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10 Steps to a Presentable Home
Let's face it. Your home may not be in the greatest shape to sell. Because you want to get top dollar, preparing your home for sale is key.
After you repaint the walls and replace that broken cabinet, you still need to make sure everything in your home is appealing to the Buyer's eye.
This list will supply you, the Seller, with ideas to organize your home in a way that will give the Buyer a feeling of cleanliness and order. This feeling enhances the Buyers view of your home, therefore increasing the likelihood of a sale.
1. Get Rid of Clutter
This statement is obviously easier said than done. If you have trouble getting rid of things you don't need, here are some guidelines to determine what you should consider clutter:
- It is damaged and you have no aspirations to repair it
- Using it is more bother than it's worth
- You never use it
- You don't like it
- You have outgrown it physically
- You have outgrown it mentally
- It is too nice to use
- It is the wrong size
- It is the wrong color
- It is uncomfortable
- It makes things more difficult
- It has no useful purpose
When you come across something that meets any of the above criteria, get rid of it immediately. If you hate the thought of throwing something out, consider donating it.
This may sound funny, but only keep the things you can identify. Otherwise, you end up with many junk drawers, and no one knows what the things inside are or what they do. If you don't know what it is, toss it.
Have a place for everything and always put it back where it belongs. If you can accomplish this you will eliminate tons of clutter.
Just getting rid of excess items in your home will help the starting process of getting your home organized and looking great.
2. A Clean Kitchen
Having a good-looking kitchen is very important when buyers come into your home. It is a very popular room in the house, so it is that much harder to keep it ship shape.
Dump or donate rarely used kitchen appliances. These may include: bread machines, pasta makers, popcorn poppers, juicers, etc.
Your counter top should be clean and clear. Limit the items on your countertops to as few as possible. When you know you are having a showing, store items like the toaster, coffeepot & a container of cooking utensils in cabinets nearby.
There should never be any dirty dishes in the sink. Buyers do not want to see your dishes from the night before or breakfast. Try to clean them and put them away in the morning.
If you pay your bills in the kitchen, keep these supplies in a closed portable container and stored out of the way when not in use.
Keep your refrigerator clutter free. Remove coupons, post-its, & all magnets.
Straighten up your pantry. Throw old items away and try to keep things off of any floor space.
Before you leave for work each morning, wipe all of the counters and make sure everything is in order. It is also a good idea to empty your trashcan often & keep it hidden away.
3. The Perfect Living Room
Never keep more than three items on your coffee table or it will become a clutter table. Try and make it look like a hotel sitting room. Maybe have just a magazine or a book, and a decorative piece.
Empty out any magazine racks. Only keep a few current magazines in the rack neatly next to a chair or sofa.
There should never be anything on the floor in the living room. Keep books on the bookshelf, toys in a toy chest, and jackets in the coat closet.
Disconnect any wires that are not being used. Any wires that are being used should run along baseboards and behind furniture to keep them unnoticeable.
Minimize furniture knick-knacks. Remove any items that don't really need to be there and dust the room often.
Take down excessive family photos. Buyers don't need to see hundreds of family photos. They are trying to imagine their family in your home.
Keep decorative pillows neatly placed and only keep one blanket, if any, neatly folded on the sofa.
Try to make sure that furniture is arranged in the most attractive and sensible manner. A little rearranging can go a long way.
4. Lovely Bedrooms
The bedroom is a place of rest and should be serene and comforting.
Start by making your bed right after you get up in the morning. This takes little time and will give the bedroom a fresh, organized appearance.
Try to use under-the-bed storage organizers to store any extra blankets and things you seldom use.
Keep your nightstands clear. There should only be a lamp and maybe one other item, like an alarm clock or a book. Store any other books and magazines in nearby drawers or on a bookcase.
Try to eliminate any clutter on dressers. Get rid of unnecessary knick-knacks and make sure all dresser tops have been wiped free of dust.
Make everyone in your family in charge of his or her own room. Before they leave in the morning, they should have their beds made and everything tidy.
5. An Organized Clothes Closet
Because you are about to move, you don't want to totally reorganize your closet, but you can definitely do some things to make it look tidy.
Go ahead and throw out anything that you really don't need in your closet. For example, old shoes, old shirts, tons of extra hangers, etc. Anything that you want to keep, but shouldn't be in your clothes closet, store these neatly in the garage or other storage closets.
If you don't have them already, get shoe racks for everyone in the family to keep in their closet. When you move, you will be one step further in organizing everyone's new rooms.
Hang all the articles of clothing facing the same direction for a nice, uniform look. Also, keep only three to four extra hangers in the closet; you don't need to have hundreds.
Any boxes, bags, and storage bins should be neatly placed on overhead storage racks and there should never be any clothes or shoes on the closet floor.
6. Beautiful Bathrooms
If you want to have a beautiful bathroom, you need to eliminate all the clutter. The only thing on your bathroom counter should be a soap dispenser and maybe a candle or decorative piece.
While your house is on the market, you should keep all toothbrushes, hairbrushes, make-up, and anything else in cabinets.
In order to ensure there is ample space in these cabinets, once again, go through everything and throw out what you really don't use.
Your bath and shower should only have some soap and the shampoo you use.
Always keep the toilet seat down and wipe off the counter tops when you leave in the morning.
7. The Garage
Since the garage is known for having the most storage, it is fine to have lots of storage items in here as long as it is stored as neatly as possible. This is where you will put everything that you don't have room for in your home.
The garage is not first on most buyers list, but is should still be presentable.
Make sure your bikes are stored on bike racks or neatly against a wall. All sports items should be neatly stored in one area and all tools should be in another.
Try to put any boxes and miscellaneous items in overhead storage and don't forget to get rid of anything you don't really need anymore.
8. A Home Office
Your home office desk should be clear. If you have trouble getting rid of all the paper, try these 4 D's of effective paper management:
- DO IT: These need immediate attention. Prioritize them and get them done today or tomorrow.
- DELEGATE IT: These papers can be given to someone else to take care of.
- DELAY IT: These items are those that have to be handled at a later date. Mark your calendar and keep these in a pending file.
- DUMP IT: These are ready to toss immediately.
9. Cleaning and Tidying
After everything has been organized in the most appealing way, you still need to get rid of the dirt that may be lurking in your home.
Don't do it all yourself. Give different tasks to each family member.
You should vacuum, dust, sweep, wipe all counters, and clean the bathtub, shower, and toilet. Also, empty all trashcans and wastebaskets often.
Have your family take their shoes off as soon as they walk in to prevent frequent floor & carpet cleaning.
Keep a pet hair roller handy if you have a cat or dog to minimize hair and lent.
10. Start Planning Your Big Move
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About the Author
Jenny Gautreaux is a Professional Organizer. You can contact her by calling toll free: 877-218-8477, via email at jenny@completeorganization.com, or by visiting her website
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