If you’re a seller in Raleigh’s real estate market, you know it’s been red-hot with little sign of cooling—but new information suggests it may be about to do just that. Redfin released data on April 9th, 2022 suggesting slightly less demand with a 3% drop in requested home tours and 12% of listed homes seeing price cuts—the highest number in 30 days since 2015.

Though they indicate a changing market, these numbers aren’t cause for panic. It’s likely the price-cut homes were listed over their value due to market predictions and buyers simply didn’t bite. It’s also true that rapidly rising mortgage rates are pricing some buyers out of mortgage eligibility. So as a seller, you don’t need to start worrying—but you should take action.

To stay competitive, take a look at the following things you can do to maximize your home’s appeal and sell it for top dollar.

A common seller question is whether they should sell their home empty or stage it—and the answer is always stage it. In our experience, staged homes sell faster and for more money, but you don’t have to take our word for it.

According to Forbes, staged homes sell 87% faster than empty homes—with 95% of staged homes selling in 11 days or less. They also sell for an average of 17% more than non-staged homes, which earns you back the cost of staging plus some. In the same Forbes report, data shows that the potential return on staging is $400 for every $100 invested.

Some sellers like to DIY their staging, but unless you have a keen eye for broad-appeal design, you might see better results if you bring in an expert. Not sure who to hire?

We’d love to help you. The Coley Group can help you upgrade and stage your home quickly and easily at no upfront cost to you. Our Compass Concierge program offers an interest-free loan of up to 5% of the purchase price to get your home market-ready.

While you’re staging, don’t forget to remove your personal stuff. The idea of staging is to help potential buyers visualize what a space can be and how they might live in it. Photos of you, your family, and your pets make it harder for buyers to imagine the place as theirs.

Additionally, it’s not a bad idea to remove religious and political artifacts from the space to make a buyer’s visit as comfortable as possible.

As a rule, you will always reap the benefits of cosmetic sprucing up. Repairing a dinged-up wall or a leaky faucet makes your home look well-maintained, and a new coat of paint will bring returns of around 107%. Doing quick upgrades like door handles and curtain rods make a space look high-end, and a deep clean that hits oft-forgotten details like grout, baseboards, and light switches makes your home look new and sparkling.

What you don’t want to do is invest tons of time and money into a remodel. Buyers want to put their own touch on a home, so a place that’s just been completely redone—and has the price tag to prove it—won’t be as popular. Unless your home hasn’t been updated since the 80s, you’re better off doing light touch-ups and pocketing the rest of your cash.