How Can I Prepare My Home to Sell Quickly & Look Its Best

The 3 D’s are Essential: Declutter, De-personalize, and Deep Clean!

Declutter:

When potential buyers tour your home, they want to envision living there. Clutter can obscure that vision, making rooms feel smaller, disorganized, and less appealing. When buyers see a cluttered home, they may assume that the property hasn’t been maintained, giving them a negative impression of your home, even if it’s false. Make a home feel open, calm, and inviting can make it easier for buyers to see the home’s potential.

Taking the time to declutter makes your home more appealing to buyers and also sets you up for a smoother moving process. The act of decluttering helps you:

  1. Start to look at your house as a commodity for sale
  2. Manages the emotional bond with your house.
  3. Helps you focus on the new life you will create when you move.

Benefits of a Clutter Free Home:

  • A clutter free home is easier to photograph for listings, highlights the home’s best features, and creates a sense of spaciousness which can lead to a higher sales price.
  • A clutter-free home makes your space more attractive to buyers.
  • Makes it easier for you to maintain a “show ready” home.
  • Helps you emotionally separate from the house as you prepare to move.
  • Sets you up for a smoother moving process.

It’s not enough to simply declutter visible surfaces. Buyers inspect closets, linen cupboards, cabinets, and drawers. If your home has limited storage space, overstuffed cabinets only highlight this issue as a problem.

A HomeLight Report in 2024 found that decluttering can increase the sales price of home three to five percent. That can put $10,00 – $50,000 more into your pocket! That’s great motivation to tackle the clutter!

Realtors suggest that about 50% of your furnishings and possessions should be removed from the house to get it in show ready condition. This is a much easier goal to reach if you take time to eliminate what you no longer need or use, and organize like items together for packing. The silver lining for all this work? An easier pack up for your move when the house sells!

De-personalize:

Depersonalizing your space simply means removing distractions. Buyers don’t want to buy your home – they want to buy your house and then make it their home! You are selling your home, not your décor, family photographs, and personal treasures.
Buyers want a tidy well-organized house that is filled with light, space, and storage. Remember what made you fall in love with home and share that with potential buyers.

Deep Clean:

Now is not the time to skimp on cleaning. Regardless of how well you have maintained your home, as you prepare to sell, it’s critical to invest in a deep clean from top to bottom. Carpets, floors, windows, baseboards, appliances, cupboards, etc. all need attention. Once this cleaning is completed, it is easier to maintain your home in “show ready” condition. And best of all, a clean home shows you’ve cared for the home and reflects pride in ownership.

Check out our news feature on fox 21 news!

Some tips that may save you money while organizing