Once you decide to sell your home, it is important to do anything you can to make the home stand out and appeal to potential buyers. One thing you can do is improve upon the exterior of the home for an increased curb appeal.
To get started, it is best that you go outdoors and take a walk around your home and property to inspect what may need to be done. Try to see your home through the eyes of potential homebuyers. What would they notice as needing some love and attention? Be sure to inspect the home from all sides, and from the roof down.
While you are walking around the property it is helpful to take notes about what you find. To make this process even easier, we have assembled a checklist for you to use as you evaluate your home’s curb appeal. This will help you to decide what needs to be done before listing your home for sale.
Clean Up
- Remove any old building materials, discarded household items, broken toys and scrap from the yard
- Find a space to store garbage cans at the rear of your home
- Put away items that are not in use (toys, bikes, tools, etc.)
- Organize outdoor furniture
- Clean-up pet messes
- Rake up leaves and debris
- Mow grass, edge yard, and pull weeds
- Trim bushes and prune trees
- Power wash sidewalks, driveway, patios, and porches
- Power wash siding
- Clean windows, screens, and doors
- Clean all outdoor lighting fixtures
Make Repairs
- paint, straighten or replace house numbers
- fix the doorbell
- replace any damaged window/door screens
- replace all burnt-out lightbulbs
- patch and seal driveway and walkways
- repair damaged gutters, shutters, and awnings
- replace damaged deck boards
- repair any broken areas in fences and gates
- repair any damaged siding
- fix or replace any patio stones or pavers
Spruce Things Up
- touch up paint on window and door trim
- paint your front door and add a pop of color
- add planter pots to patio or porch
- spread mulch in your gardens
- consider a new mailbox
- replace the lighting fixture by front door
- add an attractive door mat
- plant a new tree
- add some window boxes
- stain or paint the porch or deck
- replace porch accents
- consider adding porch swing or patio furniture
- add a fountain, birdhouse, or bird feeder to the yard