Getting Your Home Ready to Sell: House Prep & Cleaning Tips: You’ve decided it’s time to sell your home. You’ve lined up a real estate agent and you’ve started on your list of small repairs. But, before you put your home on the market and have your first open house, there are a few things you’ll want to do first.
Everyone knows that selling your house is a big decision, not to mention all of the work it takes to get your house ready to sell. The better your home looks, the more likely you are to make a good impression with potential buyers. You might even want to give the place a good, thorough scrubbing before you list it.
Below are a few simple prep and cleaning tips before and during the listing period to help you get your home sold fast and for the most money:
1. Start with a deep cleaning
First impressions mean a lot, so don’t let foul smells, dirty floors, or dusty surfaces make a bad one on a potential buyer. Before listing your home, you’ll want to give it a deep clean. It’s not a matter of simply running a feather duster over a few pieces of furniture. It means cleaning toilets, scrubbing the shower and tub, wiping down surfaces, mopping floors, vacuuming underneath furniture, dusting baseboards, cleaning appliances inside and out, and more.
If that sounds like a tall order, with everything else you need to do to get your home ready, you may want to consider calling in the professionals. A reputable house cleaning service will be able to give your home the kind of detailed clean it needs to show in the best possible light. The small investment in cleaning services will make all the difference when it comes time to showcase your ultra-clean home to potential buyers.
2. Depersonalize the space
It’s fairly common knowledge that potential homebuyers want to be able to picture themselves and their own belongings in the space when looking at homes. So, if you happen to have an access wall that’s chartreuse or purple, you’ll probably want to paint over it with a more neutral color. While prepping for house tours, take out anything that is specific to your tastes.
The goal here is to make your home appeal to as many different buyers as possible. This doesn’t mean you have to go crazy and eliminate everything with personality. Items such as family heirlooms, pictures, keepsakes, and personal memorabilia can all be stored away for the time being. The fewer things you have on display, the less personal it will look and feel, so buyers can envision themselves living there.
3. Declutter and organize storage areas
One thing you should definitely expect during an open house or home tour is for potential buyers to look in your closets, kitchen drawers, and cabinets. Homebuyers will be asking themselves how their own things are going to fit as they walk through your home. If your closets are stuffed full, you have items stored under the beds, and most surfaces are cluttered, now is the time to go through everything.
Donate whatever stuff you haven’t used in a year. Give things away to family and friends. Have a garage sale. Declutter your closets, cabinets, and drawers and keep only enough belongings in each to really show off the potential space your home has to offer. Think of it as staging your storage areas.
4. Focus on the pantry
Pantries sell homes. Make yours appear roomier by straightening the shelves, organizing and grouping like items, organizing with bins, throwing out expired food, sweeping and mopping the floor, wiping down the shelves, and repainting and lining the shelves with fresh liner, if needed. If you are using the floor for extra storage, clear it. You want the pantry to appear as large as possible to potential buyers.
5. Replace light bulbs
You will want your house to look its brightest when homebuyers are touring it and replacing burnt-out light bulbs is one of the easiest ways to make it bright. A soft-white light LED bulb can create a bright but welcoming environment for new homebuyers. Be sure to walk around the outside of your house to make sure all the exterior lights are working as well. Depending on the time of year, your open house or home showings could happen when the sun is going down or when it’s already dark.
6. Stage your home
Staging your home means rearranging furniture and décor, or even repainting to make it look most pleasing to the eye. You don’t have to spend a ton of money doing this. Sometimes just rearranging items from room to room or shifting around furniture can make a huge difference visually.
Focus on the details. Nothing breathes life into a room more than a little greenery. A potted tree in the corner can work wonders in a living room. For smaller areas. think of smaller plants like a few potted herbs in the kitchen or maybe small fiddle leaf fig on the mantel.
Mirrors can be used to make small spaces appear larger as they create the illusion of depth. Consider adding a few accent rugs which can add character to a room or define a sitting area. Fresh cut flowers can add a splash of color to a monochromatic kitchen or warm up a dining room, making the space that much more inviting to potential home buyers.
7. Declutter and clean the garage
Declutter the garage before showing your home. A cramped garage full of stuff can be a huge turn-off to potential buyers. A clean, well-organized garage looks a lot more spacious and could actually turn out to be a huge selling point.
8. Enhance your property’s curb appeal
Ultimately, your outdoor space can be just as important as what your home has to offer on the inside. Enhancing your home’s curb appeal is one of the most impactful things you can do to create a great first impression and get potential buyers to have a look inside.
Be sure to remove any toys, bicycles, lawn furniture, equipment, etc. visible from the street. In addition, simple enhancements like placing potted plants on your front porch, giving your front door a new coat of paint, or adding fresh bark around the base of your hedges and trees can go a long way to enhance your home’s curb appeal.
Things to Consistently Do During the Listing Period
1. Focus on the floors
One of the first things potential homebuyers look at when entering a new home is the floors, so make sure yours look their best. Be sure to vacuum carpets and rugs and underneath furniture. If you can, run the vacuum before a showing to get those perfect vacuum lines we all love so much. If your carpet is dirty, stained, or has a funky smell, be sure to get it professionally cleaned before you start showing your home to potential buyers.
2. Get rid of the dust
Dust collects everywhere in our homes, especially in those hard-to-reach high places. Pay attention to the corners of rooms. Knock the spider webs down with a broom. Ceiling fans love to collect dust. Invest in an extra-long ceiling fan duster. Make sure the fan blades are dust-free. Blinds are another item that collects dust. Make sure you clean those too. Try placing an old sock over your hand while wiping across each slat, starting at the top.
3. Clean glass windows and doors
You want to make sure that your home shines inside and out. Windows and doors bring light in, which is a huge plus to potential buyers. Make sure all your windows are sparkling clean as well as the window sills, which tend to collect a lot of dirt and dust.
4. Clean the light switches and doorknobs
Look around your home and you’ll probably find a few fingerprints and smudges, especially around light switches and doorknobs. Use a damp rag and a little cleaner to clean and polish all these areas. Be sure to address any high traffic switches and knobs such as near the kitchen sink garbage disposal, in the bathrooms, in your kids’ rooms, and by the garage or back door.
5. Keep surfaces clutter-free
Horizontal surfaces around the house are magnets for clutter. Flat surfaces are also what you see as you scan the room. Make it a habit to keep countertops, tables, floors, beds, and dressers clear of clutter and these areas will look tidier and more spacious. They will also be easier and faster to clean because you won’t’ have to remove all the clutter beforehand.
6. Clean the kitchen sink
Nothing is more off-putting than a sink filled with dirty dishes. During the listing period, make sure to always have a clean and empty sink. Make a habit of emptying the dishwasher in the morning. That way, every time a family member uses a dish, it can be rinsed off and put right into the dishwasher.
This will prevent you from worrying about having to do a load of dishes at the last minute. Dry your sink using a damp towel when you are finished rinsing dishes and it will shine like new and impress potential buyers.
7. Dump the Kitchen trash
This might seem simple, but don’t forget to take out the kitchen trash before a showing. You can even keep your trash bin in your garage while your home is for sale. It might be a bit inconvenient, but it will keep smelly trash out of the house. It will also be easy to grab and throw away in the big trash can on your way out.
8. Make sure your home smells good
Household odors will be the first thing potential buyers notice when they enter your home and can be a real deal-breaker. Deep cleaning your home can do wonders for getting rid of funky odors. You may want to consider a professional house cleaning service. It will be worth every penny to have your home not only look clean but also smell fresh and inviting.
You can also add aromas with the use of automatic air freshener dispensers, plug-in wax warmers, or light a few candles while showing your home. Some sellers go all out and even bake cookies before a showing. Whatever you do, make sure your home smells good.
9. Before a showing
Make sure your home is clean and shown in its best light. Turn on all of the lights, open the blinds, and keep all bedroom doors open before any showings. Basically, do anything to make your home feel brighter and bigger. You don’t need to run the vacuum before every home tour if you aren’t able, but defiantly before an open house.
Do make sure you make the beds, stow away toys, and generally make sure everything is neat and tidy. It’s especially important that your bathrooms are clean – toilets are flushed, seats are down, towels are picked up, counters are wiped, and trash cans are empty.
The takeaway
There’s a lot that goes into selling a home and you may not have the time or energy to get it all done on your own. Decide on a local REALTOR® to work with early in the process and take advantage of their expertise and resources. You might also consider hiring a professional house cleaning service to help you with an initial deep clean and even for once-a-week cleanings during the listing period.
Remember, you’re not obligated to sell a perfect house, but a home that looks clean, uncluttered, and well-taken care of will likely sell faster and for the most money.
Looking for a professional cleaning service to help get your home ready to sell?
For high-quality home cleaning services, call on the professionals at Clean Nation Company. We know how to get a residential property clean and looking its best for potential buyers. Give your house the deep clean advantage it needs to sell fast and for top dollar!
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Hiring a professional house cleaning service is not only practical but can be a real gamechanger when you are getting your home ready to sell. During a deep cleaning, our cleaning team will touch every inch of your home. In addition to tackling any visible dirt and dust, we will clean the hidden areas that often get missed such as baseboards, under furniture, and those hard-to-reach spots like ceiling fans, hanging light fixtures, and behind the toilet. Our cleaners will bring to the job whatever cleaning supplies are needed to clean your home unless there is something specific you want us to use instead.
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