Taking care of those “little jobs” you’ve been putting off every weekend is very important in achieving a quick sale at the highest possible selling price.

This is because buyers typically notice the little jobs too; an ill-fitting gate is easily and cheaply repaired, yet can loom large in the buyer’s mind as a more major problem that hints at other areas of the property being neglected.

Beware of over-capitalising

That being said, you need to be wary of over-capitalising when preparing to sell. Replacing a bathroom and renovating a kitchen are expensive and, depending on the property and its location, may prove counterproductive in the effort to achieve the best price.

For example, if you were to take a quality home worth $700,000 in a suburb where the median house price was of that same value, then investing in a new kitchen and bathroom costing $80,000 may not be the best idea, as it is probably more difficult to sell that property at $800,000. This is partly because it is already above the suburb’s median house price.

Conversely, an original cottage in a well-established affluent suburb is more likely to benefit from renovations when preparing to sell due to the higher demand for “finished” properties in those sought-after areas.

Presenting your home for sale

Obviously, each property and circumstance creates a variety of options for sellers when preparing to sell, and opinions from real estate agents on the matter are, as always, subjective.

In general terms, presenting a clean and tidy home is always going to help your cause in selling at the best price.

Paint out bright colours on internal walls, de-clutter by storing away trinkets and excess family photos, clear the fridge of magnets and kids’ school art and place items neatly in storage cupboards.

Small things do make a difference. Paint and gardens are two areas of focus that can make a disproportionate difference to the selling price (relative to their cost and the effort involved).

These tasks can usually be completed by the seller themselves which helps keep costs down and can make an amazing difference to the presentation of the home and therefore the price of the property.

For more helpful advice on selling your home, check out our related blog posts