The Meyer Lucas Team at Compass Florida LLC is an award-winning, top-producing Real Estate, Design and Renovation team based in Jupiter, Florida, providing premium real estate and home renovation services throughout the Palm Beach area, including Tequesta, Palm Beach Gardens, North Palm Beach, Hobe Sound, Stuart, Juno Beach, West Palm Beach, Wellington, Jupiter Farms, Palm City, and more!
Hey there, savvy shoppers! If you're all about scoring great deals, this one's for you. As we wave goodbye to summer and get ready for a new school year, there's something super exciting on the horizon: Labor Day weekend. It's that time of year when we all come together to give a nod to hard work and dedication – the stuff that's built our nation. And what's the perfect way to celebrate? You guessed it – an awesome Labor Day sale!
Your guest bathroom can make a HUGE difference when it comes to impressing your house guests. You want the space to be clean of course, but also, inviting and relaxing.
If you’re looking to give your guest bathroom a lift without breaking the bank or doing renovations, we’ve got you covered! Read on for 5 inexpensive ways to spruce up your guest bathroom!
Ever wonder what goes through the minds of the many people who step foot in your home every year? Are they completely judging your messiness or are they impressed by how you’ve got everything in order. Well, we’ve made this blog to let you in on the first 5 things guests notice about your home and how you can make a lasting impression!
Written by Cindy Aldridge
You’ve selected a real estate agent, landed on a list price, and edited the flyer that highlights all the perks of your property, illustrating each amenity with the perfect picture. But now it’s time to schedule the open house, where potential buyers will try to uncover all your home’s structural skeletons in the closet and examine every corner of that closet space while they’re at it.
However, there are ways to prepare for an open house that will wow visitors without leaving you too tired to leave the sofa during showings. Here are a few tips to try.
The National Association of Realtors 2017 Profile of Home Staging survey found that 62 percent of sellers’ agents polled said staging a home reduced the number of days a property spent on the market. The majority of buyers’ and sellers’ agents said staging raised the bar for offers.
The first step of staging should be clearing clutter and cleaning. In fact, 93 percent of professionals polled in the NAR survey recommended decluttering. So now is the time to tackle the areas that weren’t featured on the flyer. Excavate storage spaces completely and donate or sell any unused items. Also, consider renting an off-site storage unit to stash everything you don’t use regularly. This will maximize the appearance of spaciousness for the storage in your home, which is a huge selling point for potential buyers.
Most real estate agents polled in the NAR survey also advised a deep cleaning, with 89 percent recommending a whole-home cleaning and 81 percent pushing for carpet cleaning. That’s no surprise considering a strong odor in the home is one of the top reasons potential buyers pass on a property.
Getting rid of pet-related smells and other obnoxious odors is paramount. And while spot cleaning and enzyme-based odor removers may work well enough on a day-to-day basis, your goal for an open house is to erase any evidence of pets, including lingering smells and suspicious spots.
Given that, if your home has carpet, it’s probably worth calling a professional cleaning company that uses the hot water extraction method, complete with truck-mounted units, to treat carpets to a deep-down cleaning. If pet odors are a problem, you should also let the carpet cleaners know your primary goal is eliminating them since they utilize special products and procedures.
And, even if you don’t have carpet, consider hiring help to give your whole home a deep cleaning before an open house. Professionals have special tools to remove built-up dirt and discover dens of dust bunnies you might have miss. Giving everything a thorough cleaning will also help erase odors from cooking or smoking.
Although it’s probably too late to undertake any extensive renovations before your open house, you should make minor repairs to fix things that will distract buyers from your home’s finer features. You may have been living with a cracked window or torn screen for years, but buyers probably won’t be willing to do the same.
Also, consider some quick cosmetic changes. A fresh coat of paint in a neutral color will help everything look cleaner and brighter. And replacing dim bulbs and dingy switch-plates and outlet covers can give rooms an inexpensive makeover. Outside, give landscaping a lift by trimming back overgrown plants, clearing flower beds, putting in some eye-catching annuals, and spreading a new layer of mulch.
Implementing these tips will take some time and money, but the investment will be worthwhile if it helps make your first open house your only one.
