hile there are endless things that can cause you a lot of heartburn when you sell your home, if you inspect your home’s major components yourself before you put the “For Sale” sign in the yard, you’ll reduce your stress, maintain your sanity during the sales process, and get a substantial return on your investment at closing.

Here are five key suggestions for you to take before putting your property on the market, with some specific vendor recommendations if you are in the Charlotte, NC real estate market:

1. Hire a roofer like Shingles Roof Direct to walk your roof, fix any nail pops and dry-rotted plumbing boots, and provide you with a letter documenting the roof tune-up. Roofs are expensive, and all it takes is one innocent comment from a roof inspector to scare a buyer away. The whole transaction could become about a few worn shingles that could have been replaced before listing the home!
2. Hire an HVAC company like Charlotte Heating and Air to clean the coils and service the heating and air conditioning system. Like the roof, replacing an HVAC system isn’t cheap. Fixing a simple problem before listing your home can eliminate this deal killer. A buyer’s home inspection report on an unserviced system can fill up several pages on the dreaded Home Inspection “SUMMARY REPORT.” An older system that is working and pumping out cold/hot air typically passes muster. But an older system with issues like low freon, a squealing compressor fan, or rust in the drain pan can make buyers think the house needs a brand-new $15,000 system. Save yourself time, frustration, and money by addressing these small issues. After the repairs, get a report from your HVAC tech noting that the system is working great.
3. Hire a landscaper (or an eager neighbor kid trying to raise money for their first car) to weed the natural areas and spread pine straw or mulch. Put out a few flowers and a flag on the front porch. I’ll never forget when a super client, a pastor in Indian Trail, NC, was too busy with local church ministry, and his home’s yard had become overgrown. I told my two young sons about it and said it would take them a half day to do the work. Two days later, they finished the job, and we listed the house—and sold it for $15,000 more, thanks to the curb appeal reform. That extra $15,000 paid for a lot of things this family needed for their cross-country move.
4. Check your crawl space. Take a flashlight and look under your crawl space, or hire a crawl space company like Green Frog Waterproofing. Most people don’t like crawling around with spiders and snakes, so they never venture underneath. Out of sight = out of mind. If you find the crawl space damp or with insulation on the ground, a simple clean-up and a $1,000 crawl space vapor barrier can often save a home sale. Don’t forget to check for any rotten wood under the doors while someone is down there. Crawl space issues can blindside everyone, but once on the radar, they can turn the crawl space into a “money pit.”
5. Hire an experienced REALTOR like one of the agents at Jonathan Roberts Realty. Our team will conduct a thorough evaluation of your property and guide you through the repairs needed to maximize your profit when selling.

By taking these steps, you can help ensure a smoother home-selling process and make the most out of your sale.