Paulette Maltais 780-907-4550

Are you self-isolating in your house?
If your answer is yes then now might be a great time to be “sprucing up” your house so it is ready for the market.
If you have read my previous posts you will have a list of what to do to prepare the exterior of the house as well as the mechanical system. Another project would be to start decluttering. Because of what is happening and the children being at home this would be a great time to go through each bedroom and start decluttering. (When the children are in school this would become a week-end project.) Closets would be the perfect place to start. As we are also moving from the winter season to the spring and summer season you can go through each closet with your child and check what he/she has overgrown or no longer wearing and start a pile of clothes that is no longer needed so that once you have completed the decluttering of the closets you can bag the clothes and drop them off at a location that collects used clothing and items or you can call the Diabetes Association and they will give you a date that they will be in your neighbourhood and will pick up your clothing/small item bags or boxes directly from your front porch. If there are loose items at the bottom of the closet or on shelves putting them in “cool” baskets helps your child to be organized and makes the closet look much neater. This will leave a good impression with the Buyers when they open the closet door. An alternative to baskets is simply to go to a “Dollar store” and buy colourful gift bags (same or different sizes) and use those to organize the closets. This is a nice cheap substitute if you will not be using them in the new home. Having your closets look as big as possible is definitely a “SELLING FEATURE”. Once each child has decluttered and organized their closet it is time to move to yours and do the same thing!
If you got value from this post be sure to check-out my next post.
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After you have finished decluttering your closets you move to the dressers. I find that, just like in a closet, small baskets are great to keep the drawers organized. I have all of my socks in one, my tights in another, bras in another and underwear in another. As they are each in their own basket even if they are not perfectly folded … the drawer still looks and is or feels more organized. If you have any give aways, Saint Vincent de Paul is a great organization that will pick up your donations and in turn donate it to families that will make good use of the donated items.
If you are thinking of selling your house in the next three to six months and feel that you will not have time to go through everything before putting it on the market, give me a call and we can discuss your personal situation to see what will bring the most value to your home. 780-907-4550
www.slhomes.ca

You can start by the mechanical – furnace, electrical and plumbing.

– Clean or change your furnace filter
– Wash or dust the top of your water heater and your
furnace.
– Call Atco to make an appointment to check the furnace
and all gas appliances.
– Have your furnace and ducts cleaned
– Make sure that any burnt light bulbs are replaced and
while your are doing that, wipe down/wash all your light
fixtures.
– If your fixtures are dated, you might want to consider
replacing them with more trendy light fixtures. There are
some nice inexpensive light fixtures that can help sell the
house by brightening it up as well as giving it a new
contemporary look.
– Check your light switches and plug-ins. Replace any
plates that may be missing. This would also be the time
to wipe down/wash any light switches and plug-ins.
– Check sinks, tubs and toilets. Drains should be working
properly, taps should not be leaking and toilets should
be flushing properly. If you are having any plumbing
issues this would be the time to call in the plumber.

If you want more information on how to prepare your home for the Real Estate market feel free to reach out to me.

If you are, now is a great time to make sure that the house is in tip top shape. This way a buyer is more likely to put your house at the top of their list. The first thing to do is to insure that your house is well maintained and there are no red flags indicating that the house has been neglected.
Below is an Exterior maintenance list to help you start preparing for the sale of your house.
Exterior maintenance list for the Spring Season
Inspect the roof for missing, loose, or damaged shingles and repair or replace as needed.
Check the gutters and downspouts. Clean the gutters from leaves and debris. Make sure the downspouts are secure and replace any missing downspouts.
Power-wash the exterior of the house if possible. At the very least the front door should be sparkling clean and all exterior windows should be washed
Replace cracked windows and missing screens.
Make sure that front steps are clean and clear from any tripping hazards and check that the rails are secured properly
When the weather warms up you will need to remember to re-attach the exterior drain line to the sump pump attachment.
Make sure that any of the spring melt is flowing away from the house. Always maintain positive landscaping around the house to be sure that water doesn’t find its way into your basement.
Check the caulking and weather stripping around the doors and windows and repair or remove and replace if needed.
Rake and fertilize your lawn as soon as the weather permits so that it is off to a great start and it looks great when your house is put up for sale.
Check that your sidewalk is not a tripping hazard. If the city walks in front of your property have shifted and are a hazard phone the city to have it checked out. If your own walks are a hazard have them fixed so anyone can walk around the property safely.
Once the warm weather has settled in put away your snow shovels and snow melt so that they are not an eyesore during viewings.
Check that your exterior lights are working properly and that any burnt out bulbs are replaced. If your lights fixtures are old and do not work properly you should replace them. There are some nice exterior light fixtures that are not expensive and can make a considerable change of the look of the exterior. I would say the same for the mail box (if you have one). If it is old, replace it.
If you can think of anything else that should be included in this Exterior maintenance please message me.
Stay tuned for more tips on how to prepare your house for the Real Estate market.

Paulette Maltais, Professional Real Estate Agent
Published by Marketing Center · March 15 at 10:50 AM ·
Home for sale in: Edmonton, A