BY KAREN LIBIN, KL REALTY Planning on selling your house this spring? In this time of low housing supply, the hour you put your Boulder County home on the market (live on the Multiple Listings Service), there is a good chance interested buyers will start driving by your property. Despite all the wealth of information buyers can find online, they want to see exactly where your house is, what it really looks like and what is around it.
This first impression can make or break the buyers’ future interest. Despite everybody’s must-have lists and cost-per-square-foot calculations, buying a home is also an emotional decision. Many times potential buyers will become enamored with a home on first sight and will then overlook shortcomings of a property.
To boost your curb appeal, put these tasks on your spring “To Do” list before putting your house on the market:
Make the front door and entry appealing
A big part of curb appeal is the front entry, including the front door and porch. Make sure your door is nicely painted – perhaps in a dramatic, current-looking color. Replace the lighting and hardware if they’re in bad shape or out-of-date. These steps alone can dramatically transform a home’s look.
If you have a porch, make sure it’s tidy and clear of debris. If you don’t have any inviting seating on your porch, it’s worth investing in some inexpensive pieces and accessories, such as pillows, lanterns or outdoor rug. Hanging flower baskets can also add a bit of charm.
If your entry feels uninviting and bland, add two large pots filled with bountiful foliage. A cost-effective and attractive way to fill a large pot is to put an inexpensive evergreen shrub such as boxwood in the middle and add flowers and trailing plants around it.
Clean and touch-up outside of house
If needed, clean the gutters and power wash the visible parts of the house, especially the front. No one wants to see cobwebs! Touch-up the areas that need paint, especially on trim. Clean dirty windows, particularly those on the south side and in doors, where people really notice.
Tidy up your yard
Take the time to trim back rambling bushes and wonky tree branches, specifically those in the front of your house. Weed and tidy up flower beds. To dramatically improve the look of your landscaping, add a layer of fresh mulch; I recommend the natural and attractive “gorilla mulch” which looks wonderful with all house colors. Do not use the type that comes in an unnatural garish orange!
Water your grass enough to maintain it attractively green and keep it trimmed. If your lawn has bare areas, patch them. Nothing looks more scrappy than dirt patches in the yard!
Keep the walkways and sidewalks in front of your house swept. If you live on a street where debris collects in the street by the curb in front of your house, clean it up. Even though it’s city property, it affects the look of your property. And you don’t want anything taking away from your home’s curb appeal, especially at the curb!
