Arrio & Kelsey · Fort Benning Relocation
The Military Seller’s Playbook
Ten things to do before you list a home in Columbus, Phenix City or anywhere near Fort Benning.
Kelsey and I are an Army family. We’ve PCS’d, sold under a report date and made this move ourselves. — Arrio
Arrio Granum, licensed real estate agent in Georgia and Alabama. Brokered by Coldwell Banker Kennon, Parker, Duncan & Davis, 5670 Whitesville Road, Columbus, GA.
The ten steps most military sellers skip before they list, and what skipping them costs. Free, written for families PCSing out of Fort Benning.
You got orders, and now the clock is running. Most sellers who leave money on the table don’t do it because the market was bad. They do it because they listed before they knew what to do first.
These are the ten steps we walk every seller through before a sign goes in the yard. Most are free, and most take an afternoon. They’re written for military families PCSing out of Fort Benning, but they work for anyone selling in Columbus, Phenix City or the surrounding area.
The Military Seller’s Playbook
Ten ways to get top dollar before you list
Roughly in the order we’d do them. The two outlined in teal are specific to military sellers, and they’re the ones most people skip.
Deep clean like a buyer is already coming
Cost: free · Time: an afternoon
Buyers decide how they feel about a house in the first minute, well before they look at square footage. A spotless home reads as a well-maintained home, and a well-maintained home reads as worth full price.
Focus on baseboards, ceiling fans, grout, appliances, windows and closets. A one-time professional deep clean is often the best money you’ll spend on the whole sale.
Declutter and depersonalize every room
Cost: free · Time: a few hours
Buyers need to picture their family in the house, not yours. Box up family photos, extra furniture and anything that makes a room feel small or personal.
If you’re PCSing, you’re packing anyway. Start now: sparse rooms photograph larger, and the photos are where most buyers first see your home.
Fix the small things before they become negotiating chips
Cost: low · Time: an hour or two
Inspectors are paid to find everything. A dripping faucet, a cracked outlet cover or a sticking door turns into a line on a repair request and leverage for a lower price.
Quick wins: running toilets, small holes in drywall, dead bulbs, loose fixtures, and fresh caulk around tubs and sinks.
Boost curb appeal fast
Cost: low · Time: an hour or two
Plenty of buyers make up their minds before they reach the front door. The yard, the entry and the driveway set the tone for every room after.
Fresh mulch, trimmed hedges, a clean walkway, a new doormat, a couple of potted plants and, if it needs it, a freshly painted front door.
Know whether your VA loan is assumable, and what that costs you
Military-specific · Cost: free · Time: one conversation
VA loans can be assumed, with the lender’s approval, so a buyer may be able to take over your interest rate. When rates are higher than yours, that’s a real selling point, and it can bring in more buyers.
The catch most sellers miss: if the buyer isn’t an eligible veteran who substitutes their own entitlement, your VA entitlement can stay tied to that loan. That can affect how you buy at your next duty station. Know both sides before you advertise it.
Want us to check yours? Pick it in the form below.
Price it right from day one
Cost: free · Time: one conversation
Overpricing is the most expensive mistake on a PCS timeline, because you can’t afford to sit. A home that lingers gets stale, price cuts look like desperation, and buyers start low.
Priced right from the start, a home draws competition, and competition is what pushes the price up. We build that price from what has actually sold near you, not an algorithm’s average.
Stage the rooms that matter
Cost: free to low · Time: an hour or two
You don’t need a professional stager. You need the right arrangement in three rooms: the living room, the primary bedroom and the kitchen. Each one should feel bright, open and obvious in what it’s for.
If you’ve already moved out, we can point you to local staging help so the house doesn’t sit empty and cold.
Use professional photography
Done for you on our listings
Nearly every buyer starts online, so your photos are your first showing. Dark phone photos lose buyers before they ever book a visit.
Professional photography is standard on every listing we take. It’s part of how we protect your price.
Time the listing around PCS season
Military-specific · Cost: free · Time: one strategy call
This market has a rhythm. Buyer demand around Fort Benning builds through spring and peaks as summer moves land.
If your orders give you any room on timing, listing into that demand means more showings and stronger offers. We’ll map your report date to the market, so you’re working with it instead of against it.
Decide sell or rent before you list
Cost: free · Time: one conversation
Some homes near post make good rentals, especially where military tenant demand is steady. Before you list by default, run the numbers.
If your payment is low and rents near you are strong, keeping the house can pay you while you’re at your next duty station. It also means being a landlord from a distance. We’ll help you make the call with real numbers, not guesses.
Going deeper on price? Read what this market rewards and what it punishes, or get a value estimate for your address.
Who’s writing this
We’ve made this move ourselves
Kelsey and I are an Army family. We’ve PCS’d, sold a home under a report date and made this exact move ourselves, so we know what the timeline actually feels like. I handle the real estate; Kelsey keeps everything coordinated. We work both sides of the river: Columbus, Midland and Harris County in Georgia, and Phenix City, Smiths Station and Russell County in Alabama.
— Arrio
Before you rely on any of this: this guide is educational, not legal, tax or lending advice. VA assumption rules, entitlement and rental decisions depend on your loan and your situation, so confirm the details with your lender and a tax professional before you act.
Arrio Granum, licensed real estate agent in Georgia and Alabama. Brokered by Coldwell Banker Kennon, Parker, Duncan & Davis, 5670 Whitesville Road, Columbus, GA. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice.
The Military Seller’s Playbook
The printable PDF is free. Enter your name and email on the Playbook page at arrioandkelsey.com and it unlocks instantly.
Arrio & Kelsey · Coldwell Banker Kennon, Parker, Duncan & Davis