Whether you own a fixer-upper you bought as a young couple, or the home where you raised your family, investing some time and energy into smart home projects can help you sell your home quickly without compromising on selling price.

Creating a Great First Impression

When selling a home, never underestimate the power of a first impression. From the moment potential buyers arrive at the house, you want them to have a positive feeling toward your home. Make sure your flower beds are weeded, and your trees and hedges don’t look overgrown or unruly. Replace your house numbers, selecting modern, easy-to-read numbers so potential buyers can immediately identify your home. Change the light bulb by the front door, and make sure it lights up the entire entryway.

Add a New Fence

Home buyers concerned about the safety of their family and pets, consider outdoor fencing a desirable property feature. When calculating the potential cost of installing a fence, you’ll need to take into account the size of your property, what kind of lumber you’re using (averages $7 to $15 per foot), and labor costs ($10 – $30 per foot). And if you want to add a gate to your fence, you should expect to pay an additional $200 – $600.

Don’t Forget the Door

Boost your curb appeal without spending a lot of time on painting, and focus on the front door. Painting the front door is an inexpensive project that can create a great first impression, and help you sell your home faster. When selecting the perfect color for the front door, carefully consider the style of your home, your home’s exterior color, and the style of the neighborhood. Make sure the color will make the front door pop without clashing with the exterior color or making it seem out of place in the neighborhood. Popular door colors you can select include white, blue, green, red, or brown.

Spruce Up the Kitchen

A home project involving the kitchen will likely be the most expensive project you’ll undertake, but modernizing your kitchen can increase the value of your home, and could make all the difference in securing a quick sale. Consider resurfacing the countertops, updating the sink and faucet (upscale faucets will cost you $200 – $600), or replacing the flooring to give the kitchen a whole new look.

Replace the Baseboards

Over the years, your baseboards have received a lot of wear and tear, and they may be scuffed and scraped in a few well-worn areas. Replacing the baseboards is a quick and cost-effective way to give your home an update. When the baseboards are removed, make sure you patch any hold or dents in the wall, then sand and repaint the baseboards, or replace the baseboards altogether to impress buyers with beautiful, clean lines between your wall and floor.

Fill Nail Holes in the Walls

If you’ve been in your current home for a while, you’ve probably rearranged the art and photos you have hanging on the walls, leaving behind a few nail holes here and there. You hardly notice these holes, but a potential buyer will be scrutinizing every wall. Filling the nail holes can make your home seem brand new, and this small home project will only take you one afternoon.

Organize the Garage

Is your garage full of boxes, Christmas decorations, and old sports equipment no one uses anymore? Consider that stuff a hindrance to a quick sale. You can sell your home faster by spending some time organizing the garage. Sell, donate, or toss anything you’re not planning to take with you when you move, and organize what’s left. Install some shelving, place a corkboard to hang tools, and add pegs or an overhead rack for any oversized storage. Buyers will be impressed by all the storage space, and you’ll have added an element that can expedite the sale.

Some homes can be on the market for months, but if you don’t want to wait that long, choose a few home projects to focus on, such as increasing curb appeal, sprucing up the kitchen, and organizing your garage and you’ll be able to sell your home quickly, helping you move on to your next adventure.

Most of these projects are quick and cost-effective fixes that will help you sell your house quickly, but if you’re looking for a bigger return on your investment, check out our list of Top 7 Home Renovations for the Money.

Last-Minute Showings

One of the most stressful parts of selling a home is the last-minute showing. Someone calls, you have 10 minutes to an hour before a potential buyer is coming to the house, you are disheveled, the kids are playing and have toys everywhere, the sink is full of dishes, the washing machine is running, and you still need to clean. While this may seem like the worst-case scenario, you can do several things to make tidying up easy and ensure that you have the home ready to show off:

• Keep baskets handy to throw in laundry, paper, toys, and clothes.
• Make it a rule to make beds in the morning and fold all blankets after each use.
• Set up a designated space for all people who enter your home to place shoes and bags.
• Put the dishes in the dishwasher after each use.
• Create a checklist for small tasks.

Letting the Light Shine

The perfect lighting in a home achieves that warm and bright atmosphere buyers are looking for.  It’s important not to overlook the importance that natural and artificial lights bring to the space.  Open all blinds and curtains. Turn on all lights, including lamps and overhead lights. Add some mirrors, which will help give the illusion of open spaces. Make it a game for your kids to spot dark areas in your home and add lamps or wall sconces in those areas. To make sure the lights are on prior to a showing, assign everyone one room that they are responsible for.

Tidying Up

The most important thing you can do to help sell your home is to get rid of the clutter. Too much stuff will prevent potential buyers from being able to picture the house as their home. To prep your home for showings, have each family member sort their belongings into four piles:

1. What they need for the short term
2. What can be stored
3. What can be donated
4. What can be trashed

For the items you’ll be storing, try to find storage out of the house, such as at a friend’s or relative’s house or a storage unit. Get the whole family involved in this task, and in the end, reward the whole family with a fun dinner or family-fun activity like bowling or mini golf.

Appealing to the Senses

To sell your home, you must appeal to the senses of the buyer. You can help entice their visual senses by focusing on lighting, de-cluttering, and cleaning. While you may have adapted to noises in your home, potential buyers have not. So, it’s important to get rid of creaky floorboards, leaky faucets, or loud appliances.

Eliminate offensive odors caused by pets, plants, standing water, and musty basements, then add in pleasant smells, such as cinnamon, freshly baked cookies, lavender, pine, or fresh linen. Again, make this a time for your family to bond, and get everyone involved by seeing what everyone’s different senses picks up.

Being a busy parent is a job in and of itself, so the thought of selling your house may cause stress. You’re not alone, and many potential buyers will likely be in the same boat. Your home cannot always be picture perfect, but there are steps you can take to make it sale-ready. Involve your whole family every step of the way as you set a plan for last-minute showings, bring light into your home, tidy up every room, and make sure to appeal to all the potential buyer’s senses. In no time, this season of your life will have passed and you will be in a new home.