BY Melisa Klem from The Homestead Team
If you are thinking about selling your farm, there are a few things that I tell EVERY client that make a huge difference. After all, serious equestrians often begin their visit to your farm in the barn. It’s their first impression.
1) Clean. I don’t mean a light tidy. Really clean your barn. Usually, this means a power washer is involved, a deep clean in the tack room and feed room, and storing things that are not in use. Your winter blankets shouldn’t be out in June and those extra water buckets shouldn’t be in the aisle. Wash the windows and make sure that the hose is coiled and the wash stall is organized.
2) Fix the lights. If you have bulbs or lights that are not working, replace them. If you have older halogen lights that need 10 mins to warmup, consider strongly replacing them with LED fixtures and purchase the LED Daylight WHITE bulbs. The brighter your barn is the better folks can see it and the cleaner it will feel. Nobody dreams of moving their horses into a dark barn. We are showcasing a dream here, remember?!
3) Highlight your storage. If you have shelves, hooks, or entire blanket storage rooms in your barn – these should appear organized and only about 2/3 full. If your storage is crammed full it gives the idea that you don’t have enough space to keep everything that you need to operate the barn. We don’t want to give buyers the idea that your barn doesn’t have enough storage space so thin this out.
4) Make sure it smells nice. I have been in barns where the manure pile is close to the barn and the flies are everywhere and it reeks of ammonia because the stalls haven’t got mats. This feels gross and will deter some buyers! I can’t emphasize this enough. The barn needs to smell clean. I don’t mean install air fresheners (please DON’T!), but make sure to remove the manure pile, clean the stalls and add some stall PDZ powder, and consider spraying the aisle with a bit of diluted pine sol. It makes a difference and first impressions count!
If you have more questions about getting your farm ready for sale, you can reach Melisa at Melisa@thehomesteadteam.com, through Facebook, or phone (301)602-8117!
