| Selling your home? Here are some suggestions | | | | buyer's imagination fill rooms with their own |
| to help you sell yours for more than your | | | | belongings. Once they visualize their |
| next door neighbor's, and faster! Most buyers | | | | favorite chair in a particular spot, you have |
| will know within 15 SECONDS after crossing | | | | a sale.6. Pack away your personal |
| the threshold if they want your home. But | | | | photographs, trophies, diplomas, and small |
| first, you need to attract them inside!11 | | | | accessories and stack them neatly in the |
| steps to take to sell your home for top | | | | garage or a separate storage space. That will |
| dollar1. Start at the street. The buyer's | | | | also protect you from having strangers view |
| first glimpse of your home must entice them | | | | your personal life.7. If your home looks too |
| inside. Design Psychology goes further than | | | | bare, replace your personal treasures with |
| mere curb appeal. Here are some easy | | | | house plants or cuttings from the garden. Be |
| additions you can make to help your home | | | | creative.Use tree branches and fresh flowers |
| outshine the competition:Add a couple of BIG | | | | to bring nature indoors.Fill vases and glass |
| plants, either in hanging baskets or pots, to | | | | jars with fresh cuttings and set them in |
| the porch, which will lead buyers' eyes to | | | | baskets.Add green house plants in winter, |
| the entrance.The first color our eyes process | | | | spring, and fall.During hot selling seasons, |
| is yellow, so place yellow flowers near the | | | | use green, silver and gray foliage to help |
| front door.Plant white flowering annuals, | | | | keep your home visually cool.8. Lighting |
| since they look clean and show up better at | | | | affects emotions and is a crucial design |
| night.2. Get rid of brown or dead leaves and | | | | element for happiness, so turn on the lights |
| bare spots in the yard. Add mulch to cover | | | | when showing your home. Day-like light bulbs |
| bare dirt near the house. Bright flowers hold | | | | enhance happiness. Amber and pink light bulbs |
| the eye and "fill" empty areas, but you don't | | | | warm, while blue light cools.9. Air the house |
| need to add plants to every space. Just make | | | | out. You get used to odors, but buyers |
| sure that everything looks neat.3. Paint your | | | | shouldn't smell anything other than natural |
| front door a happy color. Yellow-gold | | | | pleasing scents like wood burning in the |
| (amber), red (blue-based), sage, apple, or | | | | fireplace or fresh lemon in the summer. Cut |
| forest green, depending on the other colors | | | | up a grapefruit and run sections through the |
| of your home, will attract the eye and create | | | | garbage disposal. It's both refreshing and |
| happy feelings. Buyers won't notice the Color | | | | clean smelling.10. Buyers like temperatures |
| Psychology you're employing, but they'll love | | | | around 70 degrees in the winter and 67 |
| the result.4. Once buyers step inside the | | | | degrees in the summer, so turn up the |
| front door, they usually make their minds up | | | | thermostat in the winter and turn it down in |
| within 15 SECONDS, so first impressions are | | | | the summer.11. Park your car out of the way |
| vitally important. Focus your attention on | | | | and encourage buyers to park in a space where |
| the first wall buyers will see, and then hang | | | | their car won't block the view.Remember, |
| a mirror on that wall large enough to reflect | | | | you've only got 15 seconds to sell your home, |
| the buyer's image. It will psychologically | | | | but by using Design Psychology techniques, |
| reinforce the buyer's presence in the home | | | | you can convert lookers into buyers and get |
| when they see themselves in the mirror, | | | | top dollar for your home.(c) Copyright 2004, |
| causing them to imagine living in your | | | | Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights |
| home.5. Go beyond just clearing clutter, and | | | | reserved.Professor Jeanette Fisher, author of |
| remove furnishings that don't add to the | | | | Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars, Joy to the |
| setting. Also clear bathroom and kitchen | | | | Home, and other books teaches Real Estate |
| countertops. Under-furnished homes let the | | | | Investing and Design Psychology. |