What are your top tips for selling a home? - £300 voucher to be won

Make sure you're happy with the photos. Don't be afraid to follow the estate agent round - they won't mind if you move things out of shot to make rooms look spacious. It's not sneaky, as all the room measurements will be on the particulars. It's hard, but try to walk round your house & look at it objectively, & freshen or redecorate anything that looks scruffy, along with decluttering.

Keep it uncluttered, but above all when people come round to view, smile and be friendly, create a good impression and make it feel like a home.

A realistic price and you want to make the house the dream a buyer wants. Also remember that you are selling the area around the house. Pick up the litter that may be in the street, report things like broken streetlights, potholes and tired road markings in the area. Most councils are good at fixing these and in many instances you can now report them online.

Keep the house tidy and clean. Use oil burners to help it smell lovely

I’ve just moved house so have had very recent experience of this topic.
My advice is make sure your house is fresh, tidy, bright and warm.
Turn the lights on in all the rooms before you go out, do not trust the agent to do this.
Turn on a plug in air freshener upstairs and downstairs and leave windows on ventilation setting.
Clean the bathroom including the inside of the toilet in case they borrow your facilities whilst viewing.
Tidy away all used bathroom and kitchen towels and all clothes.
Cover your bed with a bed cover or throw and make it look Unslept in, no one wants to think about you in bed.
Tidy away ornaments.
Wash up and put away in the kitchen. Clear all the work tops. Use the oven as storage or the washing machine if you have run out of room.
Phone your agent after each viewing to receive feedback and act on it if you need to.
Put yourself out to allow viewings when ever you possibly can, even if you don’t feel like it.
When your brochure is produced for your property tell the agen which order you want the photos in and make sure you are happy with the text too.
Don’t use an agent you don’t feel you can talk to freely.

I think as long as you can see yourself being happy in the house, regardless of decor and layout etc.

thankfully we have not moved house in over 15 years, but I recall we redecorated and kept the house and garden clean and tidy. I think buyers or at least some look for a house which they can just move straight into

Always keep clutter out of the way. Ensure rooms have neutral colour walls. Point out how big the rooms and...yet cheap to run ;)

my top tip is to clear out the clutter, get rid of all the knick knacks and keep each room clear so that buyers can really see it

Make sure the home is dressed and looking good. I found I have sold houses which are dressed with hired furniture easier than ones which were empty

Air the house and ensure it smells fresh, put away toys and personal items and make sure it looks clean.

Totally declutter the house and clean the garden of any plants. Total tabula rasa.

Make sure it looks clean and tidy. Best tip is to think about selling the house before you buy it - ie will it sell easily - ie is it in a desirable location

Do your research on estate agents. Also don't take packaged services, e.g. conveyancing with estate agent.

Most run of the mill houses will ultimately sell, but at what price? If you want to optimise the cash then definitely declutter, avoid cooking smelly foods and instead go down the fresh coffee/baking/flowers route, and if possible get kids and pets out of the way for viewings. I wouldn't spend much unless major problems had to be fixed as decoration or style are very personal and you are as likely to put off a buyer as seal the deal. Be a blank canvas.

I think so long as you clean and declutter your home others will see this as a reflection on the home itself, and be more inclined to see it in a positive light. I also think it is essential to make sure it is marketed in the right way, a good estate agent makes all the difference.

When selling try & see your home through the eyes & nose of the prospective buyer because it is easy to become blind to your familiar environment. Kerb appeal is key as it can put people off so they may not even view the interior. Do not be fooled by estate agents using wide angle lens making photographs that give a bigger illusion, & viewers often disappointed. They always wonder what else is untrue. Ensure everywhere is spotless particularly bathrooms, & sparkling windows allow the light to flood in. De clutter, & remember viewers open airing cupboards, fitted wardrobes etc. Everyone is not a pet lover, or may even have allergies so remove all evidence of any. Ensure you are prepared with information relevant to viewers like schools, post offices, Council Tax, Water Rates, local transport etc. If you have fabulous neighbours always say, & family viewers appreciate knowing if there are local children of similar ages to theirs.

De-clutter and paint in neutral colours.

Think really carefully about which estate agent to use - when buying my last house they were awful and that really put me off using them. I think it’s important to get recommendations from people who have actually used them before.

Before you put your home on the market make sure you make preparations. Declutter is a big one I think and can make a lot of difference because people like to be able to picture how their own furniture will look and that is hard to do if the house is packed full of stuff. This will also give your house the appearance of bigger rooms. Maybe also give the rooms a new lick of paint in a light neutral colour like cream. Lastly make sure any small jobs are done which can make all the difference. Broken door knobs, cracked tiles etc.

Try and get rid of the clutter, if possible send to storage. Also a quick freshen up with paint will help loads to show it’s ready to move into.

If you want to get your house sold quickly, the way we found to do it was to paint the rooms thats colour looked out of date and replace any carpets that were shabby. Clear junk out into the shed or garage.

Make sure it’s homely. Make sure lots of the personal items have been removed but make the house somewhere where it’s easy to imagine living.

Declutter your home, even if you don't think it's cluttered.

Also make sure estate agent takes decent photos, if not, get them back to redo them. Your photos are the first thing prospective buyers will see of your home so you want to give a good impression and want them to want to view.

Clean up thoroughly and remove all clutter. It is worth paying a professional to do this!