Preparing to show your home to potential buyers
First impressions are lasting impressions. You will want to make sure the buyers looking at your home are left with the best possible impression. Leslie K. can help you achieve that goal. Buyers often judge that if a home is neat and clean, the elements that they cannot see are also well maintained.
Exterior
- House in good repair
- House number easy to read
- Eaves troughs, down spouts and soffits in good repair
- Garage/car port clean and tidy
- Litter picked up
- Cracked or broken window panes replaced
- Lawns and hedges cut and trimmed, garden weeded and edged
- Walks shovelled and salted
- Boot tray inside front door
- Doorbell and door hardware in good repair
- Porch and foyer clean and tidy
Interior
- Chipped plaster and paint touched-up and replaced
- Doors and cupboards properly closed
- Leaky taps and toilets repaired
- Burned out light bulbs replaced
- Squeaky doors oiled
- Mirrors, fixtures, and taps cleaned and polished
- Seals around tubs and basins in good repair
- Floors cleaned, garbage containers empty
- Inside of closets and cupboards neat and tidy
- Appliances cleaned
- Countertops neat and polished
- All lights turned on
- Air conditioner turned on in warm weather
- Fresh air in house
- Fireplace lit in cooler weather (beware of safety and do not leave a burning fireplace unattended)
- Halls and stairs cleaned
- Drapes opened during daylight
- Carpets freshly vacuumed
- Fresh flowers in various rooms
- Jewelry and valuables locked safely away or taken with you
- Valuable property, such as objects of art, vases and figurines out of reach, out of sight, or locked away
- Pets absent, where possible, or contained during the showing, and litter boxes clean
If at all possible, do not stay home during a showing. Yes, you can show features of your home that they might otherwise miss, but the seller's presence will often mean that the buyers will not give your home a good look. They are uneasy, looking at your personal space with you there. Usually when buyers will go through a home with someone there in half the time they will give a vacant home that they feel comfortable looking around in. If there are features that you are afraid are being missed, mention them to Leslie K. and she will make sure that they are showcased for you. When there is a showing, go out for a walk, to the movies or whatever, just don't be in the home or sitting outside so they feel that they must hurry. A long time spent in your home is a good sign that they are interested in it.