“I need to sell my mother’s house, and honestly, there’s so much to do that I’d rather just burn the house down.”
That was the first thing my client said to me after my dear friend recommended my services to him. Unfortunately, I’ve also been there with sick parents. You are likely balancing your own career and family, when your focus needs to shift towards figuring out the best care for a loved one. Now, all of a sudden, you have an extra household, full of its own issues thrown into the mix. So, instead of letting him commit an act of arson, I quickly jumped into action creating a plan to help so it wasn’t so overwhelming.
Landscaping/Power Washing
If you’re helping your elderly parents, they likely haven’t been outside in quite some time and don’t notice how much work is needed on the exterior. Luckily, I have a crew that does this work at a fair rate. One of the first things I did when becoming a realtor was form relationships with people who would always show up and do good work. In return, I continuously feed them business and they always go above and beyond to make sure my clients are happy. Once the driveway was clean and trees trimmed back, it was on to the next phase.
Estate Sale
How do these work exactly? Well, everyone is different, but in most cases, this solution works really well. My go-to estate sale company assesses the home, and depending on the value of goods, they will plan everything and take anywhere between a 20-40% cut of sales. So if there is a wide variety of guns, antiques, and jewelry, the split is likely to be lower (20% or so). If it’s more everyday furniture and goods, the split will be higher because the estate sale company won’t make as much money off the sale. And don’t worry if your home isn’t full of Grandma’s fine antiques as most aren’t. They bring in other items already collected or leftover from other sales to have a nice mix of items to draw a crowd. Best of all, they clean before and after the sale and then either consign or give away what is left. Nice solution, huh?
Painting/Carpentry
With the home now empty, you (and everyone who comes through the home) is going to notice the wood rot and outdated paint. Now is the time to paint everything a nice neutral color. What colors are popular these days? It’s still grays/light blues. The most common I still see used are Repose Gray or Agreeable Gray. In new construction, it’s Alabaster (a soft white) on baseboards, walls, and molding. This allows a clean start for layering in wood and furniture with any desired artwork on the walls.
Final Touches
Plants on the front door, a light scented candle, soft light bulbs and the AC at the proper temperature are the details that count before the potential buyer walks through the front door. Remember, they want to picture themselves living there. I’ll bring white pillows and blankets to lighten the room and make it feel fresh and clean. Because really, who lives in white but doesn’t want to pretend they could!
Click here to learn more about me and how I can help you with your real estate needs. Whether Memphis or Pickwick, primary home or investment, I’m happy to offer my services. Contact me at 901-468-7030 or Marygrodskyrealtor@gmail.com
Mary Grodsky, Crye-Leike Realtors
E: Marygrodskyrealtor@gmail.com
C: 901-468-7030
O: 901-756-8900
