It's the Final Countdown to Showing Your Home

Well, it's the Final Cleaning Countdown, that is. You're getting ready to sell your house you're probably wondering how to prepare for your Realtor to show the home to potential buyers?

First things first—you need to vacuum and clear out the day-to-day clutter that piles up in between showings. It is reasonable to ask for 24 hours’ notice—though sometimes being flexible is what gets the job done. Here's a countdown to the showing that you can follow to ensure that your house buyer-ready:

1. 24 hours prior: Clean up debris in your yard, make sure trash cans are put away, clear out clutter from mail piling up or toys lying about.
2. 10 hour prior: Empty all trash cans in the house and take out the trash. Clean any pet droppings from your yard. Clean windows and door frames from fingerprints or grime.
3. 5 hours prior: Conduct bathroom and kitchen cleanup. Clean sinks, counter tops, toilets, tubs and showers to a sparkle. Replace wet towels with fresh, fluffy ones.
4. 2 hour prior: Clean up dirty dishes in the sink and squeeze a little lemon juice into the drain to remove the smell of last night's dinner. Vacuum or wash floors.
5. 1 hour prior: Let go of stress; realize that your home does not need to be absolutely picture-perfect, especially if a buyer requests a short-notice showing. It just needs to be clean-looking, uncluttered, and free of odors. Don't let this stress you out to the point where showing become a huge, frenzied effort. Delegate tasks, do your best, and relax.

Getting your house well-prepared for potential buyers helps your Realtor provide the best possible showing experience for buyers and could increase your chances of getting an offer on your home.  Create a must-do checklist and follow the countdown schedule unless it is a short-notice showing. Then just do the last 3 points on the list–or the best you can.

Don't have your home on the market yet?  Click here to learn about getting a complimentary Competitive Market Analysis from one of our great Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Verani Realty agents.