8 Tips for Preparing Your San Francisco Condo for Sale

8 Tips for Preparing Your San Francisco Condo for Sale

  • Kara W. Lee
  • 05/26/22

San Francisco is experiencing an extreme seller’s market, with most San Francisco properties selling within days, if not hours, of being listed. San Francisco condos are more desired than ever before, and many owners are realizing it’s worthwhile to list.

If you’re considering putting your condo on the market, you're in the right place. These eight convenient tips will help get your San Francisco property ready to list and ultimately net you the best sale price. Why would you ever want to sell without getting top dollar?

Declutter every inch of your place

Even if you’re living in a spacious San Francisco condo, that can still be obstructed thanks to clutter. In the past few years, we have seen a big shift in the needs of most buyers looking at San Francisco property. Everyone wants more space, in large part because you can't get out as often as before.

When you’re preparing your condo for sale, take plenty of time to go through every room, closet, and cabinet and declutter them. Few things will make your space feel smaller or more cramped than piles of clothes lying about.

Throw away or donate anything you don’t need or don’t intend to take with you when you move. At the same time, think about what you absolutely need to survive in your home until you sell. Many owners of San Francisco condos on the market end up renting a short-term storage unit for stowing anything superfluous until they are ready to relocate.

Ideally, your home should be completely clutter-free from the moment the first potential buyer walks in.

Deep clean all the surfaces you can reach

The biggest mistake people make when listing San Francisco condos, beyond doing it alone without the guidance of a trusted real estate expert, is not deep cleaning their place. Often, we become blind to small issues like buildups of dust on the tops of windows or on corners of the floor.
 
 
By deep cleaning your San Francisco property before listing it, you essentially are proclaiming to buyers that the condo is well cared for. It also will induce buyers to appreciate all the positives about your condo instead of dwelling on the chores they need to finish before moving in.

This list is as good a place as any to start if you will be cleaning everything yourself. Alternatively, you can hire professionals that work with San Francisco condos for sale regularly. The investment of time or money is well worth it to get top dollar for your listing.

Check the fine print with your condo association

This curious task is best done sooner than later. As soon as you know you want to list your San Francisco property, talk to your condo association and read through any bylaws you can access. Selling a condo is different than selling a single-family home, so make sure you stay within the guidelines and rules set out by your association.

While you’re doing that, consider gathering any information the association has for the San Francisco condos under their management umbrella. Compile a “welcome package” and make it available for potential buyers to review before they finalize an offer. This can prevent cold feet and settle any worries in the time leading up to their purchase. Some condo associations have regulations that allow prospective buyers to back out if they don’t agree to certain rules, which would set you back to square one.

Consider professional staging as a catch-all

Professional staging goes hand-in-hand with decluttering and generally getting your entire home clean. Setting up San Francisco condos with the best furniture, decor, and layout isn't easy. After all, all your prospects are different people with personalized tastes, and it can be a challenge to design your condo with the perfect buyer in mind. Fortunately, having someone else stage your home is a common option.

The National Association of Realtors recently noted that 82% of buyer's agents said staging made it easier for potential buyers to visualize themselves in that home. If you can get a buyer to picture themselves and their family living in your San Francisco property, that buyer will be more likely to put in a competitive offer, leading to a higher sale price for you.

Accentuate your prized outdoor area

Are you in one of the elusive San Francisco condos with outdoor space? Whether you have a small balcony, a patio, or even a rooftop space, you should get it ready for showings immediately.
 

Thoroughly clean any outdoor area to remove built-up pollen, dirt, or unpleasant gunk from smog and traffic. Small potted plants and a bright rug can add a lot to a little space and help buyers further imagine the value of your San Francisco property. If you have the room, add a patio chair and a small table, but don’t overcrowd the space! Condos with outdoor areas are hot commodities in our real estate market, so make sure yours looks the part for your prospective buyers.

Favor neutrals and let buyers paint after purchase


San Francisco condos often effuse personality and charm. That’s great — until it isn’t. If your walls are a vibrant color, your bathroom ceiling is black, or you’ve got purple and lime green kitchen cabinets, give them a once-over in a more neutral color.

The truth is, buyers want neutral palettes right now. More than that, a bland palette is a better backdrop for most buyers to map out what their furniture would look like in any given room.

Aesthetics is a relatively inexpensive investment that can make a big difference in your final sale price.

Take a second look at your flooring

One aspect owners of San Francisco condos have to consider (more so than owners of single-family units) is flooring. The flooring of a condo is incredibly important, and the presence of quiet flooring, in particular, makes a big difference to buyers.

Carpet is generally the most accepted soundproofing flooring, but carpet has lost popularity as of late. It is unfashionable, holds dust, and can worsen allergies.

If your floors are old, noisy, or damaged, consider upgrading them before selling. Flooring counts as a major renovation, but new flooring adds a lot of value to your condo and helps it stand out from other San Francisco condos that aren’t updated.

Pro tip: when you lay down hardwood or luxury laminate, make sure to install a layer of soundproofing underneath. Soundproofing is a key selling point for any buyer who is wary of buying San Francisco property in such close proximity to their neighbors.

Find an agent you trust

Even though this is a seller’s market, you shouldn’t ever sell your condo by yourself. By finding a local real estate agent who works with San Francisco condos, you give yourself the best chance of getting top dollar for your condo and walking away with extra money in your pocket.

If you haven’t chosen your perfect agent yet, consider reaching out to Kara W. Lee, a lifelong resident of the San Francisco Bay Area. Kara can help walk you through all the steps of selling your San Francisco property, and she knows how to get you the best sale price, especially in this competitive market.



Work With Kara

A lifelong resident of the Bay Area, Kara was born in Taipei, Taiwan and moved to San Jose, California as an infant and now resides in Hillsborough, California for the last few decades. Having been a longtime resident of the area, Kara has seen the changes and development in the region and is closely tied to the community.