Prepping To Sell During Quarantine

So now that you’re stuck indoors for the foreseeable future, you may be wondering how you are going to fill your time. If you have plans, or are just considering, putting your house on the market when this is all over, now is the best time to get it ready! What better way to pass the hours and be productive than preparing your house for sale? While some checklist items may be obvious, there may be a few to-do list boxes you aren’t sure you need to check. Here is a list for you to get your house ready for sale!

Start Outside

If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere having nice spring weather right now, take advantage of being outdoors without breaking any local rules. In most cases, you are permitted to enjoy the sunshine on your own property, so now is the best time to spruce up the outside. If you have a power washer, clean your siding and any sidewalks or driveways attached to your home. Boost your curb appeal by mowing the lawn, touching up any landscaping work.

Make Any Repairs

Take care of whatever repairs you can that don’t require an unnecessary trip to the store. Swap out old light bulbs, fix that window that keeps jamming shut, and patch up any dents or scrapes on your indoor walls.

Make Your Home Inviting

If you have any paint on hand, give your front door a fresh coat and add a new floor mat (ordered online!) to make your home feel approachable. If a potential buyer doesn’t feel welcome approaching your home, they likely won’t want to live in it.

Declutter Your Home

This is the best time to realize how much you actually use items in your home. If you’ve been stuck indoors for several weeks and you still haven’t used an item, add it to your donate or toss pile. Not only is this great to help prepare for sale, but it will help your mental health while you are stuck inside. Clearing clutter is extremely beneficial for many reasons, and it will make your move that much easier.

Clean & Organize Your Home

After you’ve decluttered, it is time to clean and organize. When someone tours your home, they want to feel like it can be theirs. If your home is scattered with items and there is barely room to walk around, it will be hard for them to picture themselves living there. Having your items cleaned and organized will also help you when it is time to pack and move on!

Eliminate Odors

You are probably craving fresh air anyway, so why not spend those sunny days with every window in the house wide open! This will help eliminate any residual odors you aren’t aware of and it can help keep air flowing while you are using chemical products to deep clean your home.

There’s a good chance you’re spending more time at home than you are used to. Whether you had travel plans change, or you are now working remotely from home, or you are on a ‘shelter-in-place’ order from your local government, you probably have some extra time on your hands. Now is the best time to get ahead on spring cleaning so when things are looking up, you won’t have to worry about clutter or chaos at home!

Take advantage of this extra time. While a large project can seem daunting, added stress is unnecessary. Taking on a project like spring cleaning step by step can help it feel doable. Make a list of what you want to take care of, section by section. For example:

-Backyard - sweep patio, clean furniture, update light fixtures
-Kitchen - deep clean floors, clean out fridge and pantry, organize freezer items

Once you’ve made a step by step list for each part of your home, you can create a to-do list for the members of your house and spread the items out over the next week or two.

This is also a great time to get rid of clutter. If you are spending more time in your house than usual, it may become more obvious what is clutter and what is necessary. Take time on one of your first days home to deem items as “clutter” and store them away. If you didn’t miss them over that week, you know it is time to toss or donate them when you can leave your house again.

As you continue to clean, you may be concerned about a shortage of cleaning products. Even if the shelves are running low on Lysol, you can create your own DIY disinfectant. A popular combination includes rubbing alcohol, essential oils, and water. You can also use vinegar and dish soap to clean glass!

Lastly, make it fun. Open the windows if the sun is shining and play your favorite music. Being stuck inside doesn’t have to feel so terrible.

EXCITING NEWS CORPUS CHRISTI!!!

Not only as REALTORS®, but residents of the Coastal Bend, you have no idea how much this project excites us.  This will bring tons of family fun, tourism and entertainment to the area, all while bringing North Beach back to life!!!  Watch this incredible video to see the recently approved plans for the North Beach project!

Corpus Christi North Beach Project

While it may only be temporary, the COVID-19 pandemic is touching everyone’s life in one way or another. If you are in the market to buy or sell your home, this can be a frightening time. With calls for social distancing and many businesses temporarily closing their doors, there is a great deal of uncertainty when it comes to real estate. If you are trying to buy or sell right now, here are some tips to help you make it through!

GO DIGITAL

Instead of opting for an open house, see if you can do a guided tour via Facetime or video marketing.

SANITIZE

If you are still allowing tours of your home or attempting to tour homes, make sure you are taking all sanitary precautions. Offer hand soap for your home tour and ensure you are sanitizing all surfaces a potential buyer may come into contact with, such as doorknobs and counter tops. If you are touring a home, make sure you maintain social distancing practices with the agent and avoid touching anything you do not need to.

DOWNSIZE

Instead of having an open house, consider having only scheduled showings for your home or only participating in scheduled viewings if you are looking to buy.

STAY CALM, STAY SAFE

While there are still many options to buy and sell right now, stay calm and trust your agent. This is their specialty and they know the best course of action during this time. If they can offer digital options, they will let you know.

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Curious about local real estate? So are we! Every month we review trends in our real estate market and consider the number of homes on the market in each price tier, the amount of time particular homes have been listed for sale, specific neighborhood trends, the median price and square footage of each home sold and so much more. We’d love to invite you to do the same!

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You can sign up here to receive your own market report, delivered as often as you like! It contains current information on pending, active and just sold properties so you can see actual homes in your neighborhood. You can review your area on a larger scale, as well, by refining your search to include properties across the city or county. As you notice price and size trends, please contact us for clarification or to have any questions answered.

We can definitely fill you in on details that are not listed on the report and help you determine the best home for you. If you are wondering if now is the time to sell, please try out our INSTANT home value tool. You’ll get an estimate on the value of your property in today’s market. Either way, we hope to hear from you soon as you get to know our neighborhoods and local real estate market better.