Selling your home? A little time now may save you a lot of time later...

What You Can Do to Prepare Your Home for Sale...

These are only recommendations, not requirements; however what you do now to prep your home may save you a lot of time and hassle later. It may take seven to ten days to accomplish these tasks and some may be work intensive, but it may mean the difference between selling your home fast and at top dollar or having your home sit on the market for an unnecessarily extended period of time.

De-Clutter: We all collect an amazing amount of "things". If you don’t need it, why not donate it to your local St. Vincent’s or Goodwill store. The general rule is “If you haven't used it in over a year, you probably don't need it.” Remove all books and knickknacks from bookcases and shelves and box them up. Clean off everything on kitchen counters. Leave only a few nice looking items on each surface. The idea here is - you will eventually be packing this stuff up for your move anyway – why not get a head-start.

Take Your Personality Out of the Home: Pack up any personal photographs and children’s art projects, trophies, awards. Buyers tend to be easily distracted by such items. Curiosity gets the best of them and suddenly they are looking for clues as to what the current owners are like instead of paying attention to the home itself. You want buyers to imagine their own photos on the walls. Please pack up your favorite sports memorabilia collection, porcelain doll collection, model airplane collection, collectable glassware, etc.. What is treasure to one may be seen as clutter to another.

If Needed - Rent a Storage Unit: Do you have a lot of furniture? Or is your furniture rather large for the room it is in. Many homes show better with less furniture. Remove pieces of furniture that obstruct paths and walkways and put them in storage. Remove extra leaves from your dining room table to make the room appear larger. Leave just enough furniture in each room to let the buyer know what the room’s intended purpose is. You want your home to have a light and airy appeal. Too much furniture in any room gives the room a heavy feel.

Remove/Replace favorite Items: Remember – What a buyer never sees, they can’t ask you to include in the sale. If you painstakingly sewed your curtains by hand, box them up and replace them with some economical linen curtains from your local discount store. If the chandelier in the entry is an heirloom, take it down and replace it with an economical one from your local home store. Remove and pack such items if necessary, but you must replace them, or it will look as though the home has been looted.

Make Minor Repairs: Replace cracked tiles, patch holes in drywall, replace burned out light bulbs, replace torn screens or broken windows, re-caulk tubs, showers and sinks, fix leaky faucets, fix doors that don't close properly and drawers that jam, etc. Now is the time to do any project that you’ve been meaning to do but haven’t gotten around to. These small details will make prospective buyers worry that the home has not been maintained well.

Make the House Sparkle! Wash windows inside and out, spray down sidewalks, clean out cobwebs, polish chrome faucets and mirrors, clean out the refrigerator, vacuum (vacuum before each showing if possible), mop floors, dust furniture, ceiling fans and light fixtures, replace or just remove worn bathroom & kitchen rugs.

Pretend You Are a Choosy Buyer: This is the BEST TIP! Go outside and open your front door. Stand there. Do you want to go inside? Does the house welcome you? Linger in the doorway of every single room and imagine how your house will look to a new buyer. Examine carefully how furniture is arranged and move pieces around until it makes sense. Consider repainting any room that screams pink little girl’s room, or lime green kitchen. You want your home to appeal to the masses. Neutral colors - light tan, light beige are good ideas, other colors can be used - just remember that they should be subtle. Have you been considering replacing your worn bedspread or that torn lampshade? Now is the time to do it. Hang up fresh towels and put fresh soaps or potpourri in the bathrooms.

Clean and air out any musty smelling areas: Odors are a no-no. If you are a smoker consider smoking on the back deck or front porch instead of in the home. This has become such an issue in recent years that some buyers will only look at homes that are currently owned by non-smokers. If you can, opt for airing out vs. masking a smell. If a buyer walks in a home and is hit by a wall of rosy smelling room deodorizer - they will assume you are trying to cover something up.

Last but Not Least - Curb Appeal, Curb Appeal, Curb Appeal: Remember! For every one person that will walk through your home, there may be 10 to 20 that drive by just to take a peak. Don’t open yourself up to the drive-by buyer who won’t take the time to look at the interior of a home if they don’t like the exterior. Keep the sidewalks cleared, mow the lawn, paint window trim, plant yellow flowers or group several planted flower pots together. Yellow is said to evoke a buying emotion - and Marigolds are inexpensive. Trim your bushes, and make sure visitors can clearly read your house number.

I know it's a long list, but it's a proven methodology. Do the work before you list and save yourself time and money later.