How To Prepare Your House For Sale

July 29th, 2010 by Tara Millar

Your house should always be available for show, although it might occasionally be inconvenient for you. Let your listing agent place a lock box in a very convenient place to make it easy for other agents to show your home to home buyers. Otherwise, agents have to schedule appointments, which is an inconvenience. Most will simply skip your home to show the house of someone else who is more cooperative. Most agents will call and give you at least a number of hours notice before showing your property. If you refuse to let them show it at that point, they will simply skip your house. Even if they come back another time, it will most likely be with different buyers and you may have simply lost a chance to sell your home.

Try Not to be Home

Home buyers will feel like intruders if you are home when they visit, and they may not be as receptive toward viewing your home. Visit the local coffee house, yogurt shop, or take the kids to the local park. If you absolutely cannot leave, try to remain in an out of the way area of the house and do not move from room to room. Don’t volunteer any information, but answer any queries the agent might ask.

Lighting

When you know someone is coming by to tour your home, turn on all the indoor and outdoor lights – even during the day. At night, a lit house offers a “homey” impression when viewed from the street. During daytime, turning on the lights prevents harsh shadows from sunlight and it brightens up any dim areas. Your house appears more homey and cheerful with the lights on.

Pet Control

If you own pets, make sure your listing agent puts a notice together with your listing in the multiple listing service. The last thing you would like is to have your pet running out the front door and getting lost. If you know somebody is coming, it might be best to take the pets with you while the home buyers tour your home. If you cannot do that, it is best to keep dogs in a penned area in the back yard. Try to keep indoor cats in a specific room when you expect visitors, and place a sign on the door. Most of the time, an indoor cat will hide when buyers come to view your property, but they may panic and try to escape.

The Kitchen Trash

Particularly if your kitchen trash can does not have a lid, make sure you empty it every time someone comes to look at your home – whether or not your trash can is kept under the kitchen sink. Bear in mind that you want to send a positive image about every aspect of your home. Kitchen trash will not send a positive message. You may consume more plastic bags than usual, however it will be worth it.

Keep the House Tidy

Not everybody makes his or her bed every day, however when selling a home it’s recommended that you simply develop the habit. Pick up papers, do not leave empty glasses in the family room, keep everything freshly dusted and vacuumed. Try your best to have it appear as if a model home – a home with furniture but nobody really lives there.

Another great article by West Springs Calgary Unique version for reprint here: How To Prepare Your House For Sale.