Before you sell, you must make sure your house
is appealing to buyers. This means decluttering! Follow these handy tips to
make the chore less of a burden.
Preparing
your home to sell means presenting a home which is attractive to buyers. If
you’re going to be living in the home while it’s on the market, and you’re
choosing not to stage it, you absolutely must go through a decluttering
process. It can feel overwhelming at first, but I assure you the process can be
broken down into manageable steps which will help your home sell potentially faster
and for a better price.
1. Take photos of what you’re up against. You might think things look pretty good until you
see your home with the unflinching eye of the camera. Photograph every room
from multiple angles and you’ll begin to see what buyers will see. Don’t forget
to snap the closets, laundry rooms, and garage.
2. Plan a room-by-room attack. This doesn’t have to be done in a day, a weekend, or even a week.
Depending on your timeline, tackle as much or as little as you can reasonably
manage before burning out. If you try to do too much at one time, you’re likely
to start making unfortunate compromises about what stays and what goes.
3. Use a checklist. When
you assess a room, list what needs to be done and then the order in
which it makes the most sense to do it. Visualizing the process will prevent
you from wasting time. For example: You may find that certain pieces of
furniture can go, and if you haven’t planned for help moving them out, you can
get stalled.
4. Be ruthless. You
have clothes you haven’t worn in years, piles in the garage you’ve moved
around, and shelves of unread or dispensable books. Start thinking of those
“perfectly good” somethings you’ve been hanging onto as anchors dragging down
your home’s appeal.
5. Stay motivated. Tell
yourself: Less is more. Remind yourself: Every box that goes to Goodwill is a
box you won’t have to lift, relocate, and unpack on moving day. This is an
opportunity to refresh your life!
6. Pile it up. Sort
things into “give away,” “throw away,” and “sell.” Some things can go to
friends, others can go to charity. Keep in mind the real market value of items
if you plan on selling them online (they’re probably worth less than you
think). Some you can unload curbside, other items may be destined for freecycle.org,
Craigslist.org, or a local junk pick-up service.
If
you need someone who can see your home with a buyer’s eyes, don’t hesitate to
invite a real estate agent over. They will be happy to provide you with a fresh perspective on your
decluttering mission. Get in touch with an agent today.
Comments
Post a Comment