Selling your home in summer has some big advantages. The most obvious is that the weather is almost guaranteed to be on your side.

What this does mean, however, is that staging, or presenting, your home for sale requires some important extra tweaks to ensure that your home looks at its best for the current season.

Here are some great tips to help you in that process:

Air conditioning - The last thing you need is buyers viewing the home and the aircon has suddenly failed. Therefore it's important to ensure your system has had its annual service to prevent this. This will also ensure that the system is working efficiently in terms of creating a cool setting.

Ceiling fans - You'll want your viewers to see the home in a comfortable environment and ceiling fans are a terrific way of cooling areas of the home that may be less well served by your aircon system. Make sure they have been set for counterclockwise summer operation, pushing air down into the room.

Lawns - Well manicured lawns are really essential in creating that all important curb appeal and positive first impression. It's summer, so plants and flowers can be especially useful in giving your viewers a warm and inviting welcome. Make sure that weedkiller is applied to drives and walkways to help keep them pristine.

Yards - Having paid attention to the lawn, ensure that everything else in your yard looks great and ready for the lucky buyer to enjoy. Everything about the yard needs to suggest a quality living experience. Surveys show that the vast majority of buyers like to have a backyard, so this is an area you cannot neglect and will under even more scrutiny from your viewers at this time of year.

Paintwork - Summer is a time when external paintwork can start to look worn, due to the sun. Therefore make sure you touch up any areas that require some TLC.

Decks - Is your deck looking tired? Outdoor features can gain in importance for summer buyers, so carry out maintenance to ensure your deck, and any furniture associated with it, looks at its best.

Pools - If you have a pool and use it regularly then chances are that there won't be much to do here. If, on the other hand, the pool isn't used then it's really important to bring it up to speed as if you were using it all the time. This will pay dividends as a pool can be a major selling asset with many buyers and they are going to be more motivated to buy a home where they could literally take a dip in the pool on the day they move in.

External lighting - Some buyers may only be able to view late in the evening, due to work commitments. They may also return to the area at night to see what your home looks like at that time, so don't neglect outside lighting. Make sure bulbs work and consider extra lighting measures that highlight the property nicely.

Internal lighting - Avoid the temptation to keep temperatures down by closing all your curtains. This doesn't help the home look light and airy, as it should do when there's beautiful sunshine outside. Blinds are a fantastic way of keeping the heat from sunlight down, whilst ensuring that your home still has good internal light levels.

Internal decor - Do your ornaments and other accessories such as paintings reflect the season? If they have, for example, a distinctly autumnal feel, then it is a great idea to change them to reflect the season more accurately. Light color choices and using only lightweight fabrics can also help to create a relevant and bright mood.Create a warm welcome - Viewing homes can be a tiring experience in the summer, so stand out from the crowd and leave a pitcher of cool lemonade and glasses for your viewers. The little touches can go a long way.

We hope at least some of these tips are useful to you. Please call us at The Hyland Group at 928-445-2100 for more specific advice related to your own home sale.