8. Clean, Clean, Clean

This is a very useful selling tactic, so you really can’t get away with not doing it. Keep those carpets freshly vacuumed, counters wiped down, kitchen cleaned top to bottom (the kitchen is the most important room to many buyers), bathroom completely spic and span (bathroom is often the second most important room to many buyers) and everything dusted. A few other tips – clean the bugs out of the light fixtures – they are a big “YUCK!” Give any woodwork a once-over with some furniture polish and clean those window sills and panes. Make sure you keep all dishes washed and off the counter – dirty dishes are a big turn off. Also, make sure all your closets are organized and neat – buyers will be looking through them to get an idea of storage space – be prepared!

9. Windows and Doors

Surprisingly, this is fairly high on a buyer’s annoyance factor. A sticky or noisy door will make any buyer stop a second and go “hmmm”. The good news is that this is an easy fix – a can of WD-40 takes care of the creaks and for those sticky doors, buy a bar of paraffin wax (found in the canning area of your grocery store) and rub it a bit on the area of the door that looks worn. For windows, make sure they open easily – start by cleaning the tracks – often you will find lots of dirt and grime that prevent the window from opening cleanly. If this doesn’t do the trick, try some WD-40 or a little paraffin wax here too.

10. Prepare the Home for Showing

Our goal here is to make the home as bright and “homey” as possible. There are a few selling tricks that you can use that will really establish this environment. - Bake something – cookies are a good option – toll house is fine – just don’t burn them. We’re going for the aromas here. Freshly baked cookie smell is like expensive perfume to home buyers. - Offer cookies (works out well with the above), or in the summer, cold bottled water. Buyers like these personal touches and they will subconsciously raise their opinions of your home. - Open all the curtains and turn on all the lights – you want your home to feel breezy, bright and open. Change any bulbs that are out. If it’s winter and you have one, light the fireplace. - Set the table as if you were going to have a nice meal with company. You want to sell your dining room as an entertaining space and place settings help build this impression. - Turn on some light music – nothing offensive – smooth jazz is a good option. Keep the volume low – in the background. - This one is vital: remove any small valuables from sight. I’d like to think that all home buyers are always on their best behaviors, but sometimes this isn’t the case – better to be safe than sorry. - The most important thing you can remove from your home to help it sell is yourselves. Take your family out for the day or out for a few hours during the open house/showing. Usually, when a homeowner is present for an open house, it never goes as well – the buyers always feel like they’re imposing, and that’s not what you want. You want them to spend time in your home.

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