You've cleaned, decluttered, and spruced-up your home. It's finally listed! Here are a few things you can do to make sure that you are always ready to make a great impression on potential buyers.
Stay showing-ready The cleaning and decluttering can't stop while your house is on the market. A buyer doesn't care that your house was clean last week. Stay on top of keeping the house generally tidy with dishes out of the sink, bathrooms clean, no dust bunnies in the corners, and things like clothes and toys out of the floor. It’s a lot of work, but it will get your house sold. Never turn down a showing If someone wants to view your house, you need to accommodate them, even if it inconveniences you. On that same note, make as many times available for potential buyers as possible. Leave the lights on Buyers decide within 30 seconds whether they like a house or not. You want their first impression of the inside of your house to be a good one. One way to ensure that is to leave the lights on - and we mean ALL of the lights. A bright and cheery house is a more sellable house. Crank the AC Make sure that the temperature in your home is comfortable and remember that cooler is always better. A stuffy home can give the impression that something is wrong with your HVAC unit or that the home doesn't have good air-flow. Conceal the critters Everyone is not a dog- or cat-lover. Buyers don’t want to walk in your home to hear a barking dog, smell the litter box, or have tufts of pet hair stuck to their clothes. It will give buyers the impression that your house is not clean. If you’re planning an open house, take the pets with you or send them to pet day care for the day. Make yourself scarce You should be long gone before a showing appointment. Buyers are excited and could show up early. If possible, be gone at least 20 minutes before a showing and never arrive home until you are certain that the showing is over and the potential buyers are gone. If you drive by and people are still there, keep driving. (It's a great sign if the showing runs long!)