While it’s no secret that it’s in a home-seller’s best interest to clean his or her house before showing it to potential buyers, some important details are easy to overlook.
Clutter may hide in the background for people who live in the house, but potential buyers see an eyesore and a distraction. Clutter makes it hard for buyers to see the house for what it really is and imagine themselves in the space, especially when photos and memorabilia from the previous owners remain.
Lindsey Riemenschneider, stager at C&B Staging and Redesign, says clutter kills when it comes to the impressions of the potential buyer.
“If you have clutter in your rooms, buyers can’t see past that, and they’re most likely going to move on to the next house,” Riemenschneider says.
It helps to focus more time and energy on the areas that will be most important to potential buyers, such as the living room, dining room, kitchen and bathrooms. A great method is to clean each space top to bottom and left to right so that no surface is overlooked.
Mold and mildew stains can be small but devastating to the potential buyer. Use liquid household bleach to clean tubs, shower doors and grout between tiles so the bathroom gives a great first impression.
Riemenschneider says that it’s in every seller’s best interest to hire a cleaning service to deep-clean the house right before a showing. She also says a new paint job will always have a 100 percent return on investment, and your best bets are soft greys and beiges, not harsh whites. Riemenschneider recommends Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter as a go-to staging color.
Emily Hetterscheidt is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
