Love is in the air! We’re not talking about Valentine’s Day — we mean all of the buyers falling in love with your home thanks to these easy staging tips. From simple DIY projects to decor and decluttering pointers, these effortless staging tips will wow the next buyers that step through your front door.

Clean, Clean, Clean

The single most important step for staging success? Clean. Break out those rubber gloves and scrub every corner, crack, and crevice that you can find. Not only will a clean home convey to buyers that you take good care of your space, but it’ll also ensure less work and fewer problems when they move in.

The home-staging cleaning process is more than just regular vacuuming, dusting, mopping, and scrubbing; you’ll need to go the extra mile. We’re talking waxing the floors, deep cleaning the carpets, polishing all of the handles and doorknobs, and more. Make an extensive list, and devote a whole weekend to tidying up.

Tackle Any Unfinished Projects

Do you have a notoriously leaky faucet that you haven’t gotten around to fixing, or a stain on the floor that you’ve been covering with a rug? Now is the time to take care of it.

Take an inventory of any unfinished projects you’ve accumulated. Whether it’s repairing a lighting fixture or patching a hole in the roof, ticking off pending projects is critical in the staging process. The last thing a buyer wants is to inherit problems from a home that they could’ve avoided.

Try Small-Scale DIY

You don’t have to add an extra room or install an in-ground pool to make your home stick out to buyers. There are plenty of simple and affordable DIY projects, from decor improvements to easy upgrades and repairs, that’ll make your home pop!

Need some ideas to kickstart the process? Try putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls, replacing outdated lighting, upgrading cabinet handles and doorknobs, or de-popcorning your ceiling — just a few of the many easy ways to elevate your home’s look.

De-personalize and De-clutter

While decorating plays a big role in catching a buyer’s eye, there’s a fine line between standing out and overdoing it. While you might like your style of decorating, buyers could find it off-putting, so keeping it neutral is key. Using house plants and seasonal greenery is always a solid option for filling empty space!

While you’re putting up that new decor, you’ll want your space to be clutter-free and open. If you have any old couches, outdated decorations, or unnecessary accent pieces, take the opportunity to get rid of them before showings start.

List Your Home with Local Experts

From helping you get your DIY on to handling the complicated closing paperwork, our team is dedicated to helping you have a successful and stress-free real estate experience.

Are you ready to get started on your selling journey? Don’t hesitate to give our team of local experts a call today!

Imagine, after weeks of searching, that you’ve finally found your dream home. It’s in the perfect location with the right features and exactly the amount of space you need. But after requesting more information, your agent informs you that there are already several offers made on the house. How do you stand out in a busy market and snag your dream home?

When buyers are looking to make a lasting impression on sellers, they often opt to submit a letter to the seller. In fact, a recent study found that buyers who submitted letters were 9% more likely to have their offer accepted.

A Buyer’s Letter can work both with you and against you, so it’s important to understand what they are and when you should use one.

What is a Buyer’s Letter?

A Buyer’s Letter is pretty much what it sounds like — a letter written by the buyer for the seller in order to stand out in a busy market. The letter is your chance to make a case for why you should get the home over other buyers.

Many people opt to write about how they envision their lives in the home, how well they would take care of it, how much owning this specific home would mean to them, and similar sentiments.

You might also use this space to talk yourself up, bringing up steady finances, your down payment, and job security — things geared towards making the seller confident in choosing you.

Advantages of a Buyer’s Letter

A Buyer’s Letter sets you apart from the crowd and makes you more than just an offer on a sheet of paper — it allows you to connect with the seller on a personal level. In a constantly growing and changing market, being able to stand out or connect puts you a big step ahead of other buyers.

Is the home close to a golf course? Does the seller have bikes in their garage? Are there signs of pets in the home? If you notice you have common interests, including them in the Buyer’s Letter can elevate your standing.

When you choose to forgo a Buyer’s Letter, you miss out on the chance to advocate for yourself, which can go a long way in the seller’s final decision.

Disadvantages of a Buyer’s Letter

While there are plenty of pros to using a Buyer’s Letter, there are also pitfalls to consider. Making your case is great, but it does give the seller leverage. If you really love the house as much as you say, then what’s to stop the seller from raising the asking price?

Maybe the seller accepts your offer, and you move to the home inspection stage. If issues turn up, then the seller might refuse to make costly repairs, assuming that you’ll buy the house no matter what.

Another unexpected con of a buyer’s letter? It can be tricky for sellers to navigate around discrimination issues. If a seller picks a buyer of a certain race, religion, gender, or family status instead of another, they could face backlash. Be aware of this when writing your letter so as to not put the seller in an uncomfortable position.

Need Help Standing Out?

If you’re kicking off the home-buying process and need help standing out, we’ve got you covered. Get in touch with us today, and we’ll help you secure your dream home, and answer any and all of your questions in the process.

Happy 2019! What do you want to accomplish in the New Year? If you’re thinking seriously about selling your home this year, or just want to add some value to your property, then it’s time to make a game plan for 2019.

You don’t have to break the bank to build your home equity; there are a number of small, easy projects you can do to increase your home’s value. And bonus: they’re indoor-only, so you can get started right away!

Here are three DIY, cost-effective ways to add value to your home.

Update Your Kitchen

Kitchens and bathrooms sell homes. It’s just a fact. If you’re aiming to add value to your entire home, start with these areas.

In the kitchen, refinish wooden cabinets or use a faux-wood finish on non-wood cabinets to give them an updated look. You can also replace your sink with a trendy single-basin fit and sprayer nozzle, and upgrade your appliances to stainless-steel.

With just a few small updates, you can have your whole kitchen feeling brand new!

Give Your Bathroom a Facelift

Let’s head to the bathroom. With a few small upgrades, you can have your entire bathroom feeling like new.

Consider installing a low-flush toilet, updating your faucets, updating your flooring, re-caulking your bathtub, and even replacing the vanity. Strike the perfect balance between energy-efficient upgrades and aesthetic finishes to create a space that’s peaceful, luxurious, and comfortable.

Bring Some Light Into Your Home

Consider replacing all the lights (and light switches) in your home for a more modern aesthetic. Swap out traditional light switches with dimmers, install wall-mounted lights in your bathroom for a more luxurious feel, and be sure you’re using high-wattage bulbs in every room.

Adding light to your home will instantly make it appear more open and spacious.

Planning to Sell Your Home in the New Year?

We can help with that. Give us a call to begin exploring your real estate options. We’d love to share some additional tips on how to add even more value to your home!

We loved 2018, but we are ready to jump into 2019!  In the year ahead, it is our hope to remain humble and hungry as we continue to build Hilton Head Properties Realty and Rentals.  Listed below are some ideas to help you maximize your enjoyment, ownership, savings, sale or rentals on Hilton Head Island.  We look forward to helping you achieve your real estate dreams in 2019! Read the rest of this entry

Let’s start the new year off right. If you’ve been dreaming of a new home, it’s time to get started. Here’s a month-by-month guide to planning for and buying a new home. It’s about time to set your new year’s resolution, right?

January: Brush Up on Your Market Knowledge

The best way to get started? Brush up on your real estate knowledge. Scour the market with a fine-tooth comb. Check out things like current inventory in your city, average sales prices, and the listing-to-sales-price ratio.

This research will help you familiarize yourself with the market.

February: Address Your Budget

Let’s finalize our budget shall we? The easiest way to do this is to get pre-approved for a mortgage.

Meet with a lender (let us know if you’d like a recommendation) to review your finances. The lender will go over your financial history, and then let you know what the bank is willing to lend you.

Now you have an idea of what your mortgage will be and what you can afford in a home.

March: Find Your Perfect Location

Do some soul searching. Where will you be happiest? Explore locations based on their job market, housing affordability, and overall quality of life. The goal is to narrow down your search to one city.

If you have the means, try to take some time off to go and visit a few cities. Once you find a city, it’s time to narrow your search down even further by pinpointing specific areas or neighborhoods that will best meet your needs.

April: Find the Right Agent

Find the right real estate agent to help you buy a home. Trust us: they’ll save you time, money, and more than a few headaches.

If you need any recommendations, let us know. We have more than a few ideas.

May: Define Your Dream Home

Now is the fun part! Start putting together a list of everything you want in your dream home. We recommend starting by defining your “must-have” features. Think of the things in your home you can’t live without. That’s a great place to start.

It’s also important to know the difference between “must-have” (i.e. you need 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms) and “nice-to-haves” (it would be nice to have granite countertops but you can also live without them.)

June-July: Begin Searching

Use a handy home search tool like ours to begin browsing homes for sale in your target area. Once you find a home that you like, it’s time to schedule a tour.

Private home tours are often better than traditional open houses because you have more time to walk through the home, without the pressure of competing with other potential buyers.

At some point in your home-search journey, you’re likely to come across at least one home that calls your name.

August: Fall in Love and Make an Offer

You’ve found the one; now make an offer!

Work closely with your agent to compare recently sold homes in the area and craft the perfect offer.

Ask your agent for their advice—like whether or not they think the price is right for this home, as well as what other contingencies you might want to include in your offer. This is when your real estate agent will prove truly valuable: they’ll be able to provide useful insight in order to help you get the home of your dreams for the best possible price.

September: Schedule All the Things

Let’s get down to business. It’s time to negotiate with the seller, schedule an inspection, have your real estate agent complete any renegotiations (based on that inspection), and get the home appraised by a professional.

You’ll also have to take care of some more paperwork to finalize your mortgage loan.

October – December: Let’s Start Closing

Next, you’ll start the closing process.

Buckle up, because we’re in it for the long haul! Here’s where you’ll finalize your mortgage approval (this requires a ton of paperwork) and meet with an attorney to set closing dates and sign paperwork prior to closing. This is also the time when you’ll review closing fees and the exact monthly costs for your home.

At the end of it all comes the close. You’ll pay the remaining closing fees, sign all the paperwork, and collect your keys Congratulations! You just bought a home.

Ready to Begin?

We’re ready to help. Give us a call today to get started.

Hilton Head Island & Bluffton Real Estate News November 2018

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Sometimes, life happens. Maybe you’ve been hired at a new company across state. Or a sudden change in your family requires you to take in a relative and you need extra space pronto. Perhaps you’re retiring early so you need to downsize. Whatever the case may be, you need to sell your home during the “off” season.

Put simply, the “off” season refers to the period of time when the real estate market slows down. Generally, this means decreased inventory and competition from both buyers and sellers.

So, if you’re tasked with selling a home during the “off” season, you may be asking yourself how you’re going to do it. If you follow these tips, your home sale should go off without a hitch.

Don’t Pause for the Holidays

While you may have heard other real estate agents say that it’s a good idea to pause your sale during big holidays like Christmas or New Years, we actually don’t recommend it.

If a buyer really needs to find their new home as soon as possible, they won’t likely be deterred by the holidays. And who knows, your home may just be the perfect one for them.

Stage it for Perfection

Home staging is a delicate art. You should make sure your home is inviting and warm, but not too overwhelming with personal decor or large furniture. Generally, the best way to stage your home is by following these steps:

• Hire a professional to deep clean it
• Go through every single room and de-clutter (get rid of everything you don’t use/want — consider hosting a garage sale or making a donation to your local Goodwill)
• Highlight the natural space of your home with a few pieces of furniture, but consider renting a storage unit to store excess pieces

Also, take advantage of the cooler weather! Create a cozy atmosphere for people who come to tour your home. Put out a plate of holiday cookies or have a pot of cider simmering on the stove top. This way, they’ll feel at home the minute they walk through your front door.

Price Your Home Effectively

Pricing your home is a tricky business no matter what time of year you decide to sell. But if you’re listing your home during your market’s “off” season, you have to be especially careful.

Potential buyers know that the inventory is low, and that the competition is as well. They’ll be looking for every opportunity to bring the listing price of your home down a few notches.

That’s why it’s so important to work with an experienced real estate agent to price your home. The right agent will know what listing price is best for your home, and how to get you the most amount of money for your home sale no matter what month it is.

Looking to Sell Your Home Before the Holidays?

We should talk. We would love to guide you through the home-selling process and get your home sold as soon as possible.