Preparing Your Home For Sale
De-Personalize Your Home
- Pack up all personal photographs and family heirlooms. Buyers will be distracted by them. This will help the buyers to be able to imagine their own photos on the walls! You want buyers to think "I can see myself living here."
De-Clutter!
- This is a head-start on the packing you will need to do for moving.
- If you haven't used an item in over a year, donate it or throw it away
- Pack up all books from bookcases.
- Pack up your knickknacks.
- Clean out the garage and store all non-essentials. (see storage unit below)
- Clean off the kitchen counters.
- Put essential items in a small box and store in a closet when not in use.
Rearrange Bedroom Closets and Kitchen Cabinets.
- If a buyer sees you are organized, it says you probably take good care of the house. This means:
- Neatly arrange spice jars and canned goods.
- Neatly stack dishes and glasses.
- Turn coffee cup handles facing the same way.
- Hang shirts together, buttoned and facing the same direction.
- Line up shoes.
Rent a Storage Unit.
- The less furniture in each room, the better most homes will show.
- Remove pieces of furniture that block or hamper paths and walkways and put them in storage.
- Pare down furnishings to the bare essentials; you only need enough furniture to define the room?s purpose and still be able to live in the room
- Store anything that looks shabby or worn that you want to keep
- Store your empty bookcases and boxes of books, knickknacks, family heirlooms, etc.
- Remove extra leaves from your dining room table to make the room appear larger.
- Leave just enough furniture in each room to showcase the room's purpose and plenty of room to move around.
Remove/Replace Favorite Items.
- Remove window coverings, built-in appliances or fixtures if you want to take with you. Pack those items and replace them, if necessary. If a buyer never sees an item, they won't want it. Once you tell a buyer they can't have an item, they will covet it, and it could blow your deal.
Make Minor Repairs.
- Replace Cracked Floor or Counter Tiles.
- Patch holes in walls.
- Fix leaky faucets.
- Fix doors that don't close properly and kitchen drawers that jam.
- Paint walls neutral colors Using white or cream on the walls and keeping furnishings in light, bright colors will ensure a cheerful and appealing mood even on gloomy days.
- Replace burned-out light bulbs.
- Replace worn bedspreads and furniture covers.
Make the House Look New!
- Wash windows inside and out.
- Rent a pressure washer and spray down sidewalks and exterior.
- If it is winter, make sure sidewalks and steps are free of ice and snow.
- Clean out cobwebs.
- Re-caulk tubs, showers and sinks.
- Polish faucets and mirrors.
- Clean the refrigerator inside out.
- Vacuum daily.
- Polish hard surface floors.
- Dust furniture, ceiling fan blades and light fixtures.
- Bleach dingy grout.
- Replace or remove worn rugs and carpet.
- Hang up fresh towels and replace old shower curtains.
- Deodorize any musty smelling areas.
Evaluate your work so far. Imagine you are a buyer and . . .
- Stand outside the front door. Do you want to go inside? Does the house welcome you?
- Linger in the doorway of every single room and ask if it looks useful. Does it have impact and pizzazz?
- Look at how furniture is arranged and move pieces around until it makes sense.
- Ensure window coverings are hanging level.
- Is the view from every window appealing? If not, clean it up!
- Does it look like nobody lives in this house? If so, you're almost ready.
Check Your Home?s Curb Appeal.
- If a buyer won't get out of the agent's car because they don't like the exterior of your home, you'll never get them inside.
- Keep the sidewalks and lawn cleared of toys and gardening tools and water hoses.
- Mow the lawn.
- Paint faded window trim.
- Plant yellow flowers, such as inexpensive marigolds, near the front entry. Yellow evokes a buying emotion.
- Trim the shrubs.
- Make sure your house number can be clearly read from the street.