If you’re planning to sell your property in 2025, this is the perfect time to create a strategy that will ensure you will always have control of the situation and finish with a great selling experience.
In real estate, it rarely pays to rush. And this is never more true than for owners who need to prepare their homes for sale.
Of course, you can always put your property on the market at short notice – and you can do very well – but the real estate gods tend to favour those who take a methodical approach.
Whether you’re upsizing or downsizing, it’s critical you achieve the best possible price.
For upsizers, this will mean either being able to spend more on your next property or minimise your future mortgage costs. And for downsizers, it should give you extra spending power when retirement comes along, or create a comfortable nest egg.
However you look at it, there’s a lot on the line.
Below, we’ve pulled a general, non-specific timeline to help guide you towards a spring or summer sale.
Reach Out ASAP: Talk to a trusted agent about your plans. Ask for an evaluation of your home, and discuss the current dynamics of the local market. Seek advice on how to get your home ready. Ask about the timing of the agent’s photographer, too. We’d love to speak with you.
Weeks 15-8: Make a plan of what’s needed. Once each task is identified and agreed, book suitable contractors or commit time in your own diary if you’re going to do some DIY. We can’t stress enough the need to book each service as far in advance as possible, including removalists and storage space.
Weeks 12-8: Identify and initiate any necessary renovations or structural improvements that could negatively affect your price. If you want to remodel your kitchen, you’ll need to plan a little further out. However, a three-month window should be sufficient for small-scale enhancements.
Weeks 8-7: Start a process of decluttering. Go one room at a time. Consider making a schedule of when you’re going to attack the bedrooms, storage areas, living areas and even your tool shed. You may need to hire a storage unit to hold furniture you decide to remove to make your home feel larger.
Week 7: With the home decluttered, ask yourself whether it might pay to have the home professionally staged. It’s not a super-cheap strategy but it works wonders. Seek your agent’s advice. If staging seems a good idea, book it now.
Weeks 6-7: Start to depersonalise. Take away family photos and knick-knacks you picked up during your adventures. Reconsider the artwork to make sure it’s suitable for walk-throughs. You want your buyers to picture themselves living in your home, not feeling like a visitor.
Weeks 6-5: This could be the optimal time for the painters to step in, especially if you need to refresh the interior. Painting your home is one of the cheapest and most effective improvements. If you do it yourself, you may need to start work a little further out.
Weeks 4-3: It’s time for a deep clean. You should have decluttered, depersonalised and painted your home by now. So, either take on the task, or hire a professional cleaner.
Weeks 3-2: If you’re staging your home, this is probably the optimal time to start the process of moving your belongings out. You’re going to need removalists and additional storage, so book all this in advance.
Weeks 2-1: It’s just adding the finishing touches now. Make sure your garden is pristine, and consider how you might enhance the first impression buyers will have when they make their first visit.
Follow these tips and you’ll give your buyers a five-star presentation and increase your chances of a successful sale. Remember, start early and prioritise the most important tasks.