6 Important Things to Do Before Selling Your Upper Saddle River Home

1. Get a full set of inspections

• A home inspection takes a look at maintenance issues from top to bottom. They look for any issues that the potential homebuyer might want to know about before buying, from faulty electricity to cracked foundations. You should know about any issues ahead of time to avoid surprises.
  
  
• A roof inspection is critical and ensures your roof is in top condition. Roof inspectors are more specialized than home inspectors.
  
  
• An appliance inspection brings in a technician to make sure all your appliances are working correctly. This should include your oven, dishwasher, washer/dryer, water heater, and HVAC at a minimum, along with other appliances installed in the house.

• A property appraisal tells you what the bank valuation of your house, land, and overall property is worth. This will influence how much mortgage a lender would approve for buyers to purchase your house — and give a snapshot of the expected property taxes.

2. Complete repairs and minor improvements

A “perfect” house will sell for more than a home with noticeable flaws. Make your home beautifully competitive by addressing repairs before you list.

• Get the home energy-efficient with low-cost, easy improvements. Lay a new bead of caulk around non-opening windows and place new weather stripping on doors and on windows that open.
  
  
• Have your appliances repaired and/or tuned up and serviced so they are in top condition.
  
  
• Check around the house for any signs of shabbiness. Replace door knobs that have come loose, dated cabinet handles, or carpets that have worn past their best-buy date to reveal your home's true beauty.
  
  
• If you want to maximize the value you'll get for the house, consider one or two major replacements. A new roof can add a few tens of thousands to the listing price, as can a new HVAC or water heater if the old units were reaching their lifespan. (This should also be discussed with your realtor before making any serious repairs.)

3. Repaint and refinish

A fresh coat of paint can be essential when preparing to sell a house. Fresh paint is an easy way to make a home look, feel, and even smell like it was just built. Whether you're refreshing the existing colors or preparing a new color palette, professional painting makes a difference. 

• Choose a welcoming, neutral color palette for new paint on the walls, cabinets, and built-in furniture, favoring warm greige, soft gray-green, and cool charcoals. These neutral colors allow buyers to write in their own favorite colors. However, a subtle difference in shade and hue can also highlight the home's potential for accent walls even without the signature splash of color.
  
  
• For stained and finished wood, refinish it. You can repolish, oil, and perfect your wood surfaces, from raw cabinets to hardwood floors. You can even restain the wood for a new color balance. For stone, like countertops and mantelpieces, you can have it buffed and resealed to remove imperfections.

4. Deep clean the house inside and out

• Rent a steam cleaner or a carpet cleaning service for your carpets and any drapes that remain. Cleaned carpets should be fresh, fluffy, and close to their original color.
  
  
• In the bathroom and kitchen, take a little bleach to the grout in between the tiles. A small brush and mild bleach solution can work wonders to make the whole space look bright and new again.

• You could rent a power washer and (with approval from a home inspector) wash the siding exterior of the house and all your pavement. You can blast years of dirt from the side of the house and out of your driveway concrete. Your home and pavement will look sparkling clean when you are done.
  
  
• Don't forget to change every air and water filter in the house, flush the water heater, and have the HVAC coils cleaned.
  
  
• Leave no corner un-scrubbed. You and/or your hired team should get into every corner with a brush to remove the last vestiges of dust and cobwebs.
  
  
• Now it's time to get a ladder. One of the toughest (and most often forgotten) cleaning tasks is dusting the upper areas. Dust the light fixtures, ceiling fans, crown molding, and vent registers in every room to make your vaulted ceilings crisp and clean from every possible angle.
  
  
• Finally, wash your windows on both sides. Windows rarely look clean when washed only on the inside; you need two sides of clear glass for a smudge-free, crystal-clear view.

5. Stage the home for the buyers you want

As you near the time to list, it's time to think about home staging. Buyers will be most inspired to bid high on your Upper Saddle River home when they can envision themselves in every room. That means giving them something to envision; this is the art of home staging.

• Staging "sets the stage" for buyers to write their own stories about a house. A small dining set in the breakfast nook and kid's beds made up in the bedrooms can inspire visions of family. A cozy seating area or lounge furniture on the deck can inspire visions of relaxing evenings and good conversations. A desk and shelf in the spare room inspire visions of a perfect home office. All it takes is a nudge to help buyers' imaginations. Staging furniture provides a little context for each room.
  
  
• Staging is best done with small-profile furniture. Spindly chairs and square or round dining tables are a classic real estate trick to make a room feel spacious while also providing the feel of a fully furnished house.
  
  
• Window treatments matter when staging, especially for luxury real estate. Remove your personal window treatments and make sure there are no dated mini blinds. Use tasteful, filmy curtains or elegant fabric shades to control the light in each room and provide some elements of decor without overpowering the space.
  
  
• Remember that each room is merely a representation of what could be there. You only need a few pieces of furniture and decor to spotlight each space. Let your buyer's imagination do the rest. It is recommended to seek professional advice from your expert real estate professional, Taylor Lucyk.

6. Prepare your bid acceptance strategy

Last but not least, you will need to consider preparing your bid acceptance strategy. When you list your Upper Saddle River home, expect a wash of bids from eager buyers looking to leave the dense urban areas nearby for more spacious and luxurious suburban settings. You will need to choose the best bid, both considering the highest number and the best negotiation terms included in the offer. In addition to providing guidance on the above steps, including recommending inspectors and home stagers, a skilled real estate agent can help you prepare your strategy and carefully compare each bid to the others as you decide who to sell your luxurious home to.