Articles Tagged "selling a home"

The New Year is a great time to make a fresh start, and that can include freshening up the look and functionality of your home. If you're looking for ways to give your kitchen a more modern vibe, upgrading your appliances is an easy way to do it. It's especially important for homeowners with Chattanooga homes for sale to ensure their kitchen appliances look good and work properly. If you're tired of dealing with cooktop burners going on the fritz or a fridge that sounds like it's on its last legs, our real estate agents have some tips for determining whether you should upgrade your appliances.

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Are you dreaming of selling your home this holiday season? Selling your home during the holidays is a great idea since there are fewer homes on the market and therefore less competition. However, you'll need to stage your home so that it looks subtle and tasteful, with just the right amount of holiday touches. Finding that balance can be tricky! 

Luckily, our team has helped many families sell and stage their homes, and that includes during the holidays! Our real estate agents have prepared the following tips to help you this holiday season.

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Updating a kitchen has always been one of the best methods to add value to a home and help attract potential buyers. But it doesn't have to cost a fortune! There are many easy, affordable home improvements that can breathe new life into this space. Our real estate agents provide the following ideas that will help you refresh your kitchen even on a strict budget.

1. Give Your Floor New Life
   Instead of replacing your old wood floors, just refinish them using polyurethane-based porch and floor enamel. If your kitchen has a layer of old vinyl flooring, it could be worth pulling it up to see what's underneath. Sometimes, buried under old vinyl are good hardwood floors that only need to be refinished. 
2. Jazz Things Up With Fresh Paint
   Wall paint is an easy way to make a huge, sweeping change to the kitchen without breaking the bank. Giving the walls, ceiling, and trim a couple of coats of bright, neutral tones or white can instantly reinvigorate even the most tired of spaces. 

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Springtime is right around the corner, and that means it's almost peak home-buying season. If you've been thinking about adding your house to the inventory of Chattanooga homes for sale, it's a great time to do it. 

Our real estate agents have been talking to many local homeowners who are ready to take advantage of the spring market. We're anticipating a hectic season, which means you'll need to put some effort into making sure your home stands out from the crowd. Luckily, it's easy to do! These four tips will help put you at an advantage when springtime buyers come to call. 

1. Start with Spring Cleaning
   Before you start showing your home, go out of your way to make sure it's pristine. A top-to-bottom deep cleaning will ensure that your home makes an excellent first impression. In addition to basic cleaning, you'll want to do things like:

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Our real estate agents have experience helping sellers during every season in Chattanooga. Sure, the market slows down a bit when the temperature drops, but that doesn't mean you can't sell your home! Our team compiled the following pointers on how to sell your home during the chilly winter months.

• Spruce up Your Landscaping
  You won't be able to have the beauty and impact of spring flowers, but there are still things you can do to spruce up your landscaping. Keep bushes neatly trimmed, edge your garden beds, and make sure your flower beds have fresh mulch. You can also add some color to your winter home by putting some evergreens in pots on your porch.
  
  
• Make Your Home Warm and Cozy
  During cold weather, you may be tempted to save some money by not running your heater. But the last thing you want to create is an atmosphere in which uncomfortable prospective buyers are eager to leave your home. Instead, make sure your home is warm and cozy, so buyers are comfortable and assured that your heater – a high-cost item – is in working order.

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Kids can add a hurdle to your home staging and selling goals. They naturally want to play with their toys and can easily make a mess, so you may struggle to keep your home ready to show to prospective buyers at a moment's notice. 

Our real estate agents suggest the following tips for staging and selling your home when you have kids.

1. Depersonalize
   You'll want prospective buyers to be able to imagine themselves living in your home, but that may not be possible if your kids' photos, drawings, and school papers are displayed throughout the house. Put the majority of these items away so that a buyer – especially one who doesn't have kids – can picture your home as their own.
   
   
2. Prioritize Your Kids' Toys
   If your kids have every toy they own available to them, you'll fight a daily battle to have them put away. Go through their collection and throw out the ones that are broken and donate toys that they've outgrown. Take out just a few favorite toys for your kids to play with and put away the rest. If you need to, rotate them occasionally, but don't have too many out at once.

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Selling your home during the holidays is a mixed bag of pros and cons. Gone are the booming real estate days of summer, but you can rest assured that anyone willing to venture out house-hunting this time of year is serious about buying. Our REALTORS® know the challenges of selling during the holidays, which is why we're here to help. 

One thing to remember about selling this season is that staging your house is more important than ever. Before listing your Chattanooga homes for sale, take a page from our playbook and use these tips to stage your home like a pro. 

1. Deep clean your home. 
   Before you start thinking about how to stage your home, you need to clean like you've never cleaned before. Hire a professional cleaning service if you have to. Cleaning tasks yous should complete include eliminating clutter, getting rid of as many knick-knacks, decorations, and personal objects as possible. 

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Clear Clutter and Make Some Cash with a Garage Sale

Our REALTORS® always recommend doing a good decluttering before putting your home up for sale. If you've been putting it off, now's the time! National Garage Sale Day is the second Saturday in August, and it's a wonderful excuse to declutter your home and get it ready to be one of the next Chattanooga homes for sale.

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If your home is not selling as quickly as you imagined, it could be because it has problems that are causing buyers to run in the opposite direction.  Our real estate agents are here with seven things to consider when you're trying to sell your home.

1. Water/Mold Damage.
   These will show up during a home inspection, and buyers don't want to purchase a property that has leaky roofs or moldy walls. Whether the damage is in the basement, attic, laundry room, you should fix the problem and repair the damage before listing the property.
   
   
2. Radon.
   Radon seeps through the slab. It is invisible and can cause serious health problems. Most homeowners don't realize they could have basements filled with radon. Installing a mitigation system and preventing the intrusion of this radioactive gas is an inexpensive and wise investment.
   
   

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When selling a home, the preferred procedure is timing the sale so you can move right into your new home without overlap. But sometimes life throws you a curve and job transfers, property inheritance or other situations require you to move before the sale of your home is complete.

Does this sound like you? No need to panic. Our REALTORS® share their best tips and tricks for selling a vacant home quickly and at a top price. 

1. Spruce Up the Exterior
   Your home may not be occupied, but you don't want it to look abandoned. Make sure the exterior of your home, including the garage and grounds, is in impeccable shape. Have a friend, relative or professional service mow the lawn as needed and remove debris. Piled-up mail and newspapers scream "no one's home," so don't forget to stop or redirect delivery.
   
   

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Selling your home is quite a milestone. While most homeowners devote plenty of time and energy to repainting, remodeling, and making sure the inside is clean and cozy, some sellers overlook one of the most important areas of the home: the exterior.

Before a potential buyer sets foot in the entranceway, they'll already base their first impression of your entire home on how the exterior looks. When it comes to successfully selling your home, curb appeal is key. Our REALTORS® understand how important the appearance and condition of your lawn, driveway, and exterior are to potential buyers and have created this quick list of ways you can use spring curb appeal to sell your home.  

1. Grow your garden or get rid of it.
   Once winter has passed; make sure that your flower garden is awakening with the spring. Remove plants that will not bloom again and replace them with fresh flowers or shrubs. If you're unable to regularly keep up with the garden's maintenance as you're selling your home, either pay a professional service to care for it or remove it. You can also opt for container gardens instead. These potted plants can be easily purchased and placed around your home and removed when necessary.

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In the spirit of New Years, we have gathered together some resolutions to make your home more inviting, beautiful, and efficient in the upcoming year. If you're searching for Chattanooga homes for sale over the holidays, and you're looking to sell your current home, keep these ideas in mind.

Here are our top tips for home improvement resolutions for 2019 and how to accomplish them:

1. Clear the clutter
   Every year we all acquire stuff that collects around the home. Resolve to do some regular purging of closets, cabinets, and drawers. You don't need to do this all in January; you can take it one day at a time, month-by-month.

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5 Tips for a Successful Garage Sale

Do you have too much stuff? You're not alone. Studies suggest most Americans have over 300,000 individual items in their homes!

When you are planning to list your home for sale, you become aware of how many excess items you own. After you've contacted one of our REALTORS® to discuss your listing, it's time to start the decluttering process.

Organizing a garage sale is an excellent way to help your items find a new home and make a few dollars along the way. These five tips will help ensure your sale runs smoothly.

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Living in a different country can be the adventure of a lifetime as long as you prepare first.  Although it's undoubtedly an exciting time, there are some logistics you'll need to figure out before you dive into your new life.

You're in luck because we can help.  Fletcher Bright Realty is proud to be affiliated with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World^® (LeadingRE), an international association of independent residential brokerages providing access to homes in over 70 countries.  Let's take a look at these six things to consider before you commit to a move to a new country.  

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There are lots of important decisions to be made when selling your home.

Our REALTORS® can help you with almost all of them, but some come down to your tastes and goals. For example: What should you leave behind and what should you take along when you move?

The less you drag along, the more convenient moving is. On the other hand, buyers don't necessarily expect you to leave much, but some things are traditionally left behind as a courtesy.

Let's look at the unwritten rules.

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Chattanooga homes for sale can go fast. It's tempting to get your listing out there as soon as you can so you can enjoy the benefits of these great market conditions. 

Many sellers have very specific timeframes and are strongly motivated to move forward. Still, it's crucial to protect your interests at every step in the process.

A pre-listing inspection is one optional step that really pays off. It will help you avoid oversights that can lead to pricey problems down the road or even derail a sale.

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When you're selling your home, you'll want to make a great first impression on potential buyers. Sometimes you only have a few minutes before a buyer decides if they are interested in your home or not, so paying attention to the details can really make a difference.

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It's hard to shake the old notion that bigger is better, but if our REALTORS® have learned anything about real estate, it's that this isn't always the case. In fact, there are many reasons to take a step back and realize that your next home doesn't necessarily have to be bigger than your last.

The decision to downsize isn't always an easy one, but remember that a smaller house doesn't have to cramp your style. These are the signs that it's time to think smaller as you look for Chattanooga homes for sale.

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When Punxsutawney Phil emerged on Groundhog Day, he saw his shadow. Legend has it that this means another six weeks of winter. If you're planning on selling your house this spring, that's good news for you, as you have a few extra weeks to get your home ready to go. But don't wait too long, because as the days warm up, so will the real estate market!

Here are ten things you should focus on doing right now to get your home ready to sell this spring.

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When you decide to sell your home, serious thought and planning must come into play. Something you'll need to determine is if you will hire a professional real estate agent to help in the sale of your home or attempt to sell it yourself. Many homeowners will opt for a FSBO (For Sale By Owner) because they want to save the money they would typically pay for an agent's real estate commission.  However, did you know according to the National Association of REALTORS®, less than 10 percent of FSBOs actually sell?

Our REALTORS® are seasoned real estate professionals and know the ins and outs of successfully completing the sale of Chattanooga homes for sale. While you may think selling your home without the help of a professional may save real estate commission, FSBOs come with many risks. That's why we are sharing Five Reasons Why Homes for Sale by Owner Fail.

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Wow Home Buyers with These 10 Tips

Selling a house can be a stressful proposition. There's a lot you need to do, and it gets even more complicated if you have a tight deadline. Luckily, there are always motivated buyers to be found in the Chattanooga area. You just need to wow them!

Use these tips to get a good start selling your Chattanooga home:

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Ever wonder what it would be like to travel through a secret passageway, and emerge in a spectacular holiday wonderland? Every year, the team at Ruby Falls transforms the caverns into an underground ode to everything that makes the holidays in Chattanooga, TN so special. Ruby Falls Christmas Underground is one of the most popular events in the city, and one more reason why Chattanooga homes for sale are so hot during the holidays. Our REALTORS® have all of the details about this one-of-a-kind holiday event. 

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Moving can be stressful and expensive--especially if you're making a big move across the country. If you're relocating to Chattanooga, these money-saving tips from our experienced real estate agents can help you. 

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Whether you're looking for homes in Chattanooga or elsewhere in Tennessee, one thing is for sure: Your new home is one of the most important investments you'll ever make.  Even before closing, you should start thinking about the best way to protect your investment. There are two major options: Home insurance and a home warranty.

Both of these products can help you protect the value of your home against the unforeseen. You can choose either or both depending on your needs.

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Tips for Telling Your Children Moving News

Moving is a challenging process for a variety of reasons and getting the whole family on board can be one of the most difficult aspects. Our REALTORS® in Chattanooga are committed to making your move easier in every way possible.  These moving tips will help you tell the kids you're moving and hopefully make the transition to your new home a much smoother one.

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First Impressions Mean the Most 

Curb appeal is one of the most important factors in selling your home.  If you make a good first impression with your home's curb appeal, everyone--including potential home buyers in Chattanooga--will want to see what is inside.  Check out these ten simple curb appeal improvements to make your home more appealing to "drive-by" house hunters.

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Spring has long been known as the time that the housing market wakes up from its winter slumber and homes start to list and sell at a more rapid pace. In the weeks leading up to the spring market, people looking to sell start calling real estate agents, and listing preparations begin. There are a few essential steps before selling a home, and as spring gets closer, it is time to take each one.

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