You can sell your home much more quickly and easily than you otherwise imagined if you take the time to make a few simple improvements.  Though these improvements may cost you a small bit of money upfront, chances are good that they’ll make up for it in the long run – either by helping you land a higher selling price or by helping you sell your house much more quickly than otherwise.

In many cases, making small adjustments to areas of your home can completely change the way your home is viewed.  Fortunately, making a space look better doesn’t require an entire remodeling effort.  Instead, go for smaller, cheaper fixes. Successful selling begins with a clean presentation, the appearance of significant space, and no sign of additional future work required for any potential buyer.

Here are our 17 tips for fixing your home to sell:

1. If your cabinets do not have hardware, buy attractive handles and knobs – they can go far in dressing up a kitchen or bathroom area.  If you have existing hardware, consider painting it.
2. Refinish or repaint your cabinet surfaces. 
3. Clean out the interior of cabinets and replace the shelf liner with liner that is bright and new.
4. Give your stovetop and the inside of your oven a thorough cleaning.  Make sure you don’t leave any traces of burnt-on food.  Buff out scratches on your stovetop.
5. Make sure the inside and outside of your refrigerator and microwave are sparkling clean.  Even if you plan to take both appliances with you when you move, having them clean sends a signal to potential buyers that you’re the kind of person who takes care of things, in turn sending the signal that your house is well-maintained.
6. Replace family pictures hanging on your walls with scenes from nature or with artwork.  You want potential buyers to be able to imagine the house as their own, not to see it as a home where another family lives.
7. Clean light switches and the face plates around both light switches and electrical outlets.  If the face plates are cracked, replace them.
8. Scrub your windows, both inside and outside.  You want the maximum amount of light brought into your home while potential buyers are looking around.
9. If you have window dressings that obscure part of your windows, remove them.  Big windows are a major selling point when it comes to home purchases.
10. If you have furniture in the house, consider removing at least half of it from every room.  Put it in storage or keep it at a friend’s house until your home is sold.  Your goal is to make every room look as spacious as possible, so forego the comfort of extra furniture for a time.
11. If you’re selling your home during the warm season, plant annuals such as petunias or pansies in the front yard.  If your yard is xeriscaped or consists largely of concrete or brick, use containers for your plantings.
12. Keep your yard in good order while potential buyers are touring your house.  Keep weeds pulled, and if you’re selling in the fall, keep your leaves raked up.
13. If your driveway has any sign of oil or gasoline drips, give it a power wash.
14. Brighten up your rooms by painting the ceilings a fresh coat of white.
15. Have any trees in your front or back yard trimmed and shaped.
16. If you have pets, make sure all possible scents or odors are gone.  Vacuum extensively and use pet-hair rollers on your furniture.  Place air fresheners around your home and in outlets.
17. If you have any wood exposed in your house, either inside or out, give it a quick coat of varnish to make it look new and fresh.