6 Essential Strategies For Selling a Fixer-Upper Home

Selling a home can be difficult, and when it comes to selling a fixer-upper, it can feel impossible. Fortunately, selling fixer-uppers is completely possible when the homeowner knows what they're doing. For homeowners trying to get a leg up on the competition and help their fixer-upper home find a buyer, here are 5 essential tips and strategies to keep in mind.

Clean, Stage, & Improve Curb Appeal

Cleaning is an essential part of selling a fixer-upper. Before listing the home for sale or showing the home to buyers, it must first be deep cleaned with carpet shampooed, upholstery cleaned, furniture dusted and more. This type of cleaning should go beyond standard cleaning, and should involve cleaning parts of the house that are normally left alone. Scuff marks on walls, for example, should all be removed. 

Staging is also very important. Staging involves making the house look inviting and cheerful, but also a little generic. During this process, many homeowners choose to remove personal pictures, collections and other items that create clutter. Hanging art on the wall and adding small decorative touches (like flowers) can also help. To improve curb appeal, homeowners must clean up their yard and, if possible, plant flowers that will make their home look welcoming. 

Set a Lower Price

One of the big draws of fixer-upper homes is that they cost less than move-in ready homes to make up for how much money the home needs for renovations. This is very important to take into consideration because all buyers who come to see the home will be asking themselves if the price of the home leaves enough left to fix it up later. If the fixer-upper home costs as much as the move-in ready home down the road, buyers will end up looking elsewhere.

Be Honest About Flaws

Buyers who want a fixer-upper home know that it's going to need its fair share of work before everything is up to snuff. As a seller, don't try to hide these flaws or lie about them because this will lead to the buyer feeling like they can't trust the seller. If the roof is on its last leg, that's something that the buyer needs to be aware of because if they buy the home, that's one of the things they will have to fix, and buyers need to keep track of all the projects they want to do. Lying about it only does both parties a disservice, so tell the truth from the beginning.

Don't Be Afraid To Highlight Good Features

Every home, no matter what condition it's in, has some sort of good features. These can be things like the location or neighborhood it's in, or something like a project that was completed recently, such as a new roof or windows. Don't be afraid to draw attention to these sorts of features. Not only can they make the home more appealing to potential buyers, but making these sorts of things known can sent the home apart from the others on the market.

Make the Home Welcoming

Being a fixer-upper isn't an excuse to skimp on the home's upkeep. The Bee Cave home is still for sale and needs to make good first impressions, so the homeowner should take time to do some chores and make the home welcoming. It's amazing the difference a nice looking sign out front and a little elbow grease can accomplish. Some easy things homeowners can do include:

• Mow the lawn
• Weed the garden
• Vacuum the floors
• Put away pets' or children's toys
• Wash and put away dirty dishes
• Clean off tables

The homeowner can also do any other normal chores the home requires that help create a neat and welcoming environment for buyers.

Consider All Offers

There's a world of different loans and mortgages outside a conventional mortgage. For sellers who aren't familiar with them, it may seem intimidating if someone offers on the home with a VA or USDA loan. Loans such as these aren't anything to be afraid of—they work almost identically to conventional loans, but the main difference between them is that USDA and VA loans are sponsored by the government, whereas conventional loans are sponsored by a private institution. No matter what sort of offer the seller receives on the home, they should consider it seriously.

These are just some of the strategies out there for helping fixer-upper homes, and by following them, sellers may find that their fixer-upper home starts getting the attention it deserves.