 GETTING
YOUR HOME
READY TO SELL
Inside
CLEAN!
CLEAN! CLEAN! CLEAN!
Cannot say it
enough. Have the carpet shampooed; wax the floors; wash
the walls, windows, blinds, drapes and lighting fixtures.
Consider hiring a cleaning service.
Kitchen
and bathrooms
Clear off
counter tops, take away everything that you possibly can.
Maximize the available counter space. Kitchens and
bathrooms should be gleaming. If unsightly, have the tub
re-caulked and remove mineral deposits and grime from the shower
walls. Clean the stove, microwave, refrigerator and
dishwasher. Polish wood cabinets.
Repairs
Identify and
repair dripping faucets, sticking or creaking doors, etc.
When people see areas of disrepair that have accumulated over
the years and you overlook, they begin to wonder whether there
may be other unseen problems and often remove the house from
their short list.
Closets
Remove out of
season clothing. Organize everything that remains in your
closet; clothes, shoes, etc. Remove all clutter from
cabinets and closets. No matter how big a closet is, if it
looks cluttered and crowded the prospective buyer is going to
think that the closet is too small.
Furniture
The less
furniture, the larger a room appears to be.
A
light appearance
As a rule, do
everything to lighten the appearance of the home. Make
sure the blinds are easily opened, the window treatments and
windows are clean. Anything that you replace should be
replaced with light colors. Repaint any room beginning to
look shabby. Ask yourself the question: "What can I
do to make this room look larger?"
Depersonalize
You need to
depersonalize your life in the house so that prospective buyers
might be able to see themselves, their furnishings, their life,
in your home. Remove family photographs. Pack away
collections.
Outside
Walk the
property with a pad and pencil. List anything that you
think is less than satisfactory without regard to cost or time.
You can review the list afterward to determine what you can and
cannot repair.
The
house
Take a close
look as you walk the property. Make time to clean anything
that looks unkept or dirty; repair or replace anything that
looks loose, dingy, rusted or broken. Make sure the doorbell works. Replace a tired-looking mail box; clean the
exterior light fixtures; wash the windows; mend and/or replace
screens; straighten and clean the gutters and downspouts;
replace loose/broken shingles or shutters.
The
yard
Turn and weed
the beds; trim the trees and shrubs, rake the leaves and pine straw. Lay in ground cover. Mend the fence, fix
the gate latch, pick up litter. Pick up toys, yard tools
and garbage cans. Store them neatly in a storage area.
Consider a landscaping/lawn service.
Outdoor
furniture and toys
Consider
disposing if unsightly. Examine, spruce-up, paint and
stage any pieces that remain.
Front
entry
It is the
first thing your buyers see as they stand and wait for the door
to open. It is worth the extra effort to spruce it up.
Garage
The time has
come, Discard virtually everything in the garage that has
not been used for a year. Wash the garage.
Driveway,
patio, deck, walkways
Clean,
pressure wash, declutter, repair.
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