Preparing a Property for SaleWhat Pays Off and What Doesn't

1. Declutter and tidy up

The fewer objects there are in a room, the larger it looks. Clear shelves, windowsills and worktops, put surplus furniture into storage and empty the cellar, loft and garage. Buyers want to see how much space they will have – not how much you own.

2. Neutralise

Family photos, collections and very personal decoration are distracting. The aim is a friendly, neutral atmosphere in which prospective buyers can picture their own lives. Strong wall colours can be painted over in bright, warm shades of white with little effort.

3. Carry out small repairs

Dripping taps, squeaking doors, broken tiles, loose sockets, faulty light bulbs, discoloured silicone joints: each of these is quickly fixed – and each one left unfixed makes buyers wonder what else is not in order. These measures usually cost only a few hundred euros.

4. Major renovations: usually not worthwhile

A new bathroom, a new kitchen or new windows shortly before the sale rarely pay for themselves. Buyers have their own ideas and do not pay the full cost. Better: present the renovation needs transparently – ideally with a cost estimate or a renovation roadmap from an energy adviser. This allows buyers to calculate with confidence instead of demanding large blanket discounts.

5. Look after the outside

The path to the front door is the first real impression. Mow the lawn, trim the hedges, remove leaves, clean the façade and windows, tidy up the letterbox and house number. For flats, the same applies to the stairwell, cellar and balcony.

6. Home staging for empty properties

Empty rooms look cold and smaller than they are; buyers find it hard to judge sizes. With a few pieces of furniture, rugs, lamps and textiles – done professionally or simply yourself – a flat looks liveable. An alternative is virtual home staging: furniture is inserted digitally into the photos and labelled as such.

7. Professional photos

Photos determine the number of enquiries. Good property photos are taken in daylight, with a wide angle but without distortion, at eye level, with the lights switched on and the rooms tidied. Exterior shots are best taken in sunshine, supplemented where appropriate by drone shots showing the location and plot.

8. Complete the documents

Before the first listing goes online, the land register extract (Grundbuchauszug), energy performance certificate (Energieausweis), floor plans, living area calculation and proof of modernisations should be available. Buyers and banks ask for them – and every delay costs trust. You will find a checklist in the guide Checklist for sellers.

9. Smells and light

Air the rooms, open the curtains, switch on all the lamps. Strong smells – smoke, pets, damp – put buyers off. Do not hide damp patches; clarify the cause and communicate it openly.

What Pays Off: Measures Compared by Cost and Benefit

The rule of thumb: anything that improves the first impression and costs little pays off. Anything that is a matter of taste or ties up a lot of money rarely does.

Room by Room: The Short Checklist

• Entrance: Doorbell and house number work, new doormat, shoes and jackets put away.
• Living room: Reduce furniture, clear walkways, clean windows, open curtains.
• Kitchen: Worktops empty, fridge without magnets and notes, cupboard fronts cleaned.
• Bathroom: Renew silicone joints, remove limescale, matching towels, toiletries stored away.
• Bedroom: Bed made, wardrobes half empty – this signals storage space.
• Cellar: Declutter, air dry, make the boiler room accessible; have maintenance records ready.
• Loft: Accessible and clean – buyers will look at the insulation.
• Garden: Lawn mown, beds weeded, garden furniture tidy, bins out of sight.

Four Weeks to Launch: A Timetable

With an estate agent, many of these steps run in parallel – we take care of photos, floor plans and the exposé, see Exposé preparation.

Older Houses: Making the Renovation Needs Tangible

Many detached houses in Upper Franconia date from the 1960s to 1980s. Buyers know that investment will be needed – and, out of uncertainty, often calculate discounts that are too high. The best counter-strategy is transparency:

1. Individual renovation roadmap (individueller Sanierungsfahrplan, iSFP): An approved energy adviser shows which measures make sense, in what order, and what they cost. The advice is subsidised by BAFA, and the buyer can later use the roadmap to access higher subsidy rates.
2. Enclose tradesmen's quotes for the largest items (roof, heating, windows).
3. Have maintenance records ready for the heating, chimney and roof.

This turns a vague "a lot needs doing" into a concrete figure. Background in the guide Energy-efficient renovation, on subsidies under Subsidy programmes for property and on heating obligations under Building Energy Act (GEG). For houses with greater needs, it is also worth looking at the target group for properties in need of renovation.

Making Use of the Season

In Upper Franconia, the weather plays a bigger role than in many other regions. A house in the Fichtelgebirge looks different in June with a garden in bloom than in grey November. Our experience:

• Spring and early summer bring the most enquiries. Photos of the garden and terrace have the greatest impact now.
• In autumn, it is mainly people who need to move by the turn of the year who buy – often determined buyers.
• In winter, gardens look unattractive. Use photos from the summer and label them with the season. Rooms should be well heated and brightly lit for viewings, and paths cleared and gritted.

However, a good price depends less on the season than on preparation. Anyone who starts well prepared will sell in winter too.

Preparing Let Properties

If the flat is let, you have less influence on the presentation. Talk openly with the tenants, announce viewings in good time and, if appropriate, offer a small token of appreciation for the inconvenience. For investors, other things count anyway: the tenancy agreement, rent development, service charge statements and the condition of the roof, heating and communal property. More on this under Selling a property: the process.

Preparing Good Photos Yourself

Even if a professional takes the photos, preparation determines the result. This is how to prepare for the photo shoot:

• all lamps working, the same light colour within a room
• windows cleaned inside and out
• worktops, windowsills and bathroom shelves empty
• beds freshly made, cushions plumped up
• cables, bins, shoes, clothes airers out of sight
• cars out of the drive, bins put away
• lawn mown the day before, terrace swept
• pets and their accessories out of the picture

The best time for interior shots is a bright, slightly overcast day; for exterior shots, the morning or late afternoon with sun on the façade. A drone shot shows the overall impression for houses with a large plot or a beautiful location.

The Exposé: What Belongs in It

A convincing exposé answers the most important questions before a prospective buyer calls:

1. Key data: Living area, plot, rooms, year of construction, price, running costs.
2. Mandatory information from the energy performance certificate.
3. Description: Location, layout, fittings, modernisations with the year.
4. Floor plans of all floors, ideally redrawn and dimensioned.
5. Photos in a sensible order: outside, entrance, living rooms, kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms, cellar, garden.
6. Location: Distances to school, shops, railway station, motorway.
7. Honest information about known renovation needs.

More on this under Exposé preparation.

Selling Discreetly: Preparation Without a Listing

Not everyone wants neighbours and acquaintances to find out about the sale – for example in the case of a separation, an inheritance or financial reasons. A discreet sale requires the same preparation, but different routes: instead of a public listing, we specifically approach registered, vetted buyers, viewings take place without a sign or group appointments, and the exposé is only sent to prospective buyers after consultation. Many of our sales in Upper Franconia work this way. → Investor matching