Preparing Your Home

Remember…the cost of properly preparing your home for sale, will cost you time, sweat and money…but it will still be less than that first price reduction.

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When staging and preparing your home, consider the following:

• Who is the target market?
• What is the price point and look expected by the buyer?
• What colours and furniture coordination do the various rooms require?

Smells, paint colours, cleanliness and clutter are the first to be noticed.

Smells: the most offensive are body odor, pet odor (kitty litter), cooking smells (fish and curry) and cigarette odor

Paint Colours: Paint walls in neutral tones, as these tones create a clean, comfortable feel

Cleanliness: Nothing sells, like a CLEAN house…sweat equity is the best way to ensure that buyers are not turned off by the grease on the hood fan, the dust on the baseboards or the ring around the bathtub

Clutter: The single MOST important thing you can do is get rid of the clutter

• Anything of that is personal that has names on it (mail, diplomas, awards)
• All collections
• All seasonal or holiday items
• Extra sets of anything (less is more…appealing)
• Evidence of dogs and cats

Curb Appeal:

• Grass cut
• Weeding complete
• Garbage away and removed
• Snow shoveled
• Little repairs completed
• Christmas lights off (unless it’s the season)
• Front door – clean and freshly painted
• Front step-swept and glass cleaned
• Wash windows
• Pressure wash driveway and sidewalk
• Add some plants and a splash of colour at the front door

Checklist for every room:

• Corners (scratches, dents, chipped paint)
• Wall surfaces ( holes, dents, discoloration, stains)
• Trim ( gaps, cracks, nail holes)
• Door (loose door knob, scratches)
• Flooring (stains, dents, ripped, frayed)
• Smells
• Colours
• Clutter
• Clean (A sparkling house is a sold house)
• Picturer/mirros hung straight

Click here to download – Preparing your Home

Furniture:

• Remove any extra furniture, too much furniture makes a room look small
• Be sure to place furniture to create flow, it will open a room up and make it seem larger
• Position furniture into furniture groupings, away from the walls
• Create conversational groupings

Floors:

• Wash all the floors from corner to corner
• Steam clean the carpets
• Re-finish your wooden floors, or add some area rugs

Main Entrance:

• Fresh paint
• Clean rug
• Footwear neatly placed in the closet
• Fresh scent

Kitchen:

• Kitchens are one of the most looked at areas of a home, as we spend much of our time in the kitchen
• Clean all appliances (From the oven to scrubbing the cooktop, ensuring the fridge is clean and not over stuffed)
• Wipe the interior of all cabinets with warm soapy water
• Ensure the cabinets are wiped and free of grease and dust
• Countertops should be free of clutter and only have one or two properly placed items that add to the décor

Bathroom:

• Clean all the elements of the bathroom ( including behind the toilet, along the baseboards, edges of the shower and plumbing fixtures, fan, lighting and cabinets)
• Remove all the clutter from the countertops and the interior of cabinets (old medicine, bottles of shampoo, dirty brushes etc)
• A new shower curtain and clean, fresh, coordinating towels
• Even a new bar of soap in a clean soap dish

Click here to download – Preparing your Home

Closets:

• Buyers DO look in closets…to find out more about the seller and to see the space
• Declutter closets and box up and store anything the is not needed
• Organize those shoes, sweaters, t’shirts and jeans
• Fold the towels and place them neatly in the linen closet
• Bedding should be neatly folded and placed in an organized manner
• Check for smells, such as hockey equipment, runners
• Use baskets to organize closets and shelves
• Aim to have 20-30% space in your closet to give off the impression of spaciousness
• Ensure mail, bills and diplomas are removed
• All unnecessary computer equipment, boxes, binders and extra cords are all packed away
• Avoid bulletin boards, calendars, family pictures and any personal or private information
• Line and organize books on book shelves by height and ensure spines are all lined up
• Use some plants and few placed accessories and or art to create a comfortable feeling
• Ensure bedrooms are free from personal items and clutter
• Clean, coordinate lines and bedding and a blanket folded at the foot of the bed
• Use tasteful artwork to create a comfortable and inviting space

Office/Den:

• Ensure mail, bills and diplomas are removed
• All unnecessary computer equipment, boxes, binders and extra cords are all packed away
• Avoid bulletin boards, calendars, family pictures and any personal or private information
• Line and organize books on book shelves by height and ensure spines are all lined up
• Use some plants and few placed accessories and or art to create a comfortable feeling

Bedrooms:

• Ensure bedrooms are free from personal items and clutter
• Clean, coordinate lines and bedding and a blanket folded at the foot of the bed
• Use tasteful artwork to create a comfortable and inviting space

Room Transformations:

• Each room should have a clearly defined purpose…office, guest room, toy room…anything but a junk room
• If you have a room that serves only to gather junk, remove the junk and transform that into a space that has a purpose
• Add a table and chair, some baskets and cozy pictures and you have a craft room
• Lay down a mat, drape fabric on the walls, toss down some pillows and you have a meditation or yoga space
• Garage storage is a key selling feature, consider ceiling hung cabinets, neat shelving and properly boxed totes and storage items to create space and a sense of organization
• Hang bikes, organize hockey equipment
• Set of an organized recycling space and take all those empty bottles and milk jugs to the bottle depot
• Maximize the space you have so people can see that there is space for the car
• Clean oil spills (use coca cola) sweep, pressure wash, make sure the lights work
• Open curtains, blinds and remove furniture that blocks the natural light
• Trim or remove trees and shrubs that could block the light and make the house feel dark
• Don’t leave the wall paper half off or the door hanging without the handle, take the time now to finish those dreaded projects and add extra money in your wallet

Garage:

• Garage storage is a key selling feature, consider ceiling hung cabinets, neat shelving and properly boxed totes and storage items to create space and a sense of organization
• Hang bikes, organize hockey equipment
• Set of an organized recycling space and take all those empty bottles and milk jugs to the bottle depot
• Maximize the space you have so people can see that there is space for the car
• Clean oil spills (use coca cola) sweep, pressure wash, make sure the lights work

Let the sunshine in:

• Open curtains, blinds and remove furniture that blocks the natural light
• Trim or remove trees and shrubs that could block the light and make the house feel dark

Finish those home improvement projects:

• Don’t leave the wall paper half off or the door hanging without the handle, take the time now to finish those dreaded projects and add extra money in your wallet