How much work did you do before putting property on market?

[Positivelypatient]

I've been avidly reading any relevant threads about prepping for house selling but I'm still so stuck on what to do with my own. It's a mid terrace with recent external wall insulation (a plus I think) so it does look quite smart from the outside. Inside its looking a bit tired, decor is probably going to need updating though its modern enough and hallway carpet is the same as when we moved in 18 yes ago. It had bath & kitchen done about 15 yrs ago but you know, it's just a bit not up to the standard I see in some houses on the market. Its definitely no showhome!

Id say its a do-er upper with lots of potential to add value and is a good central location (sml SW city) with some lovely seaviews from bedrooms.

I've got a month to get it ship shape before I get the EAs for valuation and get it up for sale.

Can I ask what you did before you got the EAs in?/ put up for sale?

I'm majorly decluttering and it will be clean/tidy but do I spend £000s on carpets or not bother? And you know that problem where you do one area and then the others look shabbier.

Decluttered - mainly getting rid of outgrown clothes, toys and books. Olio app and Freecycle were good for this. I aimed to get rid of a certain amount of stuff per week.

Storage - we put several bookcases, their contents, three armchairs and two wardrobes into storage. It made
the house look a lot bigger and not everyone can see past someone's dates furniture and large quantities of books.

Snagging - got in handyman to deal with the snagging list which included resealing the shower to get rid of mouldy seal, painting a few walls where the paint had got rubbed or scuffed or where things like stairgates had been. Fixing broken window catches, filling in scratch in a kitchen cupboard, that kind of thing.

Carpets cleaned - carpets were ancient but at least they were clean!

Patio jet washed and tidied up garden.

More than we needed to. We sold to a couple of FTBs who have pretty much ripped everything out.
I even paid for a deep clean when we moved out...waste of money.

I'm sure whoever buys my house will redecorate, knock out walls, replace the kitchen etc. but I think when you're putting your house online and having viewings you want to present it in its best light, without spending lots of money. I also want to be able to move out with minimal fuss and cleaning because I've done as much in advance as possible.

This thread has reminded me of a house I viewed last year. It was a standard semi detached but absolutely pristine inside. The owner had put gorgeous ornate marble features throughout and it was honestly like walking into a museum or high end hotel, I’ve never seen anything like it. The EA issued gloves to everyone at the door and asked us not to touch anything. It was a four bed but the woman who owned it lived there alone. One room was empty except for a box of puppets. I felt like I really wanted to meet her!

My flat was a new build, still in fairly good condition and didn’t need a lot of decluttering but I did clean the walls where DC had scribbled and also replaced our ancient loo with a cheap new one.

Someone mentioned lightbulbs in every room, I’d avoid switching them on in the pictures that go online as people may assume your house is naturally very dark.

I'm moving on 1st Sep

My house was on the market for about a month until it sold and I took 15k off the asking price for a quick sale to FTB, had a higher offer but they needed to sell a property first to make up the shortfall

Last year I had it all redecorated in magnolia (I loathe magnolia) decluttered, got some cheap sofa covers from Amazon, a rug and cushions from Marketplace and placed some faux greenery and some little bits & bobs to 'dress' rooms, everything that could be put in stacker boxes was packed away and put in the garage.

My carpets are pretty knackered upstairs (wooden flooring downstairs) but the EA said not to go to the expense of replacing them

Always made sure it smelt clean and fresh, my large dog was taken out for a long walk and my house cat found a cubby hole to sleep in for the duration of viewings

The front and back garden were always tidy, bins were out of sight

Another busy day here inc a tip run with garage rubbish, sorted & hoovered DDs room so just a wash down of the skirting boards and then carpet to be cleaned in there.

Several more bags for the charity shop and also for my carboot sale.

I've started writing a to do list each day as it all gets a bit overwhelming with so much to get done.

I need to get rid of a small sofa so put that on fb marketplace today - no interest yet.

Tomorrow is the understairs cupboard which is absolutely packed then another tip run I expect!

Thanks everyone for chipoing in with your experiences it makes me feel less daunted!

I've tried getting rid of some stuff on Facebook marketplace and just found lots of time wasters unfortunately. If it's in decent condition look for a local charity that had a furniture shop/warehouse a hospice close to me collects furniture and larger items.

We had a very tired main bathroom and even some wallpaper lifting off where it’s in direct sun. EA said don’t bother. Only thing he suggested fixing was a crack in the ceiling where the loft extension had settled. DH tried but made it look worse!

We put clutter (spare chairs, toy boxes, log basket) in storage, cleaned everywhere including pressure washing patio and cleaning windows. That was it. Got lots of offers and sold over asking.

A few years ago I chatted to a neighbour who was selling, and he was moaning about all the labour he had to put in to remove e.g. his grandfather's early radio parts collection, and that the house had been operating as a bedsit for many years and he was asked to remove beds and furnishings ... The new neighbours got a real bargain!

recently sold my aunts house....very sought after area ...all trendy now...buyers fight over the places....sealed bids etc so did very little...knew it would achieve a very good price with clutter and junk or not.....just cleared out the lot and sold it empty....went for silly money...completed 8 months ago...now a skip outside and full refurb going on...!!

@earsup wow sounds effortless! I guess it depends on alot of things not just the decor etc. My house is in a decent location and I think that is definitely in its favour together with having a garage and small garden which is unusual for around here.

So hopefully whoever wants it is looking at location and space rather than how fancy it is inside!

......Now back to scrubbing the bathroom from top to bottom!

well...aunts place needed modernising....so no point in doing anything other than clear out the years of hoarding junk and clutter...we did clean so it was fresh for viewing....it wasnt totally effort less as needed 4 skips and many trips to charity shops....!!

@earsup 4 skips crikey!

At least this forced decluttering will hopefully save my kids too much work when I go! Although it's endless... how do i have this much STUFF!??

yes 4 skips...it worked out cheaper than using the council rubbish collection service and some of the charity shops refused to take items as either too dusty or it was brown furniture which they couldnt sell etc....i keep on top of the clutter and get rid constantly...in fact dont buy anything....my aunt had 60 years of junk and was a hoarder.....

When selling 8 years ago we went over the top with getting house deep cleaned before photos then again the day before open house day. We even stayed in a B&B the night before so we didn't cause any mess. The house looked amazing. We got 1 offer, quite a way below the asking price, which we were forced to accept as we were keen not to lose the one we wanted to buy. So I don't think there's a connection between the amount of effort you make and the likelihood of selling, unless you're talking about doors hanging off or dog sick stains on the carpet.

Buyers perspective: buying a house where everything has been recently “done”. Love the house, don’t love our vendors taste!

Having a moral dilemma about whether I wish to rip out basically brand new carpet simply because I hate grey?!!

so please don’t do it!

@user1471548941 good to know! I won't be putting in new carpets or repainting, think Id rather factor that into the price.

It will be clean if nothing else though.

@33goingon64 no its just a bit tired and rough around the edges.... a family home that's been lived in 😍

Touched up the skirting boards with Tipp-ex and gave it a bloody good clean.

Yep, I would much rather make a slightly lower offer on a place knowing it needs cosmetic work but be able to chose everything myself rather than go with someone else’s taste! Same applies to bathrooms/kitchens etc!

I think things being a bit dated is fine- people can throw rugs down etc until they’re ready to put their own stamp on things!

@LimboLass tippex = genius!

Week 2 of cleaning and decluttering here, I bought a carpet cleaner so have been shampooing carpets this morning. Am very pleased with my bedroom now, it's bought it up a treat. I'll do it again before the photos & viewings begin.

Im storing so much stuff to do a carboot sale this weekend, can't wait to get it out of the garage so I can start putting packing boxes in there.

Just been pondering For Sale signs, are they worth it? I don't fancy having one to be honest. My road is not on a main thoroughfare so i don't think it'll make much difference. I also don't really want the neighbours being nosey.

We moved last year, cleaned, decluttered hugely (we were downsizing) kitchen and bathrooms painted, main bedroom painted, grouting in kitchen, utility and all bathrooms re whitened, garden tidy, carpets cleaned. Made sure the house was immaculate for every viewing. Sold quickly. Good luck with your move OP.

We had a for sale sign, your neighbours will soon know your house is on the market, with EA calling and if they are like me a total RM addict, they will know even without a board up.

My neighbours knew even before the for sale sign. They figured it out when they saw EAs taking pics outside. The sign is also for advertising the EAs itself.