Explainer
Getting a home ready to sell is as much about what you don't do as what you do. Here are the seven mistakes we see most often — each one quietly costs sellers money.
Spending renovation money on a house you're about to sell. Full kitchens, bathrooms and extensions rarely return their cost before a sale. Refresh what shows; don't replace what works.
Fresh paint over a leak, crack or moisture issue hides it for the photos and fails the buyer's inspection. Fix the cause first — sound house, then pretty house.
Leaving the refresh until the week before listing means rushed work or a delayed campaign. Allow about four weeks (plus styling), and lock a finish date that lines up with your listing.
Bold colours, feature walls and statement fittings divide buyers. Neutral, broad-appeal choices sell to the widest pool.
Buyers form a price expectation before they're inside. A tired exterior and front door undercut every dollar you spent inside.
Dripping taps, loose handles, dead bulbs and sticky doors are cheap to fix and expensive to leave — they make a whole home feel neglected.
Open-ended quotes and trade-by-trade scheduling lead to blown budgets and slipped dates. A single fixed price and a locked finish date keep the whole thing under control.
Spend where buyers look, fix the cause not the symptom, start early, stay neutral, and lock your price and date up front.
The seven costly mistakes: over-capitalising, painting over problems, starting too late, personal taste over buyer appeal, ignoring the kerb, skipping small fixes, and having no fixed price or timeline.
Common questions
Over-capitalising — spending renovation money on cosmetic problems. Full replacements rarely return their cost before a sale. Refresh what shows instead.
Allow about four weeks for a full refresh plus time to declutter and stage. Starting earlier lets you lock a finish date that lines up with your listing campaign.
No — buyers' inspections find what paint hides, and it damages trust. Fix the underlying cause first, then paint.
Answer a few quick questions and get a ballpark price and a finish date in about 30 seconds — emailed to you as a PDF. No charge, no pressure.