Columbia SC Housing Market Doing Well

As many of you have seen, the headlines in the newspapers regarding the real estate market have not been positive.  But, note that not all US real estates markets are bad.  Areas that never had the huge price increases, like Columbia, South Carolina, to begin with are not seeing the big price drops.  Actually prices have INCREASED in 204 of the 287 US Metro Areas surveyed.  

There are buyers out there! But, there are a lot of houses out there too!  You need to make your home appealing to buyers.  You may want to add incentives for the buyers…for example, paying all or some of the buyers’ closing costs or adding in all the appliances.  Also, price your home accordingly.  With so many houses on the market, buyers are looking for, and expecting a good deal.  If your house is overpriced, good Realtors will know it and will skip showing it to their buyers.

The Real Estate Market in the Greater Columbia South Carolina Area is seeing an increase in home prices.  Not all Real Estate Markets can say that.  And, with South Carolina as the Top Ten Fastest Growing State we will see more and more buyers heading our way!

Get your home sold!

Top 10 Things you can do to Get Your Home Sold!!!

.1. Make a great First Impression! Buyers decide in the first 30 seconds if this is a home they are interested
in. Make sure your home has curb appeal.  Clean up the yard, plant some flowers, get a new Welcome mat for the front door.

2.  Clean up your entry way.  Get rid of shoes, magazines, books, mail.  You don’t want potential buyers tripping over your shoes and seeing your clutter.

3.  Spot clean carpets.  If you have stains on your carpet get a good carpet cleaner and scrub out the stains. 

4.  Paint walls in neutral, but cheery colors.  Even though your little girl loves her bright pink bedroom many buyers will not.  Tone down the color.

5.  Clean!  Make sure your bathrooms are sparkling clean.  Keep disinfecting wipes handy for those last minute showings.  Even with short notice you can clean up the bathrooms.  Make sure floors are swept and bathtubs are clean and dust free.

6.  Kitchens are a BIG issue for buyers.  Make sure your kitchen is clean and decluttered.  Get rid of all those appliances on your counter tops, the papers and telephone books off of the top of your fridge.  A little cleaning and decluttering can really make the kitchen look larger and shows off more work space.

7.  Pick up toys and clothes.  Of course you have to live in your house while it is on the market but having a proper place for toys and laundry is highly recommended.  Buyers don’t want to see your dirty clothes.

8.  Put a way pets and their belongings.  Even though many people do love pets their odors are quite a turn off.  You may not smell your pet because you are immuned to its smell.  Put food and water bowls in the garage or in the yard.  Take your pet(s) with you whenever possible during a showing.  Spray a light deodorizing spray in the main area(s) your pets sleep and eat.  Do not use over powering scents.

9.  If you have a lot of storage space let it be seen!  You may have to rent a storage unit to put some of your personal property in.  Buyers love storage!

10.  Open up blinds.  Get some natural light into the house.  A dark house is a depressing house and it turns buyers off.