Kitchen Views' Blog

By Guest Blogger Jackie Waters

Fall in New England is a wonderful time to sell your home. The weather is comfortable and home buyers are interested in getting settled into a new home before the winter. If your home is on the market, today’s Kitchen Views’ blog is for you. Once you’ve found a realtor and learned what you can hope to get for a selling price, now it’s time to make your house someone else’s home. This means making repairs, mowing the lawn, and cleaning. It’s an ongoing process, but one that can help you get more out of your investment.

Preparation Is Crucial

Cleaning a home for real estate showings is not the same as your “everyday” clean. To improve your chances of having a spotless property on showing day, you have to prepare early. The HomeLight blog, which notes that you may add $2000 to the value of your home by deep cleaning, suggests starting with getting rid of clutter. Eliminate any unnecessary items in the home, including excess furniture, family photos, trinkets, and other personal belongings. This also gives you a head start on packing to move.

Now you want to turn your attention toward staging. Staging is simply the process of designing your space so that it looks most attractive. Look at online listings for homes in your area and see how other sellers have staged their houses to look spacious. Your furniture will be the focal point of each room. Make a point to clean it well or hire a specialist to remove stubborn stains. You can use sites, like Angi, and search, “upholstery cleaning near me,” to find a well-reviewed service provider. A special note here: get referrals from at least three companies and steer clear of those that use the same products, chemicals, and tools on all types of material.

To ensure that you can get your home ready at the drop of a hat, deep clean first. Deep clean the entire home, which should include shampooing the carpets, wiping down surfaces, and, if necessary, painting walls that are simply too dirty to clean up. National Lumber has paint experts to help you find the right paint and supplies for any project.

Gathering Your Supplies

Once your home is deep cleaned, it will be much easier to prepare when your realtor calls for a last-minute showing. Since staying ready for buyers requires a plan too, here are tips to help you get your home show-ready at a moment’s notice when the realtor calls. First, you’ll need supplies. At minimum, you’ll want to have:

• Microfiber cleaning cloth. These are great for cleaning wooden surfaces, such as cabinets, tables, and even windowsills. Buy microfiber cleaning cloths in different colors for different uses. You’ll also want lemon-scented cleaning spray.

• Swiffer mop. Often rated as one of the best mops for convenience, the Swiffer WetJet (or similar mop with cleaning solution attached) lets you sweep and mop at once, and you won’t need a bucket and water.

• Toilet brush. Toilets can get dingy quickly, and having a toilet brush next to the loo means that you can polish the porcelain in an instant. Keep your ugly toilet brush and plunger out of sight by stashing it in a vase or behind a decorative trash can. A quick sprinkle of Comet or other abrasive bathroom cleaner will get the job done faster.

• Other Cleaning Supplies. Paper towels, fabric freshener, trashbags, and window cleaner should all be readily available.

15 Minutes to Get Ready

Your realtor just called, and you only have a few minutes to get your house ready. Each of these steps will make it easier and more convenient to clean up when your realtor calls for a last-minute showing. Here are the most crucial jobs to tackle:

• Make the beds. You can make a bed in less than two minutes. Start by clearing the bed completely, leaving only the fitted sheet. Tuck the flat sheet under the corners. Ideally, you have a comforter and matching pillows that you can simply lay neatly on the bed.

• Fill the dishwasher. Dishes in the sink are a huge turn off for buyers. Move these to the dishwasher. Before you start a cycle, follow the Condé Nast Bon Appétit blog’s advice and load the dishwasher the right way. Sparkling clean dishes inside will show buyers that this appliance works beautifully.

• Sweep, mop, and vacuum. Run the vacuum cleaner, broom, and wet mop over the most important rooms of your home. This includes the entrance, living room, kitchen, bathrooms, and master bedroom.
  
• Take out the trash as you head out the door.

Now that you have a plan and the right supplies on hand, you can be confident of making potential homebuyers eager to imagine themselves living in this welcoming house.

Once you’re searching for your next home, keep in mind that Kitchen Views can help you create your dream kitchen if the property is right, but the kitchen needs refreshing.