The condition of a property can often be corrected with price, however improvements to the condition will make a Hilton Head property sell faster and quite possibly for more money in the market today.  Condition is really the only thing a seller can change other than price to get their property sold.   With available inventory and selection that exist on Hilton Head Island, buyers do not have to settle for a property that needs work.  It is still a beauty contest for Hilton Head Island properties and the best will win.  Sellers have spotted this trend and have become pro-active in positioning their properties to be the next sold.  Listed below are several ways to make a property more saleable.

Hilton Head is a competitive real estate market

Currently we have 661 homes, 592 villas and 318 lots on Hilton Head Island that are listed for sale.  The properties that offer the best condition, location and price will always sell first. That said, we have listed some property improvements for Hilton Head sellers that can make a difference between sitting or selling.

• First Impression – A home, condo and even a lot only has one shot for a good first impression.  Put yourself in a buyers shoes and note everything that you see as you step out of the car.  Everything.  The walkway, landscaping, paint, windows, front door, bright flowers, and even smell all make an impression on the buyer.   Vacant lots should be bush-hogged and staked in all four corners.  Make it easy for a buyer to see the property, not the problems.  Even small problems including ripped screens, cracked calking, drippy faucets, dirty bath tile, peeling paint may seem trivial, but they will give the buyer the house is not well maintained.
• Property Staging and Furnishings – The way you sell a home is different than the way you live in it.  A home can have too much stuff, not the right stuff or no stuff at all.  We have decorators and designers that can help with furnishings to sell a house to faster.  In fact, these designers are so good, we had one owner take their home off the market because they liked it better after the staging.
• Lighting – In darker rooms and hallways replace the lighting with “Day Light” fluorescent bulbs.  These bulbs will bring new energy to the property and are a fairly inexpensive fix.  Dark homes are hard to sell and these bulbs will fix the problem forever.
• Buyers Eye Level – The tiniest of details including the front door, house number and door knob are very important first impressions for the buyer.  That is because their eyes focus on these very easily as they are “eye level”.  Some other eye level improvements include adding granite counter tops, cleaning door windows, inside the fridge, the oven, the stainless in a kitchen and while at it, remove everything from all the countertops.
• Bathrooms – Raising the existing vanities in bathrooms, removing wallpaper, new fixtures and even tile cleaning-sealing can make an old bath look new again.  We have contractors standing by that can help with these type of improvements.
• Photogenic – There are some properties that are very difficult to take a good photo of the front or back.  If this is a problem for the photographer, it also will be a problem for the buyer.  We have had trees trimmed, woods bush hogged and landscaping tweaked so the buyer can see the property better from their car.  Even the drive by first impression is important.

Hilton Head’s Free Property Review

If you would like a free “no commitment” property condition review, please e-mail me at Robbie@robbiebunting.com.  I will need to know how to get access and will email the report back to you with ideas that can help you maximize your selling price or rental season.  Thank you.