Your home has just one chance to make a great impression with each potential buyer. And it can! The following "tricks of the trade" will help you keep track of what needs to be done. The whole idea is to present a clean, spacious clutter-free home--the kind of place you’d like to buy. Accomplish a little everyday, and before long your home will be ready to make the impression that can make the sale. These quick, inexpensive changes will help you have what you want: the best house on the block.
1. A new look for the front door. "The front door is the most telling detail of your house," says Alan Hanbury, Jr., former chairman of the Remodelors Council of the National Association of Home Builders. You can give your home's entryway an instant lift by choosing custom colors, handsome woods such as mahogany or cherry, or cut-glass storm doors. A fresh coat of paint often works wonders
2. Accessorize. Brass knockers, mailboxes, and lanterns are small investments that make your house look great, says Tim Carter, a syndicated home-improvement columnist. Since these accents can lose their shine, choose tarnish-free pieces such as Baldwin Hardware's line, starting at $50 for a mail slot. House numbers, kickplates, and doorbell buttons are also available.
3. Spruce up the grounds. Trim shrubs so that doors and windows aren't hidden. Fill window boxes with vines, geraniums, and ornamental grasses, or plant tried-and-true perennials like climbing hydrangea. The garden should complement the style of the house, says Don Haldeman, owner of Sycamore Springs Garden Center in Reading, Pennsylvania. If your house is contemporary, skip the old-fashioned flowering plants and select carefully trimmed spruces or spiral topiaries.
4. Paint it right. Traditional colors are big right now, says John Crosby Freeman, a color and design consultant. And unlike eggplant purple (which was hot a few years ago), the classics never go out of style. Benjamin Moore's Historical Colors collection -- used on the top two houses at right, in Philipsburg Blue and Hawthorne Yellow -- is the company's most popular line, with 174 shades. Timeless favorites from Valspar's American Tradition line include Coastal Peach (inspired by San Diego's Hotel Del Coronado) and Woodlawn Sterling Blue (from George Washington's daughter's estate). Since the average cost to paint a one-story home is more than $2,000, don't rush your decision. Check out homes you like in your area and ask the owners for the names of the paint colors they used.
