Selling your home is a significant financial and emotional decision. Once you’ve decided it’s the right time for you to sell, the next crucial step is preparation. To attract the most buyers and get the best possible offer, your home needs to look its absolute best. This process involves more than just a quick tidying-up; it’s about strategically transforming your living space into a product that buyers can envision as their own.
We’ve put together 10 essential steps to help you prepare your home for a successful sale, starting from the most important mental shift to the final touches that create winning curb appeal.
10 STEPS TO PREPARE YOUR HOME
- Disassociate Yourself With Your Home
- De-Personalize
- De-Clutter
- Rearrange Bedroom Closets and Kitchen Cabinets
- Rent a Storage Unit
- Remove/Replace Favorite Items.
- Make Minor Repairs
- Make the House Sparkle
- Scrutinize
- Check Curb Appeal
DISASSOCIATE YOURSELF WITH YOUR HOME
- Say to yourself, “This is not my home; it is a house a product to be sold like a car.”
- Make the mental decision to “let go” of your emotions and focus on the fact that soon this house will no longer be yours.
- Picture yourself handing over the keys and envelopes containing appliance warranties to the new owners!
- Say goodbye to every room.
- Don’t look backwards — look toward the future.
De-Personalize
Pack up those personal photographs and family heirlooms. Buyers can’t see past personal artifacts, and you don’t want them to be distracted. You want buyers to imagine their own photos on the walls, and they can’t do that if yours are there! You don’t want to make any buyer ask, “I wonder what kind of people live in this home?” You want buyers to say, “I can see myself living here.”
De-Clutter
- People collect an amazing quantity of junk. Consider this: if you haven’t used it in over a year, you probably don’t need it. If you don’t need it, why not donate it or throw it away? Less Stuff = Less Packing
- Neatly display books in bookcases.
- Pack up those knick-knacks.
- Clean off everything on the kitchen counters.
- Put essential items used daily in a small box that can be stored in a closet when not in use.
- Think of this process as a head-start on the packing you will eventually need to do anyway.
REARRANGE BEDROOM CLOSETS AND KITCHEN CABINETS
Buyers love to snoop and will open closet and cabinet doors. Think of the message it sends if items fall out! Now, imagine what a buyer believes about you if they see everything organized. It says you probably take good care of the rest of the house as well.
For example…
- Organize your pantry.
- Neatly stack dishes.
- Turn coffee cup handles facing the same way.
- Hang shirts together, buttoned and facing the same direction. (Color coordinate if possible.)
- Line up shoes.
RENT A STORAGE UNIT
Almost every home shows better with less furniture. Remove pieces of furniture that block or hamper paths and walkways, and put them in storage. If some of your bookcases are now empty, store them. Remove extra leaves from your dining room table to make the room appear larger. Leave just enough furniture in each room to showcase the room’s purpose and plenty of room to move around. You don’t want buyers scratching their heads and saying, “What is this room used for?”
Remove/Replace Favorite Items
If you want to take window coverings, built-in appliances or fixtures with you, remove them now. If the chandelier in the dining room once belonged to your great-grandmother, take it down. If a buyer never sees it, they won’t want it. Once you tell a buyer they can’t have an item, they will covet it, and it could blow your deal. Pack those items and replace them, if necessary.
MAKE MINOR REPAIRS
- Having your home inspected may save you thousands of dollars by fixing problems that would make your home less valuable to a buyer and keep them from wanting to renegotiate the price again during the sale process.
- Replace cracked floor or counter tiles.
- Patch holes in walls.
- Fix leaky faucets.
- Fix doors that don’t close properly and kitchen drawers that jam.
- Consider painting your walls neutral colors, especially if you have grown accustomed to purple or pink walls.
- (Don’t give buyers any reason to remember your home as “the house with the orange bathroom.”)
- Replace burned-out light bulbs.
- If you’ve considered replacing a worn bedspread, do so now!
MAKE THE HOUSE SPARKLE!
- Wash windows inside and out.
- Rent a pressure washer and spray down sidewalks and exterior.
- Clean out cobwebs.
- Re-caulk tubs, showers and sinks.
- Polish chrome faucets and mirrors.
- Clean out the refrigerator.
- Vacuum daily.
- Wax floors.
- Dust furniture, ceiling fan blades and light fixtures.
- Bleach dingy grout.
- Replace worn rugs.
- Hang up fresh towels.
- Clean and air out any areas with a musty smell or pet odor. The air should smell clean and fresh and buyers with allergies may not buy a home if they smell animals.
Scrutinize
- Go outside and open your front door. Stand there. Do you want to go inside? Does the house welcome you?
- Linger in the doorway of every single room and imagine how your house will look to a buyer.
- Examine carefully how furniture is arranged and move pieces around until it makes sense.
- Make sure window coverings hang level.
- Tune in to the room’s statement and its emotional pull. Does it have impact and pizzazz?
- Does it look like nobody lives in this house? You’re almost finished.
CHECK CURB APPEAL
If a buyer won’t get out of her agent’s car because she doesn’t like the exterior of your home, you’ll never get her inside. Keep the sidewalks cleared. Mow the lawn. Paint faded window trim.
- Plant yellow flowers or group flower pots together. Yellow evokes a buying emotion. Marigolds are inexpensive.
- Trim your bushes.
- Make sure visitors can clearly read your house number.
Your Home is Ready For The Market!
Contact me today to schedule a no obligation Walkthrough and we can make a plan to prepare your home.
Tim McEwen
Tim McEwen-Real Estate Advisor
I am your dedicated Real Estate Advisor and Broker, a full-time professional since 2004. My mission is to guide clients toward successful homeownership and help them build long-term wealth through smart real estate decisions. I approach every transaction with the analytical rigor of a financial advisor, leveraging my background in Finance and Economics to provide expert market insights.
My roots run deep in this community. Having grown up in Renton and attended Kentridge High School, I have a personal, lifelong understanding of the neighborhoods I serve. I currently live and raise my family in Maple Valley, ensuring my advice is always informed by local values and future planning.
Our Mission
- Pillar 1: Our Client Promise
- We believe the process of buying and selling should be simple, easy to understand, and centered on your goals.
- We strive to educate and empower our clients to make confident decisions.
- We aim to create lasting, respectful partnerships for life.
- Pillar 2: Our Commitment
- We commit to never stop learning and growing in knowledge and expertise.
- We desire to serve others through real estate and community contribution.
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