Maybe you’ve got a house, townhouse or condo. Maybe you’re selling first or maybe you’ve purchased a home and now need to sell your home. No matter what the scenario, the sale of your home is definitely one of the more stressful parts of the home-buying process! Depending on the condition of your space and how many denizens you have in your home, it will be different degrees of a challenge for you.
First up, as part of the home selling process, you’ll usually have some photos taken of your home for the MLS listing. And it’s a bit of work to get there. You do a deep-cleaning, hide everything in the closet, in drawers or in cabinets. The goal is to remove most personal elements from your home and to make it as uncluttered as possible to show off the space. A stager may come in to add some knick-knacks and brighten up the photos. But once you’re done with the photos, you’ll have to be ready to show it in a similar condition. While you may show your home after moving out, for those of us who show their home while still occupying it, it’s a process!
For the photos, things don’t have to be perfect. There can be blemishes, dust and dirt, stains and things are unlikely to show up in the photo or can be edited out. But when you’re showing your home for a real live person, everything will be reviewed up close and the place needs to be pretty spotless. They’ll open pantry doors, look into closets and imagine themselves living in your space. And you’ll need to keep your property in that pristine condition for probably at least a weekend (a hot market) up to many weeks. So how do you prepare to show your home?
I’m assuming that you’ve done all the major repairs and touch-ups at this point and time. You’ve painted, caulked, and cleaned the basics in your space. I personally have a PODS storage container outside so half of my stuff is already in there for a de-cluttered space. Once you’re ready to show, it’s time to take it to the next level. Some things you’ll need to do in about an hour of time:
- Clear off all the counters. Move items into boxes and tuck into closets
- Clear all bath areas of personal belongings
- Clean/wipe down all kitchen, bathroom counters, sink basins to make them sparkle
- Clean/wipe down all windows and mirrors
- Clean/scrub hardwood, tile and linoleum floors
- Vacuum all rugs, floors to remove dust, dirt and hairs (don’t miss closets)
- Pull up all blinds, pull back curtains for good lighting
- Fluff-arrange pillows, remove-hide extra items hanging on walls, lying on the floors or on furniture (jackets, garbage cans, antennas, cables, desk accessories)
- Spray/deodorize home if needed, add potpourri (shoot for neutral-pleasant odor)
- Put out home marketing materials in welcome areas
At this point and time, you’ll have your place at what I call “99% clean” or about as far as you can realistically make your home look. It’s about where you’d be when having friends over, plus a bit more. You’re ready for the white glove test and it shows. To make this happen, I have my vacuum out at all times, a box of cleaning sprays and magic erasers along with a stack of micro-fiber towels. My condo showings have been from 10am to 6pm and I get a text-email whenever a showing is scheduled. Theoretically I may need to get out of the place in under and hour so you have to be READY to GO! I also have a cat so securing kitty in the carrier on the way out is part of the showing process.
While it’s going to take you a bit of time to get your home in this condition before you start showing, you’ll have to maintain a 95% clean type condition for the rest of the time you’re showing. And that means you’ll have to KEEP your place mostly clean, in between showing days. It’ll most likely keeping to a fairly disciplined lifestyle that is a bit different than your normal day to day. And the more people and pets you have at home, the harder it will be, I keep the doors closed on a couple of rooms that I don’t want my cat roaming around in.
When you get up on showing days, tidy the bed, put your clothes away in a box and smooth the comforter/bedspread for show. It also means making sure I’m showered by 9am and I keep an extra towel near by and wipe down all tile and fixtures before getting out. I try to actively use only one bathroom to minimize the mess. And all the bath-personal accessories I use go into a plastic tub for quick clean-up. I minimize the cooking I’m doing to keep the range grease-free and odors to a minimum, you may be doing a lot of take-out during your showing periods! Keep most of your food items in the cabinet, the pantry or anywhere else it can be hidden. Dishes, glasses and utensils should be stored in your dishwasher or stored away. I also keep a garbage box out by the door that I use to throw away items that need to get tossed on a regular basis. You don’t want a lot of wastebaskets in your home during showings, as you can guess, they won’t add any value!
The goal is that once you get the text or email that a showing has been scheduled, you can get out as quick as a bunny. My goal is to get out fifteen minutes before a visitor might arrive which shortens down your time to prep and do some final cleaning. Typically it’s all about the kitchen and bathrooms since that’s usually where you’ll create your day to day mess. I do one last vacuum pass to pick up any dirt or hairs, use the hand-held nozzle vs. the roller which will just push debris around. On they way out, you’ll need to set up your realtor’s marketing kit. For me that’s a couple of plastic stands with information on what they should do while visiting along with masks, booties, a binder and information sheets for your home. Lock the place up and head on out for an hour and the viewing should be done.
In the end, the showings are super important and you want to give the visitor the best impression of your home and have them imagine themselves living there. That means keep it clean, keep it neutral and keep it welcoming. Not an easy task when you’re still handling your life in the space. And while you could show your place once you move out, having a bit of furniture and belongings helps them visualize its potential. Just hang in there and hopefully you’ll get a call for an offer sometime soon!