Cincinnati Homes For Sale

Selling your home? Start with the outside. First impressions can be the difference between selling your house for a good price soon after it goes on the market or waiting and waiting and finally caving in to a low offer.

Maybe you can't judge a book by its cover, but jacket art and binding quality can certanly influence your decision to pick up a book and buy it. The same principle applies to homes for sale.

The exterior of a home and the grounds surrounding it create a strong first impression on home buyers - as well as family, friends and neighbors. If a property shows shoddy upkeep, faded paint and unattractive landscaping, prospects viewing it from the curb may assume more shabbiness inside. Buyers won't even go there unless of course, they're looking for a bargain-priced fixer-upper.

If you're thinking about selling your home in today's market and you want to boost its appeal to drive-by buyers, follow the suggestions here - then sit back and watch your home sell for top dollar!

Take a Walkabout  Pretend you are shopping for a home with a notebook and an attitude. Ask someone to drive you slowly past your home, approaching it from every strett that allows a view of the property - front, sides and back. As you cruise by, note your first impressions, Then, get out of the car and walk toward the property critically as a buyer would, jotting down what you notice along the way.

To get a truly objective opinion about your home's scurb appeal, ask us to accompany you on your exterior survey. With no emotional attachment to the property, other people see things you might miss - both good and not so good.

See how your home looks after dark, too. Many busy home buyers use weekday evenings to drive by homes and weekend days to visit them.

The Big Picture  As you look at your property, try to find a momorable word or phrase that best describes it. (Buyers will do exactly that.) Is your home inviting, cozy, elegant, well-maintained or intersting? Or, is run-down, mess, ordinary, dirty or scary-lookin?

The overall impression your home makes is really a composite of various elements - location architecture, landscaping, details and upkeep;.  By focusing on each element individually, you can create an attractive first impression of your home.

Location  Short of picking up and moving your home to another lot, the only thing you can do about its location is emphasize the good points and minimize any bad ones. For example, if the home sits on a corner lot, you may want to install an attractive hedge or fence to create more privacy in the exposed side yard.  That's also a useful approach if an eyesore on a neighbor's lot can be seen from yours.

Architecture  Punch up your home's style by ensuring its attractive architectural features get noticed. Use a slightly contrasting paint clor that coordinates with the color of the home to emphasize special features such as columns, trim, porches, shutters, doors and so on. Less attractive features, such as gutter downspouts can be painted the same color as the home so that they blend in and disappear.

Don't have much style to work with? Add some! For example, you can give dimension and touch of cottage charm to a simple rectangular or square home by installing and L shaped picket fence along the outside of the entry walkway. Set it far enough away from the side walk so that you can plant flowers on both sides. Consider adding a railing to a plain front or back porch. Window shutters add a nice touch, too.

Landscaping  Sutdies show that good landscaping not only attracts the attention of buyers, it can increase the value of your home. If your lawn and garden look helter-skelter, ask a local nursery to draw up a remodeling plan to make the best use of what's already there. Add new plants trees or shrubs, as needed. You can do the work yourself or hire a team to make changtes for you.

Remember, plantings on the property should decorate rather than dominate the home. Remove old shrubs and trees that have over-grown their location no longer look healthy or block a view of doors, windows or walkways. Substitute a self-kaintaining ground cover or flowering shrubs and mulch in hard-to-mow locations.

Simplify flowerbeds so that they look neat and easy to maintain. Make sure trees, shrubs, flowerbeds and lawn are kept neatly trimmed and week-free.

Extra Pizzazz  Add interest to just two or three areas outside your home using a decorative planter or potted flowers, distinctive mailbox, seasonal banner, window boxes, front-porch swing, garden bench or bird bath. Don't get carried away, though. A few tasteful touches will look great while multiple accents all around the home will have a disorganized junky effect.

Details  Mailboxes, house numbers, screens, light fixtures, railings, door handles and kickplates can adorn a home or detract from it. Make sure your home's hardware reflects up-to-date styles. For example, old-English-style light fixtures were the rage in the '70's, but may look dated today on anything but Tudor-style homes.

At the very least, make sure your home's hardware is properly installed, operable, attractive and in good condition. Think about adding floodlights or pathway lighting to show off your home after dark. (Be conservative, though. Too many path lights, especially in a straight line, can make your yard look like an airport landing strip after dark.)

Upkeep  The most important impression you want your home to convey is that it is clean and well-maintained. First, minimize or do away with yard clutter- lawn ornaments, grills, furniture, yard tools or toys. If you have an asphalt driveway, fill cracks and apply a fresh coat of sealer. If your home's exterior paint is faded or in a dated color, invest in a fresh paint job in a neutral color scheme - one that bits both the home and the neighborhood.

Buy or rent a pressure washer and use it to give your home's siding, brick and deck a good wash. Power washers are also great for removing stains and mold from hardscaping, such as asphalt patios, driveways and walkways. A chemical compound can be used if your roof shows mold patches or streaks. You may also want consider applying a grease remover to the carport's floor if your home has one. Don't forget to clean the windows!

Call on us!  We would be happy to take a look at your home and provide more suggestions about how you can enhance its curb appeal. There's no obligation - just give us a call! 513 766 3878.