people want to walk in and be able to see their stuff in the house. So the clutter, the toys, the PETS, gotta go if you want to sell.
.-= Anita´s last blog ..So exciting =-.
It is absolutely worth the money to rent a storage unit and clear out the closets, basements, kitchen, bathrooms and garage of all the junk you aren’t using daily. When we sold our first house, we also cleared out some of our furniture, like extra dining room chairs and cedar chests. I’m amazed at the state of people’s carpeting. If your carpet is dirty, get it cleaned. If it’s positively gross, I’d replace it. Even cheap NEW carpet is better than nasty old carpet when you are selling your home.
.-= Heather´s last blog ..Christmas Tree Party and a 30-year-old tube of toilet paper =-.
100% agree. One other thing she may want to add to that is granite. Know a house that was on the market for 6 months – didn’t sell. Owners put in granite countertops, put it back on the market – sold in 10 days.
.-= Cole@LavishProperty´s last blog ..19-690-000 – Saint Tropez- France =-.
Great post! Thanks for all the information!
.-= sondra´s last blog ..Candy Cane Cookies =-.
We just sold our house in August. Her 5 points are pretty accurate. We didn’t have a SS fridge (ours was black and was part of the deal, but it matched the other appliances), and our front door was a hideous rose pink color which we couldn’t change due to HOA rules, but other than that, yes her guidelines are good. De-cluttering is probably the single most important thing to do in my opinion. Opening up wall and floor and counter space makes a home look so much bigger. Good tips!
.-= Lisa´s last blog ..O Christmas Tree =-.
I couldn’t agree more! In fact, I think it’s the way you should treat your house even if it’s not on the market! I hate clutter, dark spaces with too much pattern going on, and too many “collections” on display. I’m always re-evaluating my own stuff to keep it fresh and up to date. Some people decorate their homes and then forget it for years, making it seem neglected. I like those tips. Everyone could use them with all the competition out there for sale!
On a side note, I disagree with the refrigerator being stainless steel unless it already matches the other appliances and is for sale with the house. Most homes in my area do not include the refrigerator. The new homes never include it! If the appliances don’t match, it looks like you forgot to upgrade the other ones and it just calls attention more to the older ones (in my mind). I think that is a strange tip!
Good tips! I agree 100%.
Interesting on the stainless fridge! But, she’s right. I sold my house earlier this year and all of its appliances were black, save for the fridge, which was stainless with black handles. At closing, the wife said that they decided on our house over similar ones in the neighborhood because of the bathroom and the “stainless appliances”.
I wonder if my buyer was in for a surprise?
.-= Southgate´s last blog ..Setting up The Perfect Guest Room =-.
While house hunting in 2009, we were completely underwhelmed by the sameness of many homes that had obviously been ‘modernized’, ‘updated’, and ‘neutralized’. And we’ve been equally mystified by would-be buyers, on shows like “House Hunters”, and the kinds of things that they go ga-ga over. Stainless and granite won’t do it for me. Or a white exterior. The old mantra of “Location, location, location” is number one. And always will be. When you find that, then get picky about stuff you yourself can change, like paint colors and appliances. Secondly, look for custom homes, not builder throw-togethers, arranged in blocks of same-same houses going up and down the street.
I have no problem living (for now) with my barely-upgraded-from-vintage-80′s kitchen, because I have a pasture across the street, a wooded area behind the back fence, no looming neighbors, and a well cared for neighborhood. I can update my bathrooms later. But I can’t replicate my location. Or the well built custom design and features. Our house might not be ‘of-the-moment’, but it’s perfect for us. Without a cubic inch of stainless in sight.
I so agree with you. The same with me and what I desired in a home when we bought ours….privacy, woodland, quiet, no looming anything. Yes, I had to update the kitchen to my taste but that was nothing compared to the wonderful privacy and not owning a cookie cutter home like all the rest. As to granite-it may work now but it’s another “fad” and I know people including myself that don’t want the headache of it.
Julia,
This is fantastic. I love an informative post and that’s what I need to read today. We’re trying to sell our house and I think we’re trying to do everything possible to be attractive, but this time of the year doesn’t help much. We’ll see what happens… if nothing happen soon, my house will become a yellow one! lol
xo
Luciane at HomeBunch.com
julia,
Thanks for the great info and wonderful pictures. My wife and I sold last house and bought current one just “days” before housing market dumped.
I agree with the suggestions except for SS fridge. I don’t care for them. I still like the almond appliances in current kitchen.
I would suggest walking up to the front door with a critical eye and making a list of little things that need a touch-up, and take care of them. Nobody wants to buy someone else’s to-do list.
For showings put away pet dishes and toys and turn on lights. Bake cookies to make the house smell great.
The other thing that helped us sell our house was cleaning way past clean. The house should look cleaner and neater than ever. The comments we got from several realters were “I wish every house I showed was this clean”
A storage unit is great, you are able to make house look roomier and get a jump on moving out.
I absolutely agree with these 5 key points. I’ve learned a lot from reading your blog, and we’ve definitely seen what can go wrong with real estate listings (weird plants, dolls, and ugly fireplaces, and horrendous clutter etc. etc.). Potential buyers want clean, bright, and simple. Easy enough!
.-= Bre´s last blog ..Sephora Beauty Gifts =-.
I agree mostly to everything in this post. The one I don’t agree with, is the stainless steel refrigerator one. When I go into a kitchen, I take a look around to see how nice a kitchen is. If any of the appliances don’t match, it turns me off. Plus I use to love stainless steel appliances, but after owning some, I have grown to not liking them.
I hate it when people don’t get it when it comes time to selling their home. Like people don’t take the time to do needed repairs, get rid of clutter, or make sure the house is clean. The house next door to us is still forsale, because it is so old and needs so many repairs. The homeowners didn’t take the time before they moved away, to do projects that would have made a great difference. Like the tile flooring is cracked in the entryway and bathroom, the flooring is discusting and more. Not only that, they photoshopped their pictures to make their house look nice. I wouldn’t be surprised if the house never sells and they have to go bankrupt.
When we moved out of our rental, we went back to the house and did an all day cleaning. We cleaned it better than when we found it. The house became rented really fast, which I think was because we cleaned it well.
Thanks for sharing this with us Julia!
Gotta put your best foot forward when selling your home. So many homes go on the market unprepared. It is the perfect combination of price and presentation. Staging is a huge help when listing your home. Sometimes you need to visually explain a room or suggest ideas with the furniture. We recently staged a 7 bedroom home with 2 family rooms instead of having it as another bedroom. $3 million dollars and 2 cash offers!
We just recently sold my parents 40 year old home. It is a Dutch Colonial and the back of the house is very open. We spent 5 days painting four bedrooms plus trim work, taking down wallpaper in two bathrooms and painting. We used light colors in all the rooms. My Mom had a stainless steel stove top and we replaced the dishwasher with stainless steel. Am I the only one who dislikes stainless steel? Everytime someone looked at the house they would mess with the dishwasher and leave finger prints all over. What a PAIN to keep clean.
I agree with the points made by the expert and I could write a longer list of what people look for when buying.
That’s the second time I’ve heard about the fridge thing this week. Intriguing!
.-= anna see´s last blog ..Tender Snuggle-Time Conversation =-.
My husband & I sold his first house in 3 weeks. It was actually brown! But it was freshly painted with bright white trim and a bright red door. Inside, we added lots of light, fresh paint and eliminated ALL the clutter. It’s amazing how well that last thing works!
.-= Lesley @ TheDesignFile´s last blog ..Etsy pick- Great items for last-minute holiday decor =-.
Awesome advice! Especially the fridge part.
.-= Juju at Tales of Whimsy…´s last blog ..Where Angels Go Petite Book Review =-.
I can tell you the trend in California is for people to be painting their houses brown, dark green, dark teal all over the place. Not good for out here where it is so hot and don’t know why they want dark colors. I did see a house the other day a bright aqua! It had a garage to match. Looked Caribbean.
When we bought our current house eight years ago, we had stainless appliances installed and keeping them clean and fingerproof free became my full-time, part-time job which was exhausting! When we re-did the kitchen last year we purchased stainless “look” appliances by Frigidaire and I love, love, love them! They are so easy, so much easier, to keep clean and I still have the stainless look — although matte — which I prefer. They are showing absolutely no sign of wear and tear a year and a half later.
Destiny, who’s happily writing from her little yellow house with white trim, blue shutters and bright red door
I love my brown house. I even had a neighbor come by and ask what color we used. I guess if it is not popular, oh well. I am not selling until I am really old.
.-= Angie´s last blog ..Keep Looking to Jesus =-.
I blogged about a paint that converts appliances to a stainless steel look, fairly easily and economically. It’s called Liquid Stainless Steel. I have no commercial connection to this paint. It’s just something I learned about because I am a housepainter.
http://diyhomestagingtips.blogspot.com/2010/09/add-some-big-deal-drama-to-your-home.html
I wrote a post about that awhile back, too. I thought it was an interesting idea! -Julia
Wise advice. We sold our home in the dead of winter this past January. It sold after seven showings. We had two offers. I am not in real estate but have a few tips for someone planning on selling a home. If your home is online make sure the photos are perfect and reflect the best view. When I was looking if I was not interested in the first two photos I stopped looking. Also, clean..clean..clean..and if possible make sure your woodwork is clean and if needed touch up any marks. Fresh woodwork really stands out. Good luck!
Good advice! The photos are so important. Drives me crazy when agents don’t seem to get that.
i so so so agree with everything you just said, esp points 3-5. i hate hate hate cluttered living. my husband, little girl and i have been living for a year in a 484 sq ft shoebox (and hoping desperately to find a suitable rental), so it must seem cluttered, but i actually love pristine clean surfaces with minimal amount of clutter.
i recently redid my in law’s home and they absolutely loved the clean, decluttered feel. but clutter has now seeped back in. i’m now convinced it’s a mentality, a personality of clutter rather than “lack of storage”.
also, LOADS of light. i LOVE light (but don’t really like being OUTDOORS in summer hehe). heh, the in laws were so pleased with the light streaming in but then got blockout blinds installed to keep their oh-so-dated-but-oh-so-precious lounges from fading.
oh well.
Have a great great great Christmas. and may your coming new year be filled with colour, laughter, hope and joy.
xoxx
like all the best advice, it seems obvious but needs to be pointed out to ensure it’s acted upon so thank you for sharing!
i love animals, but have your pets elsewhere for a viewing. they could turn off a viewer or even distract an animal lover like myself, meaning they don’t remember how great your home was and consider the pet to be the best part – not good!
consider smells. the most popular are fresh, clean or outdoor smells (candles or open windows before arrival), vanilla and citrus. most popular flowers are roses (given the white/yellow mention above, in these shades perhaps), orchids, tulips, gardenia and hydrangea.
So true about the stainless steel refrigerator. It definitely gives an uplift and modern look to our rustic kitchen!
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