Since it's so hard to sell I'd only so minimal

paint inside and change the carpet.

make sure your gardens are neat .

carpet colour choose a neutral carpet ie something like sisal that's hard wearing and cheap.

you can go to a carpet auction place similar to Fowlers in Victoria sometimes they have off cuts that might be enough for your whole house that they sell for cheap

Hi good luck with it all. One query Did agent say you should replace carpet etc to sell it ??

Thanks for your post. Agent did say to recarpet as existing carpet is worn in parts and just looks quite poor. He mentioned painting as well and the venetians.

Ok we'll have to do. Friends recently sold an investment pty n got great price mostly cis had windows professionally cleaned (apart from gardening cleaning gutters ect and replacing some worn door knobs with shiny new ones) which shows people love shiny bright light properties Hope that helps

I think you have pretty much covered everything you need to do...
I agree with vy on the carpet choice. Definitely toning down the kitchen wall colour... if your property is aimed at first time buyers I'd suggest either a white or pale grey throughout.. will brighten the whole home and is on trend. In the wet areas you could consider updating the tap ware and door handles for a fresh feel.
You could check out IKEA and Bunnings for window coverings as a comparison. Maybe sticking with a roller blind in plain white.
Make sure all lights are in good working order. Windows, fans and air conditioners should be cleaned throughly too. Basically make sure everything is clean.
I think you should stick with the current colour scheme for outside just a fresh coat will lift it. Definitely ensure the house is cleaned down and free of cobwebs. Make sure the front door and screen door are clean and in good working order. A new natural door mat is an idea too.
If your budget allows, some property staging can also give you amazing photos, which is what your potential buyers will see first of your property.
Good luck with the preparations and look forward to seeing the outcome...

Thanks so much for your advice. A pale grey on the walls is good advice, I just not sure what the carpets should be. Grey or beige?

Natural white is a very popular paint colour (with some warmth to it) & could be combined with carpet/flooring in natural tones. This could appeal to both new home owners & investors (as an investor though, I'd prefer flooring other than carpet or darker coloured carpet to keep maintenance costs down). As you mentioned the property market isn't good in Perth, have you considered keeping internal painting to an absolute minimum? Other than your red wall in the kitchen, what other paint colours do you have at present? Re window coverings, what direction does your house face? Do you need coverings to block out lots of sun/heat or more for privacy? You probably have this on your list - for the front of your property, some large plants in pots (so you can take them with you) or planted in the garden to add to drive by appeal. I'd also recommend ensuring any palms have been tidied up (had them in my last property & they made lots of work). To help you get an idea of window coverings, external paint colours - I'd recommend a local drive around looking for houses with similar coloured bricks to see what others have done that looks effective. Good luck!

If use grey wall paint I'd go grey carpet with white fleck. Actually choose carpet first as beige one may be cheaper then if beige white walls if grey pale grey (eg dulux warm pebble half strength)

Agree with above... pick a carpet that works for you then decide on paint... see if you can grab samples to look against things you won't exchange.

Thanks so much. I wasn't sure if the kitchen bench top and kitchen tiles would dictate the colour of the flooring/walls as its an open plan design. I'm heading there on Friday and I'll take some samples a I'll see what works! Thanks SO VERY much for your advice

It looks amazing! I'm loving all the suggestions. I'll come back to you with my suggested colours and more info later this week. I'm also toying with the idea of home staging however I'll need to do it on a budget. I know it will give this property WOW when the completion in the same suburb are not doing it. I'm considering using my home furniture where possible and purchasing/borrowing accessories and linen to complete the look. Can stylists assist with this type of assistance/advice work or will they only do the complete job?

mishprior, Thank you! All done in 4 weeks- it was a challenge but nothing is impossible! Property stylists and interior designers can definitely give you a hand with advice and consultations (colour, space etc) by reviewing every room.

Home staging is a great way to de personalise & declutter the home so potential buyers can see themselves living in the space- its all about the look & feel. You should aim to remove half of your things from the house before putting it on the market.

"venetian blinds from Spotlight (or any other cheap window dressing suggestion)"

Too many moving parts to go cheap and too much dusting. Go with something simple which the buyers can comfortably live with until such time as they may wish to upgrade.

"I'm also toying with the idea of home staging however I'll need to do it on a budget."

I have seen houses that absolutely presented better and had enormous appeal due to good staging. For a house that looks uninspiringly bland and oversized without furniture or an expensive house cheapened by drab and dated furniture or a house with an unusual and confusing floorplan, sure. However I am not a fan of staging average modest houses. It makes me feel like why should I pay more to cover the owners costs of renting decor to distract me from the flaws of the actual thing I am looking to buy.

Thanks maceymacmaples for your comments. Regarding blinds what would you suggest? Roller blinds, sheers or a cheaper tap style curtain? Or none at all? I understand your point about staging average modest house, however in this market and with the 'competition' in the suburb either empty properties or those restyled with existing out dated furniture, does styling the modest house provide some more appeal?

Mishprior, I feel a roller blind would be ideal or at least a solid curtain for all rooms that require privacy.
Regards to staging, most people are not creative and therefore visualising how they would live in the space dose not come easily. We don't believe that you have to have everything looking new like a show home. Just proportioned and tidy. Furniture placement is important to have a good flow through the home. Even if you can borrow furniture from your own home and check with family and friends for anything they may be able to help with, would be beneficial.
If you have the basics you could see if there is a property stylist in your area who offers a partial styling service to help create a lived in feel.

Thanks so much. I'm going to look into roller blinds. I completely agree about people not being creative (I can't really visualise myself!), so I'll probably use some furniture from my own house (i have some recent Freedom purchases/looks in my own home) so I'll probably use these as well as borrow from friends. Thanks so much for your help! I'll send some more pics through soon.

Hi Mish I live in Perth and have renovated staged and sold several properties on a budget and am doing one currently. Am happy to help with colours and staging. Caroline.

Wow Cordony - excellent transformation! Loved seeing these inspirational photos.
Mishprior, it is fine to have neutrals whites, beiges and greys mixed as long as you consider whether they are warm or cold. We had warm beige walls and a feature wall which was cold grey and it didn't work. When we changed the feature wall to a warm grey it was spot on and just felt and looked right.
Definitely roller blinds over venetian. These are not too expensive from Bunnings. Vertical panels from Ikea are also budget friendly. Sorry about photo quality of ours.
As for staging yourself, trawl photos on Real Estate sites and head to as many opens as you can to gather ideas. I did this and noticed little things like 3 bottles/vases in kitchens that would be easy to copy.
Good luck. Can't wait to see the finished product.

The biggest seller to any home is decluttering... Remove all personalised stuff and put it in storage. Remove big furniture and leave one or two pieces. Keep kitchen benches clear and clean, and with fresh flowers. Maximise space by removing lots of excess shelving, and ensure you have some art on the walls to make the room look more 3 dimensional. Clean out the garage - and put in storage. Don't use it as a store.. Guys buy garages. New letterbox or house numbers on house. You will need to keep the house clear and clean and smell free to get a quick sale. Good luck.

I say "stop the bus" - if the market is bad then perhaps you are throwing good money away. I would suggest you invest some money into getting a professionals opinion if you spend money are you likely to get a higher price and if so how much higher. Perhaps they will recommend just a de-clutter, the front garden appeal and a big clean e.g. a soft outside wash to make your house look the best that it can for first impressions. You may end up spending time and money and not get your money back. A good real estate agent should be able to confirm what your property is worth in its current state (after you have done your clean up / de-clutter) and what it is worth if you spend money and then you can make an informed decision.

Based on Bernadette's comment (throwing good money away if the market isn't good), I wonder if having a different agent come through who has a good reputation selling homes in your property range. My last agent was a gem, my home was in a low price bracket. The agent was very clear about what I needed to do which involved no internal painting (just touching up chips on corners, cupboards etc) although I thought the house could have been painted as it needed it, my agent advised where to declutter, placement of some furniture, redoing paint on back timber deck and the young couple the agent had in mind saw it first & bought it. Perhaps a different agent will guide you more away from spending money you may not get a return on.

My house had an orange suede like feature wall in the lounge & heavy purple wall in one of the bedrooms. Had previous quotes to sand these & repaint them, but left them as is and because of the low price bracket house sold fast anyway...

An agent once advised us not to replace carpet because buyers may not like our choice and prefer to choose their own. They suggested that clean and decluttered were more important. Could you use the need for new carpet and some redecorating as a sales point? For example: "price reduced by $5,000 (or whatever) - redecorate and improve!" The front of your house is very appealing; it looks warm and welcoming and homey. I may be different, but the thought of buying a slightly cheaper house that I could then redecorate to my own taste is exciting.

If the house is for first home buyers they may not have cash to update anything. Suggest keeping the colour in the kitchen - I like it - and matching around the oven so the infill is not a feature. Change the carpet but go for something light that will make the rooms appear larger. Not too light so that people think they will leave marks. Make sure the tone blends with the wall colours. Living areas and bedroom walls should be a neutral colour. Dulux "Hogs Bristle" is a really popular colour but you could accent with a light grey/brown. It's worth having a look at a full colour range and speaking to the consultants in a paint shop rather than going to the big green shed. The biggest turn off for buyers is filth. Make sure everything is CLEAN and have minimal ornaments. Fresh flowers also work well. See what's in your garden (or a friend's garden) as green fillers. You can use herbs as well which also have a nice natural scent or symbidiums are great for the length of your sale campaign. Turn all lights on while showing and ensure nothing smells bad. In short, stand back and ask yourself whether it would be a deal-breaker for you if you wanted to buy it.

You need professional help.

Home staging is visually marketing a home to target a specific buyer in order to achieve the highest price. It borrows from marketing and visual merchandising used by retailers, among other disciplines. It is ‘profit’ versus ‘pretty’.

DIY just doesn’t cut it if you’re serious about selling – you need an experienced professional home stager for a top dollar result.

A professional 2-hour home staging consultation starts from $300 to $500 and can make you thousands more. You can find the top home staging professionals in your area on Houzz. All your questions can be answered. Why would you not?

You can read more at What Is Home Staging And Should I Attempt It?

Hi everyone, well the good news is my house is having the pictures taken tomorrow morning ahead of the first home open. Thank you all for the advice offered and shared. In the end I had to keep to a low budget as its unlikely I'll get it back in the sale price. What I want to do it MOVE it quickly, as the market is poor and we are heading toward Christmas. The first 30 days are VIP. So I did the following;

-exterior eaves, guttering paint

- whole house interior wall paint (grand piano quarter) and one ceiling

- carpet throughout from Harvey Norman

- verticals, as other spotlight/ikea options did not fit. I needed to have these made.

- new lightfittings

- remove exterior rotary clothes line, put an Aldi one that comes from one wall.

- cleaning of pavers with high pressure cleaner (my new found friend)

- cleaning of kitchen tiles and grout with toothbrush, gumption and patience (gumption is also my new friend)

- new shower screen

So there we have it! Thanks again for your help and colour suggestions, and multiple suggestions to CLEAN. This CLEAN priority cannot be understated. I considered staging the home however I believe as it is modest and first home buyer home and a new migrant market, it wasn't worth the spend.

Fingers crossed!

Well done and good luck.

Great job Love your new best friends!! Good Luck let us know if you get a reasonable sale price after your hard work

Looks pretty good to me. Fingers crossed for you for a quick sale.

Well done. Looks so fresh and clean. Good luck with the sale. Please let us know how you go.

Neat and tidy! Well done....! Good luck with the sale :)