When it comes to selling real estate, appearances are everything and first impressions are often all you have. Your efforts to improve the appearance of your home will boost the number and value of offers you receive, and ultimately accelerate the sale of your home.

Sometimes it's difficult for homeowners to be objective on important matters of showing form and function. As your personal Real Estate Agent, I can offer you personal and professional advice on what you really need to do - and what you could do better - to improve your home's selling prospects.

1. Outside Matters - get off to a good start by welcoming buyers with a tidy and inviting exterior.
Yard - mow the lawn, trim hedges, rake leaves and offer a touch of flower power;
Driveway - keep the garage door closed and clear any tools, toys, oil leaks and snow;
Exterior - wash the windows, clean / repair any obvious damage to the roof, gutters and siding;
Entrance - a tidy walkway and freshly painted door open a world of possibilities;

2. Clean Bill of Health - a clean home creates a wealth of selling health.
Rooms - do a thorough top-to-bottom cleaning of every room including walls, counter surfaces, fixtures and windows;
Flooring - remove carpet stains and floor markings;
Storage - attics, basements and closets are important selling features that need to be 'presentable';
Odors - every buyer is looking for a 'sense of fresh'; eliminate any offensive food, pet, smoke or mildew odors; shampoo carpets, empty garbage frequently, bathe pets and open windows for fresh air; introduce pleasing scents - subtly - with potpourri, air fresheners, candles or baking.

3. Gut the Clutter - space always sells, over-excessive decoration often doesn't. Clearing space and removing unnecessary clutter makes your home seem bigger and brighter.
Furniture - consider storing furniture you don't use or need to create more 'space';
Knick-knacks - too many ornaments and personal mementos can impose a sense of style and burden otherwise pleasing features;
Counters - unnecessary appliances and gadgets should be stored away

4. 'Care' Repairs - ensuring your home is in complete working order assures buyers they are making a sound investment in a home that has been well cared for - a home that won't bring unwanted surprises down the road.
Leaky faucets, burned-out light bulbs, noisy furnaces and air conditioners, sticky doors, broken windows and dysfunctional appliances should be dealt with before they break the deal.

5. New is Nice - buyers are looking for a new home, so give them a taste of what's to come…
A fresh coat of paint, a new area rug, crisp linen or dry clean the drapes are relatively small investments that can make a splash with buyers. Remember: neutral colours are always best and subtle styles have wider appeal.

Occasionally, one can see "For Sale By Owner" signs, and some owners think that selling their own home will not only save them money, but believe they have an advantage over the sellers that have their home listed by a reputable Real Estate sales professional. Before you decide to take on this very important and legally complicated process…remember not even most Real Estate Lawyer's recommend selling your own home yourself in today's market. Here are a few of the reasons why:

1. You are limiting your exposure to potential buyers (less than 10% of what a good real estate broker will generate) which theoretically means your home will take ten to fifteen times longer to sell on the market.

2. The longer a home is on the market the lower the selling price is. Why? Because most buyers think that if the home has not sold after this long... there must be something wrong with the home.

3. The selling/buying process begins AFTER the buyer leaves your home. Most sellers think that all it takes is for someone to see their home, fall in love with the great decor... and the offer automatically will follow. Remember that the buying process begins after they leave your home. If a real estate sales representative does not represent the buyer, and they are looking on their own…they usually leave the home and start to talk themselves out of the buying process. Real estate professionals are trained on how to overcome buyers remorse--a very common occurrence.

4. Because of the limited exposure you will very likely end up with a lower selling price. Remember, in order to generate the highest price possible for your home… selling means exposure. You need the maximum exposure possible, to generate the highest price possible.

5. Most buyers find it extremely awkward to negotiate or even to talk directly with sellers and therefore avoid FSBO properties.

6. Lack of negotiating experience and lack of pertinent information often will result in a lower selling price, or worse yet, a bungled contract and possible lawsuits.

7. The majority of qualified buyers are working with experienced real estate professionals.

8. Many serious buyers will pass by a FSBO home merely because they recognize that it is not in the real estate mainstream, this can some times make them wary.

9. As most local buyers now retain an experienced real estate sales person to represent them as their buyer-agency, you will probably be negotiating against an experienced professional.

10. Expected savings in broker's fees will also be greatly reduced if you offer a selling commission to entice real estate sales representatives to bring potential buyers.

11. If you are planning to use a Lawyer to help you negotiate the offer, then your lawyer's fees will be considerably higher.

12. Only real estate sales representatives have access to the up-to-date market information. News reports cannot approach the timeliness or specificity available to real estate sales people. Further, real estate sales representatives are involved in home sales much more frequently than the average homeowner is. This familiarity leads to a degree of expertise that provides an edge on negotiating and successful selling.

13. You only pay the commission to the real estate broker, if they successfully sell your home at the price you are happy with.

14. Accepting an offer is one thing, ensuring a safe and successful closing is quite another. Real estate transactions usually always have problems on closing. At times, expecting the Buyers and Sellers Lawyer's to fight it out or resolve the problems, can sometimes mean the deal is lost. This is the time that your experienced real estate professional, can be the most important. Your Real Estate professional can act as a great mediator. Lawyers MUST act only on their client's instructions and are not paid to negotiate.