Showing your Home!
You’ve selected the perfect Realtor, you’ve put your home on the market and now you are ready for the masses to come and flood your home and then hopefully make an offer. It’s that time…to show your house.
Showing your home is an essential element to selling your home. You want viewers to come in and “oooh” and “awww” after they cross the threshold? Well, you have to captivate their eyes. There is nothing worse than looking at a home and having the feeling that it is dirty or smells like it hasn’t been lived in for months.
Air it out. There is nothing better than the smell of fresh cut grass, flowers and all things Spring. It is your luck, because spring is here. Air our that house, open the windows and doors and let the fresh air in a day or two before your showing and then a couple of hours before your showing.
Death to dust. Dust is another downer when looking at a home. Many people are allergic to dust and animal dander. If you have a cat or dog that came in your home a lot, be sure to thoroughly vacuum the house and then vacuum it again. But, before you pull that vacuum out, grab a pledge wipe or go old school with a soft rag and dust spray. Dust off those top bookshelves, and everything else. If you are showing your home with wooden pieces of furniture, dust those off as well. Then run that vacuum. If you vacuum and then dust, you have just ruined your vacuuming job.
Empty vs. Full. Perhaps you have moved out and don’t know how much to leave in your house. Leave enough pieces to make the house feel furnished, but also know that interested buyers will be able to visualize the home with their furniture in the house, not your furniture. However, too little just makes a home feel like four bare walls with a sense of emptiness.
Outside is important, too. Be sure that your lawn is cut, your porches are swept and the windows sparkle. The first thing that a potential buyer will see is the outside of your home.
Printed content. Usually your Realtor will have printed content about your home, but if you are doing this solo, be sure that you have printed content about your home for the viewers. It can be artistic or simple, but it should include the price, year built, address, contact info, sq. foot, room dimensions, etc;
