It’s looking more and more like spring and that means warmer weather, flowers , leaves and SALES !!

Ok, all you sellers out there – get those houses ready.  Pick up all those sticks laying all over your yard, put a few pots of pansys on the front porch.  Yes, I know, no one uses the front door, but dress it up anyway, in fact paint it while you’re at it.  Do your spring-cleaning now and push it over the top.  Actually wash the windows and freshen up paint – inside and out!  A person can get so used to their environment that they don’t actually see it for what it is.  Are the areas around the doorknobs of your cabinets and doors dirty, worn, in need of some attention!?!  Have you looked inside your closets lately??  Whoa!  Are those shelves in there or is everything just stacked on top of each other?

Ever look inside the oven?  Yes, I hate cleaning that too but now that I have a self-cleaning one – I don’t have too!  Do it!  Can you see your walls or are they covered with photos of your kids from 20 years ago?  Yes, we all love our family, but your buyers don’t.  They need to picture themselves in your house, not you and your years and years of memories.

Pet friendly?  Have a trusted, frank and honest  friend (or even better – your Realtor®) let you know if there is an ever so slight smell – a HUGE turnoff for buyers and a real deal killer !  Have a cat box?  Clean it out – every day – even twice a day (your cat will thank you) and please – before a showing!  Pet hair? – vacuum, dust, clean!

Bedrooms – make the beds, pick up the dirty clothes ( and clean clothes too).  Clear off tops of everything, declutter, declutter, declutter.  Ok, just start packing.  You’re going to move right?  There are a lot of  homes on the market right now and if you want to be one of the ones that sell – make yourself not only the best buy on your block but the cleanest, prettiest and best maintained that there is.

Whew – sure glad I’m not selling my house!

Kathy Sollien, Realtor®