Cynthia Grace, Realtor®

Prepare Your House For Showing

First Impressions

House exterior in good repair
House number easy to see
Eaves, troughs, downspouts and soffits clean, painted and in good repair
New floor mat at entry.
Install New Mail box and post if aged.
Repaint exterior if needed. If brick, make sure trim is painted.
Pressure wash the home and driveway.
Keep front porch clean and newspapers and flyers picked up.
Replace missing shingles, as needed.
Cracked or broken window panes replaced.
Clean windows until they shine - scrape if necessary.
Clean shutters, or replace if necessary.
Repair any broken boards on fence.
Remove: old rusted swing set, old basketball goals, rusted lawn furniture, old rusted grill, dead trees or shrubs, Old flowers from the past season, leaves, dead branches, weeds and debris.
Garbage cans need to be stored neatly in the garage or designated area.
Edge the lawn and use quick greening fertilizer.
Add mulch to flower beds and shrubs.
Remove children's toys and bikes.
Remove leaves, pine needles from lawn and roof.
Cut lawns, shrubs and plant fresh growing colorful flowers.
Paint, stain or varnish front door and polish brass. Install brass kick plate.
Adjust all doors, including closets and windows so they can be opened and closed.

General

Remove junk from the attic, basement, closets and tool shed, and have a successful garage sale. Contribute whatever remains to the next garbage pickup.
Organize the closets.
Water all dying plants or get rid of them.
Dust, clean and scrub everything - that means EVERYTHING - from attic to basement.
Replace broken tiles on walls or floors and repaste loose or dangling wall paper.
Secure all banisters and handrails.
Remove posters and adhesive from walls and doors.
Remove excess extension cords and exposed wires to lamps and fixtures.

The Foyer

The Foyer supports the desire to look further. Make sure it is clean, no cluttered furniture, light fixtures sparkles, floors are spotless and the general area is inviting.
A small entrance table with fresh cut flowers adds a nice touch.

Guest Closet

50% of hanging clothing should be taken out. No boxes or clutter. Lots of room.
"Simple Solution" added for fresh smell.

Family-Living-Great Room

Put away all collections, (figurines, and fragile items)
Store all Political, Religious, Sports, Mementos, as well as any business, sports, personal awards, (warning - failure to do this will result in the potential buyer spending to much of their time looking at the awards etc., or being offended by your political, religious, or sports affiliations, resulting in less time looking at the house as it would fit their lifestyle.
No Animal fur rugs.
No Family Photos.
Remove all crowded furniture. Open the room up, show lots of space - with an even flow pattern.
Clean fireplace.
Clean light fixtures.

Dining Room

Take extra leaf out of table.
Put nice white table cloth on table.
Nice arrangement in center of table.
Clean chandelier and light fixtures. The globes from the chandelier can be put in dish washer.

The Kitchen

Clean the kitchen from top to bottom.
Clean the oven and the stove until they shine. Remove every bit of grease from the inside of the oven or ovens and burner trays.
Clean the Refrigerator.
Remove all refrigerator magnets and items from the front and the sides. This includes all children pictures from school.
Put all small appliances under the cabinets every day.
Put away all items from the countertops. Women want to see space, lots of space, and if its not there they'll go somewhere else.
Clean the inside of the dishwasher. Run the dishwasher with powdered instant lemonade such as Countrytime in the soap dishes. NO Dishes. The citric acid works wonders!
Clean out drawers to eliminate fears of too little space.
Inside of cupboards and cabinets clean and neat.
Lemon run through your garbage disposal will give it a fresh clean smell.
Remove all trash daily.
Remove pet dishes, toys and little boxes from kitchen.
Have dated appliances re-finished. (Gold, brown, avocado green).
For an eat-in kitchen, take out extra leaf in table. Nice table cloth. Center piece arrangement.
Open curtains and let lots of light in.

Hallway

Many people think the hallway is the place to hang all family pictures, when you're living there it is. When you're selling it's not. Remove all pictures, putty all holes and repaint the entire hall way.
If you have a disappearing staircase in the hall, make sure it is air tight, and it operates smoothly. All ladder rungs are secure and the light works in the attic.

Bathrooms

Mirrors, fixtures and taps cleaned and polished
Leaky taps and toilets repaired
Seals around tubs and basins in good repair
Floors cleaned, garbage containers emptied
Inside of cupboards and cabinets clean and neat
Towels clean and matching
Clutter and personal toiletries put away.
If you cannot get rid of stains in toilet bowl, buy a new one. This applies to all bathrooms, including the one in the basement that is seldom used.
Throw away the torn shower curtain and put up a new one.
Clean ceramic tile and grout. (paint and supply stores have a brush-on grout cleaner).
Repair loose or cracked tile.
Down play dated ceramic tile color with white towels and window treatments, plus scatter rugs.
Clean tub/shower thoroughly and leave the shower curtain open, to add more depth.
Shine all fixtures, and remove stain from sinks.
Replace rusted sinks or if small area cover with touch up.
Glue down all wallpaper where loose.
Repair or replace defective exhaust fans.

Bedrooms

New bedspreads if possible will make the room look great and can be taken with you when you move.
Make beds every day.
Headboards free and clean of clutter.
All Children's toys put away.
Remove bulky furniture, room will appear larger.
Remove dark or outdated wallpaper. Paint if needed with light neutral color.
Clean out closets (50% rule) make them appear as if there is plenty of room to spare.
Install closet organizers and keep clothes neat.
Organize shoes.

Garage / Basement

Remove stains from garage floors.
Make garage and basement look functional and well organized.
Clean all windows/cobwebs in corners etc.
Do not store extra boxes in garage (consider renting a storage unit).
Spray with "simple solution" to give a fresh smell.

Screened Porch

Make sure its clean and swept.
All screen holes are repaired or screen replaced.
Cobwebs removed and cleaned.
Furniture is clean and orderly- not excessive.
If there is a ceiling fan clean it.
Make sure door operates properly.

Deck

Clean and nail down any loose boards.
Consider staining with sealer stain.
All rails are to be secure.
Make sure all steps are tight.

Important Money Saving Ideas

Put higher wattage light bulbs everywhere. Extra light can make a difference.
Warning!! Warning!! Under no circumstances be home for showings. The buyer will spend more time looking if the seller is not there. Go to the neighbors, walk around the block. If you are there the buyer will not talk freely and the agent will not know their true thoughts. If by chance you do run into the buyer, do not volunteer information about the home. Many times what you consider an advantage to you is a disadvantage to the buyer.
Open all curtains, drapes, blinds, etc. during the day.
For every showing, turn on all the lights before you leave.
If anything is broken you must, by law, disclose, better still FIX IT.
If there are items attached which will not go with the house, remove them at once and replace before anyone shows your house.
Sprinkle a few drops of vanilla extract on a warm stove burner, or on a lamp bulb before turning it on, or a few drops of vanilla in a small pan of water and put in a warm oven.
Vacuum every morning.
Please refrain from smoking in the house, a much larger percentage of buyer will not look at a house if it smells of smoke.
Refrain from the use of potpourri, many people are allergic to the odors.
Make sure all wall switches "do something". Lights, radio, etc. comes on when switched on.
ODORS - If you have pets, there will be an odor. A great product called "Simple Solution" is available at pet stores. This eliminates all type of organic odors. Consider boarding pets during the selling hours. 45% of the public is either highly allergic to or very afraid of any animal.