Information for House Sellers - Page 2
The Interior of the House
The exterior of the house gets the buyers through the front door and the interior of the house should
make them want to stay. Step 1 of preparing the interior of your house is easy as long as you
remember the three de-'s.
De-clutter De-personalize Detoxify
De-clutter
You want to make your home appear as large and spacious as possible. A buyer wants a house that
looks like it can hold all their stuff.
De-personalize
You want a buyer to imagine this house as their new home. The more it looks like your home the
less they may see it as theirs.
Detoxify
Clean, clean, and clean again. Potential buyers with allergies will be especially sensitive to dirty or
dusty houses. Clean the entire house but pay special attention to the kitchen and bathrooms.
Once the house is clean from top to bottom it is time for step 2 of preparing the interior of your
house. Play home inspector to see what can be fixed quickly and at low cost. Leaky faucets, burnt out
light bulbs, squeaky doors and stairs, sticking drawers, and loose cabinet knobs are all minor
repairs that may not seem like a big deal by themselves but they add up and can reduce the value of
your home in a buyer's eyes.
It is important to make sure buyers can see the interior of your house. Check windows for streaks.
Tie back drapes and move furniture or plants that may be blocking sunlight. Add a lamp to a dark
corner or replace lights with higher wattage bulbs.
The final step in preparing the interior of your house is to see how cleaning and the minor fixes
worked. If washing walls didn't help much then repaint or add new wallpaper. Consider new carpet
or tile in well traveled area. If faucets don't shine or still leak it may be time to replace them. Set a
budget and a time frame so you are not spending months and thousands of dollars that you may not
recoup in the sale. A good rule of thumb is to spend no more than 20% of your home's list price on
renovations. You want to make your house look attractive but also recoup the cost.
Take a final walk through. Invite others to walk through to see if you overlooked anything. Your
Realtor can offer advice on what will help make your house more attractive. Just remember not to
take offense. These people are trying to help you sell this house. Once you have cleaned and fixed
everything you can it is time to sell this house and move on.
Home Staging
Let's talk about staging a home since that is one of the new topics in real estate. Everything we have
reviewed so far (cleaning, de-cluttering, de-personalizing, repairing, etc.) is the beginning steps of
home staging or preparing your home for sale. From here you can spend a little time and money or
spend a lot of time and thousands of dollars to stage your home. You can do it yourself or hire a
professional to give you tips.
More on Home Staging
The exterior of the house gets the buyers through the front door and the interior of the house should
make them want to stay. Step 1 of preparing the interior of your house is easy as long as you
remember the three de-'s.
De-clutter De-personalize Detoxify
De-clutter
You want to make your home appear as large and spacious as possible. A buyer wants a house that
looks like it can hold all their stuff.
- Start by throwing away everything you can. The more you throw out the less you have to pack
and move. If you don't feel good about throwing something away because it may still have
some use to someone then sell it at a garage sale or donate it to a charity. One person's
trash is another person's treasure. - Box up items you do not need until after you move. If you are listing your house in the fall or
winter then pack up your summer clothes, free up space, and make your closet look bigger to
a buyer. Pack away pots, pans, extra plates and cups that you do not use regularly. Start
eating those canned goods that are packing your cabinets. You may be surprised how many
birthdays some of them have celebrated. Move the family heirlooms out of the attic and the
extra gardening tools out of the garage. Store it all at a relatives or in self storage. The more
you pack now the less you have to pack later. - Straighten up book cases, CD/DVD racks, cupboards, closets, shelves, counter tops, etc.
Everything should look neat and organized. The more you remove from your kitchen counters
the larger they look.
De-personalize
You want a buyer to imagine this house as their new home. The more it looks like your home the
less they may see it as theirs.
- Remove family photos, school awards, vacation souvenirs, collectibles, and anything else
that makes this house look like your home and not anyone's home. A few beany babies in the
kids room are OK since they are a common item but an antique doll collection should be
packed away. - Also pack away anything that could be viewed as offensive to others. This may be anything
from a beer can collection to heavy metal rock posters. Not everyone shares your sense of
humor, taste in music, political views, or moral or religious beliefs. Anything that could turn
them off can also turn them off your house. What you do in the privacy of your home is your
business but some people may not want the house after you're done.
Detoxify
Clean, clean, and clean again. Potential buyers with allergies will be especially sensitive to dirty or
dusty houses. Clean the entire house but pay special attention to the kitchen and bathrooms.
- Your bathrooms must look and smell clean. Tubs, showers, and sinks should be scrubbed
clean of rust stains, mold and mildew. Scrub down the walls, floor and ceiling. Clean vents
and light fixtures. Chrome should shine. Remember to clean under the sink and organize
vanities. Clean or replace grout. Your bathrooms should smell clean but not reek of
disinfectant. - Your kitchen should smell clean or like baked goods, not like onions or burnt food. Clean the
stove top and oven of any grease or baked on food. Wash the ceiling, walls, floors, counter
tops, cabinets, drapes, garbage disposal and anything else that could absorb odors. Keep
the kitchen trash can clean and empty whenever buyers are expected. All chrome, glass, and
ceramic should sparkle. Buyers should not be looking in the refrigerator unless it is staying
with the house but play it safe and throw out those moldy leftovers. - Look for water, mold, and mildew in the basement. If you have an unfinished basement and
it is damp consider painting the concrete walls with a special paint for waterproofing
concrete. Kill any mold and mildew first with a bleach and water mixture. If it is a finished
basement you may have to call in a professional. - As for the rest of the interior you should wash walls to remove any stains or fingerprints,
vacuum and shampoo carpets, clean and wax tile and hardwood floors, clean light fixtures
and light bulbs, vacuum heating and cooling vents, replace the furnace filter, clean fireplaces,
wash all windows and mirrors, clean drapes and blinds, polish metal fixtures, and dust every
surface. If you are a smoker or a pet owner you need to remove odors that you may not notice
anymore. Hopefully your extensive cleaning will get rid of the problem but over time they will
come back. Go outside for that cigarette and clean up after your pet immediately. There is a
product at www.urinegone.com that supposedly will get rid of urine odors instead of just
masking them. They give you a black light to see the stains in the dark. If nothing else you
can at least play Crime Scene Investigator.
Once the house is clean from top to bottom it is time for step 2 of preparing the interior of your
house. Play home inspector to see what can be fixed quickly and at low cost. Leaky faucets, burnt out
light bulbs, squeaky doors and stairs, sticking drawers, and loose cabinet knobs are all minor
repairs that may not seem like a big deal by themselves but they add up and can reduce the value of
your home in a buyer's eyes.
It is important to make sure buyers can see the interior of your house. Check windows for streaks.
Tie back drapes and move furniture or plants that may be blocking sunlight. Add a lamp to a dark
corner or replace lights with higher wattage bulbs.
The final step in preparing the interior of your house is to see how cleaning and the minor fixes
worked. If washing walls didn't help much then repaint or add new wallpaper. Consider new carpet
or tile in well traveled area. If faucets don't shine or still leak it may be time to replace them. Set a
budget and a time frame so you are not spending months and thousands of dollars that you may not
recoup in the sale. A good rule of thumb is to spend no more than 20% of your home's list price on
renovations. You want to make your house look attractive but also recoup the cost.
Take a final walk through. Invite others to walk through to see if you overlooked anything. Your
Realtor can offer advice on what will help make your house more attractive. Just remember not to
take offense. These people are trying to help you sell this house. Once you have cleaned and fixed
everything you can it is time to sell this house and move on.
Home Staging
Let's talk about staging a home since that is one of the new topics in real estate. Everything we have
reviewed so far (cleaning, de-cluttering, de-personalizing, repairing, etc.) is the beginning steps of
home staging or preparing your home for sale. From here you can spend a little time and money or
spend a lot of time and thousands of dollars to stage your home. You can do it yourself or hire a
professional to give you tips.
More on Home Staging
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SELLERS GUIDE
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Copyright© 2007-2008 Greater Peoria Homesa, IL
Copyright© 2007-2008 Greater Peoria Homesa, IL
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