Think back to when you were looking for your new home. Remember some of the things she was looking for and the feeling she had when she first walked into her house and KNEW she was the one? Go back to those days. View your home now as you would if you were the prospective buyer. Follow these tips below to help prepare your home for the market.

* Depersonalize your home – pack up all your personal photos. Buyers want to be able to see themselves living in that house and it’s hard for them to do that when their family photos are there for them to see. You don’t want buyers saying to themselves, “I wonder what the people who live here are like?” when they should be saying, “I see myself living here.”

* Declutter your home – We all accumulate a lot of items over the years and when it comes time to sell your home you need to remove as many as possible to allow the buyer to see your home and how much room there is for them. use. Remember this: If you haven’t used it in over a year, chances are you don’t need it and can live without it.

– Pack all your trinkets

– Remove most of the books from their bookcases and organize the few remaining books carefully.

– Clean your kitchen counters. Try to pack everything you don’t use on a daily basis so the buyer can see how much room there is to work with.

– Think of this as a head start to pack and prepare for your impending move.

* Organize your closets and cabinets – Buyers will definitely take a look inside your closets and cabinets. Take the time to organize and tidy up your bedroom and hallway closets. Think about packing away clothes and shoes you won’t be wearing and rearranging what’s left so it’s tidy and allows your closets to look as spacious as possible. Organize your kitchen cabinets to make them as neat as possible. Pack out all the pots and pans you won’t be using so that when the shopper takes a look, they’ll see enough room for their items.

*Remove or replace items you carry with you: If you want to keep your window treatments, specialty lamps, porch swing, heirloom chandelier, remove them! Now of course you will have to replace the lamps you remove with something. You can’t just leave the cables! Putty over any holes left where you removed the porch swing or flat screen TV that was attached to the wall.

* Consider a storage unit or pod: If you have a lot of decorative furniture or a bunch of “stuff” in your home, you may want to consider renting a storage unit or on-site storage pod. You only want a minimum amount of “necessary” furniture left in your home when buyers come in. Less furniture in your house gives the buyer the opportunity to visualize their own furniture there.

* Make minor repairs: Go through your home and fix anything that has been a minor inconvenience for you for a while, but was deemed too minor to be a big deal. For example:

– Fix cabinet doors or drawers that don’t close properly.

– Replace any light bulbs that have burned out.

– Fix faucets that constantly drip or won’t close completely.

– Patch any holes in the drywall, no matter how small.

– Replace or fix doorknobs that won’t close all the way.

– If you have paint colors that are ‘out of the ordinary’, consider painting with neutral colors to attract more buyers.

– Replace missing drawer handles/knobs.

* Deep clean your house: go through your house from top to bottom and clean until it shines! Think of it like your mother-in-law is coming to visit and you don’t want criticism!

– Vacuum your home every day – You never know when a showing will be scheduled and you want your home to look its best.

– Make sure you get all the cobwebs out.

– Clean your windows, inside and out, making sure there are no streaks left!

– Dust your lamps, shelves, ceiling fan and any remaining furniture.

– Consider renting a pressure washer and clean the sidewalk, hallway, patio, deck, and outside of the house.

– Make that bathroom sparkle! Clean up any dirty grout, re-caulk where necessary. Clean tub/shower drains. Pay special attention to the bathroom area!

– Make your house smell fresh! You don’t want any prospective buyers to remember your home because of its dampness or odors. Likewise, don’t go overboard with scented candles. You don’t want the buyer to think you’re trying to cover something up! Use a ‘fresh’ smelling deodorizer or odor eliminator.

* Re-evaluate your home – Once you’ve done all of these things, re-examine your home and see it through the eyes of a potential buyer. Choose details as you will when you go to buy your next house. Take a look at each room and make sure you haven’t missed a thing.

* Exterior Appeal: The potential buyer should be attracted to your home by what they see from the outside. If they drive up to your house and are put off by how it looks from the outside, how will you get them inside to see how big your house is?

– Be sure to keep the lawn well cared for. Don’t let grass get too tall, keep weeds pulled out and bushes trimmed.

– Water the plants you have, whether they are planted or in pots. You don’t want wilted or yellowed plants. Remove dead plants.

– Make sure the sidewalk or walkway is clean and clear. Leave nothing behind for the buyer to stumble upon.

– Consider replacing your house number if it is rusted, worn or discolored.

– Make sure your home’s trim is not discolored or chipped. If so, consider painting and refreshing.

By putting these tips into practice, you’ll be sure to impress potential buyers.