As a homeowner, you need to be on your A-game when it comes to selling your home. Even after you’ve finished staging your home and getting professional real estate photos taken for your listings, there’s still work to be done in terms of impressing the buyer during home showings. Learn how to sell your home fast and avoid common mistakes with the home showing tips below!
Do Declutter & Clean Before Showings
Photo via @finding_lovely
Decluttering your home and keeping it clean while you’re in the process of selling your home is absolutely necessary, especially if you have home showings or open houses scheduled. The last thing you want is for potential buyers to view messy rooms and storage spaces. Clean counters, pick up clothes, put away children’s toys, vacuum the floors, remove storage items, and tackle anything else that needs to be cleaned so your house looks just as amazing for each home showing as it does in listings.
Don’t Be at Home When the Buyer Arrives
Photo via @em_henderson
This is one of the most important tips for showing your home. If you’re still at home when the buyer arrives, it’ll be awkward for the buyer. In order to truly evaluate your home and how they feel about it, it’s best if you’re not there during the home showing. Plan to leave your home about 20 minutes before the showing is scheduled just in case the real estate agent and the potential buyer show up early.
Do Turn On All of the Lights
Photo via @olga.design
While this isn’t a make-or-break scenario for selling a house, it’s good to turn on all of the lights prior to a home showing—particularly if the showing is in the evening. Potential buyers and realtors will most likely turn lights on and off as they tour the home, but having the lights on for them can make your home feel more welcoming and brighten up dimly-lit areas that make your home seem smaller.
Don’t Forget About Your Curb Appeal
Photo via @grandfatherhomes
Curb appeal is something you can’t forget about when staging a home to sell. Show off the good condition of your home from the outside by maintaining the lawn, sprucing up the landscaping, adding potted plants for some color, and wiping down the windows and doors. This will help you make a great first impression with potential buyers coming to home showings!
Do Let Natural Light In
Photo via @decoraalover
One of the best tips for selling your home is to open up blinds and curtains before home showings to let some natural light inside. Why is this important? Natural light brightens up your space and can make your home feel larger than it is. In addition, if you have great views around your home, allowing potential buyers to get an idea of what they’d see every day if they lived there can be a big draw!
Don’t Leave Your Pets at Home
Photo via @128.kvadrat
Trying to sell a home when you have pets can be challenging. It’s understandable that you’d want to avoid the hassle of moving them every time there’s a home showing, but don’t leave them at home—not even in a kennel. Potential buyers could have allergies, be afraid of animals, or your pet might simply be an unpleasant distraction while the buyer is in your home. The best way to sell your house is to make sure you have a plan to get your pets out of the house for all home showings.
Do Make Your Bed Every Day
Photo via @desertdecor
If you’re not already in the habit of making your bed every day, now is a good time to start. Sure, it adds another step into your morning routine, but you never know when someone will want to stop by and see your home. Don’t lose out on a potential offer because of a messy bedroom!
Don’t Cook Anything with a Strong Scent
Photo via @betweenyouandmedesigns
Have a home showing coming up? It’s a good idea to plan your meals around your showing schedule. While you might love the smell of your cooking, you don’t want to turn away potential buyers with overpowering scents of garlic, onion, fish, or other pungent foods. Scent might be temporary, but the impression it can leave on a buyer will be lasting, so try to avoid cooking anything with strong odors.
Do Set a Comfortable Temperature
Photo via @saltboxcollective
Though you may regularly set your thermostat higher in the summer and lower in the winter to save money, you’ll want to ditch that practice when showing your home for sale. You don’t want a potential buyer to feel uncomfortable while they’re walking through your home. Accept that your utility bills will likely go up a little bit during this stretch and make sure buyers feel nice and cozy.
Don’t Leave Doors Open
Photo via @jseveryday
While potential buyers will open everything from closet doors to cabinet doors while they’re walking through your home, don’t leave any doors open for a showing—with the exception of those leading into other rooms, of course. Keeping storage space doors closed can help rooms feel cleaner, less cluttered, and more organized, which can help you create a good impression during home showings.
Do Stage Your Home Again
Photo via @stofferphotographyinteriors
Even if you’ve already gone through the process of staging your home for showings, you most likely will still be living in your home, which means some of the staging that’s been implemented will get moved. Take the time before buyers visit to move everything back so that your home looks its best.
Don’t Turn Away Home Showings
Photo via @loveresideshere
It’s in your best interest to be flexible when selling your home. If your agent lets you know someone wants to see the house, even if it’s at an inconvenient time, make it work! Of course, there are instances when asking for another time is fine—such as when your children are asleep for the night—but you should generally be prepared to leave the home at any time whether it’s convenient or not.
Do Check the House Before You Leave
Photo via @studiomcgee
Before you leave for a home showing, walk through every room of your home and scan for anything that’s out of place. This includes basements, storage spaces, garages, and backyards, too. You don’t want something small to be the reason why a potential buyer doesn’t like your home.
Don’t Let Your Home Get Out of Hand
Photo via @christopherleefoto
Short-notice home showings are pretty common, so don’t let your house get too messy at any point while it’s on the market. A good tip for selling your house is to set up some daily routines so things like dishes and laundry don’t pile up on you. It might be more work on a daily basis, but it will save you a lot of stress when opportunities arise for you to show off your place!
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