7 Staging and Selling Tricks Busy Parents Can Use to Prep Their Homes
Staging your home
Selling your home soon? Well, you already know that you need to clean and stage your home in order to help it stand out to potential buyers, but what you may not know is how to accomplish this feat with kids in the house. Luckily, we’ve put together a few staging, cleaning and selling tips to help make getting a home show-ready simple, even for busy parents:
Check Out Other Local Home Listings
Before you begin putting work into staging your home, look at online listings in your area to see how other local listings are being marketed. This will give you some insight into what potential buyers may expect from your own listing and how you can help your home stand out from similarly priced homes. Looking at listing photos can also help you stage your own home for photos. The other benefit to comparing listings is that you can get an idea of average home prices. For example, the average Atlanta home price over the last month was $322K.
Research Experienced Local Realtors
Checking out the competition is always a smart move when trying to sell your home, but you may also want to look for a listing agent before you start any prep work. Listing agents are experts at marketing homes and creating impressive listing photos, and by consulting this professional, you can save yourself a lot of guesswork when it comes to staging your property.
Determine a Realistic Budget for Staging
If you work with a listing agent, he or she may be able to provide some basic decor and tips to get your home ready for listing photos and showings, but you may also need to pick up a few things on your own. Create a budget for any staging decor you need. If you have enough room in your budget, you can also save yourself some time by hiring a professional staging firm.
Declutter All Rooms and Storage Spaces
Once you’ve armed yourself with a few staging tips and resources, you want to start getting your home ready for photos and showings. Before you add any additional decor, spend some time decluttering each room in your home. This includes often-overlooked areas such as linen closets and your kids’ playrooms. Getting rid of clutter and organizing your home is one of the most effective ways to create more space and appeal.
Deep Clean Inside, Out and from Top to Bottom
With clutter organized and out of the picture, it’s time to get your home clean and sparkling. To ensure you don’t miss any nooks or crannies, use a spring cleaning checklist as you go along. Once you have your home tidy and clean, you’re going to want to keep it that way for any surprise showings or tours. For busy parents, this can be a major chore, but there are some simple steps you can take to avoid having to deep clean over and over again for showings. Examples include a regular cleaning schedule throughout the week, having your supplies easily accessible and enlisting the whole family to help,
Add Some Curb Appeal With Potted Plants
Just like above, you will also need to prep the outside of your home in order to make a good first impression. Once you have your yard and porch cleaned up, you should look for ways to add pops of appeal that will help attract more potential buyers. A simple and time-saving option is to add potted plants to your porch and front yard. Try to choose low-maintenance plants too, so you won’t have to spend too much time taking care of them.
Have an Escape Plan for Last-Minute Showings
Some showings may be scheduled far in advance, but sellers should always be prepared to get away from their homes when buyers want to look at their listing without much notice. You can use these quick tidying tips to get your home in shape fast, but you should also have a plan for getting your family out of the home during the showing. This includes any pets, so if you will be out of the house while it’s listed, consider hiring a pet sitter or opt to board your pet.
Getting a house in shape for photos, showings and open houses doesn’t have to feel overwhelming, even your family’s schedule is already packed. You can make things simple by following the tips above and working with an experienced local real estate agent.
Photo Credit: Pixabay
Kristin Louis is a former advertising copywriter and has two rambunctious boys, 10 and 7 years of age. She created parentingwithkris.com to share her experiences about the trials and tribulations of parenting.
