A HOUSE THAT LOOKS GOOD WILL SELL

A house should have curb appeal, they say, but what exactly does that mean?

What it means is that, if a buyer drives past a house at 5 or 10 m.p.h., the front of the place should be alluring enough for that buyer to stop the car.

If the seller has done the job properly, the buyer should then get out of the car and write down the real estate agent's name and number.

You can achieve curb appeal - which the National Association of Realtors says sells 49 percent of all houses - whether you have a city townhouse with no front yard or a suburban house with trees and a lawn.

One facet of curb appeal you may not be able to control is the condition of your neighbors' houses and yards. If they all look nice, then the buyer will become as intrigued with the neighborhood as with your house. If the other yards are filled with kids' toys, and the buyer has children, that means potential playmates.

If the other yards are filled with rubbish and junk cars, good luck to you.

Here's how to handle prettying up city and suburban (or semi-suburban) houses for sale:

• Touch up the paint on the trim and on the front door
• Add shutters to the living room window
• Put a flower box to that window ledge and a half-barrel on the side of the two marble steps up to the front door and fill both - and a small area around the tree in front of the house - with impatiens.
• Make sure the steps were washed and clean
• Keep all hedges trimmed neatly, plant plenty of flowers, and use lots of dark mulch that you should water regularly.
• Repaint the concrete bench under the dogwood.
• Repair the sidewalk.
• Make sure the lawn is mowed once a week and watered regularly.
• Dead-head the flowers.
• Pick up trash not only in front of your house but in front of your neighbors' houses.
• Wash the windows.

Results? House is on the market for a weekend. Eighteen couples have appointments on day two, 50 groups appear at open house on day three. Seven offers, two at asking, five over.

Lessons learned: A lot of ugly houses sold over asking price last spring, but you can't assume that your ugly house will. Never take risks, but don't go overboard trying to pretty up.

Remember, at first contact, it is not how good the house feels but how good it looks.

But once you get them through the door, you better be real sure that what’s inside looks as good as what’s outside.