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Market prices are based on comparable sold homes in the same subdivision with attention on size and location. Knowing this, the next step is to asses the competition so you know what will make your home "better" than the others. One would assume that two identical floor plans in average condition, comparable location, and having the same color carpet and paint will sell for about the same price. Assuming these factors are correct, it would stand to reason that if you made your home stand out, you'd get a better price.

You can make your home stand out with stunning decor, paint colors, outdoor decks, tile or stone inlaid porches, perfect carpet and beautiful landscape. All of these items will set you apart from the house next door and might even net you top price per square foot. But be careful not to over improve as you can come to a point that additional added features just won't retrieve more dollars from a buyer. For example, if you change all of your door knobs or faucets from brass to brushed nickel or opt for that $600 ceiling fan, you may not see the return on that investment.

Other must do's is replacing any rotted exterior wood and a fresh paint job. Make sure the front door is flawlessly finished because it's the foreshadowing to the rest of the home. Keep the yard green and weed free and add some color to the front beds. Clean the windows inside and out and open the blinds when showing the house.

You may have seen the homes shows on TV and it's great to follow the ideas and implement some of them in your own home. But after you have your home looking great, here's an inside scoop that you may want to pay attention to. After you have Wowed the buyer, it's a good idea to WOW the forthcoming home inspector. Some of the common things you can do to not only make it look great on the inside is to show that the home has really been maintained. Here is a little checklist in no particular order;

1. Soil in the flower beds and yard against the house must be below the brick line. (where foundation meets brick).

2. No wood to ground contact or wood to house contact, this and item 1. is conducive to Termites.

3. Change the filter on your HVAC unit, on the outside condenser take a water hose and clean the grills and the inside where the fan is. Also it needs to be open and not buried or hidden with shrubs as this closes off air flow.

4. Make sure crawl space, main breaker box, garages and pull down attic stairs are fully accessible and remove dogs from house and yard if at all possible. If the home is vacant be sure all utilities are on. Nothing is worse for a buyer than to have the inspector back because they could not check something the first time.

5. Replace any burned out bulbs so that switches don't appear to be broken. This creates an unknown on the report and you'll have to address it anyway.

6. Replace fogged or broken windows and blinds.

7. Repair any leaks under faucets, running or wobbly toilets, unstop drains if needed.

8. If you have a pool, have it serviced and make sure it's properly grounded (common issue).

It's important to keep the buyer thinking after inspections, what you made them think when they first saw the home. Your area of the country may have other items such as septic systems and varying building codes that your home may not be up to date on due to year built. Building codes are constantly changing and updating and in most cases you won't be required, or asked to retrofit for those things. Mostly it's a common sense issue when selling, but hopefully these tips added to your top dollar sale and to your bottom line.

Learn more about this author, Rob Purifoy.
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