You have lovingly taken the time to stage your home properly: keeping up with yard work, planting flowers, painting your home, removing excess furniture, and doing a lot of cleaning. Clean, clean, clean!
When you find yourself between showings your home will likely resemble what homes look like when they are in use…they will look lived in. Every showing is a potential sale. You don’t want to turn anyone away. If you find yourself with short notice simply take care of the essentials. Here are some important things when prepping your home for last minute showings.
Kitchen: Wash the dishes. Get the pots and pans clean and start the dishwasher. At the very least, get the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. A quick sweep of the kitchen floor is essential. Wipe down the counters.
Meals: If you are in the middle of a meal, finish quickly, pack it to go, or refrigerate the plates to finish later. Remember you will leave the house to make potential buyers feel more comfortable. Check the time and plan your choice accordingly.
Lights: Turn on all the lights in your home, be it day or night. We always recommend doing this for a showing, as it will make a home feel cheery.
Trash: Take out the trash!
Pets: You will need to take your canine and feline companions with you. Additionally, you will want to remove food bowls and litter boxes (not a very attractive smell for buyers to encounter during a showing).
Flush: If it’s yellow don’t let it mellow, flush it down! Flush all toilets and close the lids.
Declutter: At the very least you will want to remove your personal mail from sight. Take it with you or put it in an office drawer. If time permits, declutter all the rooms in your home (putting away clothing, books, and recently used items). Tidy things up!
Know Before You Go: You will be leaving the house for the showing. Have a plan set for where you will go. It might be a family walk with the dog at the park, hire a sitter for your children to be ready and on-call when needed, or maybe you can show up at a friend’s or neighbor’s house with pizza and beer and gain entry with a smile.
Master Tips
Purchase Totes: When it comes to clutter it is good to stay ahead of the game. Unfortunately, it’s a never ending battle. When you begin staging your home you will declutter and things will be perfect. As you continue living in your home, your day to day items will accumulate again. That’s how it goes.
We recommend purchasing a 6-pack of medium to large totes to place in various rooms of your home. Keep them empty! They are emergency reserve spaces for a last minute showing. This is where you will quickly and efficiently store stray clothes, books, and miscellaneous clutter when you get notified. You can gather items in the totes, put the totes in the closet and skedaddle. Good Job!
Post Your Last Minute Prep List: Have everyone in your household ready for a last minute showing. Keep the list posted in plain sight and pre-delegate the duties. Directions will be clear and the family will work well together with a plan. Treat them to pizza and root beer for a job well done!
Creativity and service drive our business at Coldwell Banker Classic Properties. Contact us today if you're considering selling your home in Central Vermont!