Preparing Your Home to Sell in Edwardsville, IL: Why You Should Start Now

What Sellers Should Be Doing Now for a Fall Sale

If you're thinking about selling your home in Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, or anywhere in the Metro East or St. Louis area, start getting ready well before the sign goes in the yard. Most of the work that makes a sale go well happens before the listing goes live.

Fall is still a good time to sell. It's also a good time to get ready if you're leaning toward listing in early spring.

Let's walk through your house first

Before you buy paint or start pricing out new flooring, have me come over and walk through the house with you. I see a lot of sellers put money into projects buyers barely notice, while the things buyers do notice get skipped.

When we walk through, I'll tell you what's worth doing, what buyers in our area tend to focus on, and what you can safely leave alone.

Starting early also means you don't have to cram decluttering into one frantic weekend. Closets, kitchen counters, the garage, and that spare room with extra furniture are all easy places to start. You're not trying to make the house feel like nobody lives there. You just want buyers to see the rooms, not your stuff.

Your listing photos don't have to wait until spring

This one surprises a lot of people. I have a few sellers right now who plan to list early next year, and we're shooting their exterior photos this fall while the lawn is green and the trees still have leaves.

If a house hits the market in January or February, the outside usually looks gray and bare. Having good fall exteriors on hand gives buyers a much better sense of what the property looks like most of the year. It's a small thing, but it's the kind of detail that comes from planning ahead instead of scrambling once you've decided to list.

Think like a buyer

While the weather's still decent, take a look at the outside of your house the way a buyer would when they pull up. Check the front door, porch lights, landscaping, gutters, and any peeling paint. First impressions start at the curb.

Inside, we can talk about staging. Usually that means moving some furniture around, clearing off surfaces, fixing the little things you've stopped noticing, and maybe a couple of cosmetic updates. You probably don't need a big renovation. A lot of the time, the best advice I can give is where not to spend your money.

Pick the timing that fits your life

There's no one right season to sell. If you're ready now, there are still buyers out there this fall. If you're aiming for January, February, or early spring, these next few months give us time to get everything in order without rushing.

When we sit down, we'll go over what your home is worth, what you're competing against, which improvements make sense, and how we'll photograph and market it, along with the timing that works for you.

Whether you're listing this fall or next spring, give me a call before you're ready. We'll put together a plan that fits your home and your timeline.

What's going on in our market right now

Homes are still selling, but it depends on the home. In Glen Carbon, the median sale price in August was about $396,000, up 5.6% from last year. In Edwardsville, homes sold in about 27 days this summer, usually right around asking price.

Buyers have more choices. Across the St. Louis area there are more homes for sale than last year, and more sellers are cutting prices. So presentation and pricing matter more.

Rates are keeping buyers careful. With 30-year rates around 7%, buyers are watching their monthly payment. They'll pay for move-in ready and pass on a list of projects.

Some of your buyers don't live here yet. Many buyers searching in the Edwardsville, Glen Carbon and other Metro East areas are from the Chicago area and other North neighboring cities. Their first look at your home is your listing photos. What is the importance? Sharp professional high-resolution photography and videos with listing details, plus a floor plan allows buyers to obtain a good sense of what your home looks like and is it worth making an appointment to see in person. With rising inventory presentation matters more than ever!