Many factors affect home buying decisions. Prospective buyers must not only consider what they want in a new home, but how much inconvenience they’re willing to endure and can afford. Renovations and other tactics that showcase a house’s positive attributes can influence a decision in the seller’s favor. The simplest improvement, says Claire Roscoe writing for RightMove’s Property Blog, is a thorough spring cleaning.
Before beginning with the “big clean,” make a plan. This endeavor takes time to do it right. Ask Amy Staging offers the following tips that will not only help the homeowner to sell the house for the desired price, but also streamline the moving process.
- Culling the contents of your closets and drawers not only helps your clothes look better and your closets look roomier, but also reduces the sheer amount of stuff you’ll transport from the old house to the new. In order to painlessly sort through closet content, at the beginning of the season reverse your hangers. Then, when the season ends, those items still hanging from reversed hangers are those that no longer see any use and should be donated, sold, or otherwise discarded.
- Kitchen items. Note in writing which small appliances, pots, pans, dishes, and utensils you use and sell or donate the rest. Again, this will declutter your kitchen cabinets and drawers while reducing the quantity of stuff to transport. Check the expiration dates on all food items. Anything past the expiration date should be discarded and anything nearing the expiration date should be consumed. If there’s too much to consume, donate the surplus to your local food pantry.
- Hall closets. Clear the hall closets of all those board games, the vacuum cleaner, sports gear, and other stuff crowding that small space. Rededicate the hall closet for coats only and make sure you leave sufficient space to hang guests’ coats.
- Restore and brighten fiberglass tubs, showers, and surrounds. Nothing discourages a prospective buyer like a dingy bathroom. Ask Amy Staging recommends using Gel-Gloss products to clean, brighten, and restore well-used fiberglass tubs, showers, and surrounds so they look like new again.
- Clean and shine stainless steel. When they’re new, they look fabulous; but, stainless steel surfaces quickly become scratched and dull and look tired. Professional residential cleaner Jan M. Dougherty recommends using Old English lemon oil to clean and polish stainless steel as well as wood furniture.
- Clean hard surfaces. For hard surfaces that require something a little more aggressive, Proctor & Gamble’s Magic Eraser® scrubs like fine sandpaper to remove dirt. Use this only on scratch-resistant surfaces; no shine will stand up to this product.
- Remove carpet divots. Furniture crushes carpet fibers. Those divots which can thwart efforts to restore the carpet to original, springy state. Ask Amy Staging recommends this simple fix: Place an ice cube in the divot and let it melt. Then use a spoon to lift the carpet fibers.
- Clean carpets. Hire a professional for best results. Steam and dry cleaning offer pros and cons; however, dry cleaning—which isn’t truly “dry”—has the advantage of drastically reduced drying time and won’t draw up nasty odors from the pad beneath the carpet.
- Clean and shine hardwood floors. People love hardwood floors; however, wood can be surprisingly delicate. Ask Amy Staging recommends Bona products to clean, maintain, and polish hardwood floors to restore their beauty and keep them looking great.
A fresh, clean house should look and smell like an inviting place to live and will command stronger consideration from prospective buyers who won’t be eager to have to clean their new residence before they move in.
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