I am truly happy to have a special Guest Writer making an appearance here! Please welcome and enjoy this piece by Kristin Louis.
Kristin Louis is a former advertising copywriter. She’s a loving mom to two boys: oldest is 10 and youngest is 7. She recently created parentingwithkris.com, where she puts her skills to work writing about the trials and tribulations of parenting.
If you’ve put your home up for sale, then you’ve probably heard the phrase ‘free of clutter’ more times than you’d like. While this certainly can help secure a quick sale, that doesn’t make it easy for you to do when you have a busy family. Let’s look at the best and easiest ways you can keep your home clean long enough to impress house hunters and snag a top-notch offer.
Scout Out the Competition
Before you go overboard with getting your home ready for sale, how about checking out the competition? Since you’re busy, you can start by getting a feel for the local market. That way you can see what homes like yours are selling for, plus you can see how others are presenting those properties.
For instance, Redfin indicates the average home in Reno sold for $385K last month. ‘Hot’ properties typically go pending in around 46 days, while other homes usually take about 74 days. Do a little research into what makes those hot properties go fast, and try to incorporate the principles into your own home’s presentation.
Get the Kids Involved in Decluttering
You might think you’ll never get ahead of clutter with kids involved, but that’s actually the secret—get them involved. Try to get started without them so you can get an uninterrupted view of the land. Then bring them into the picture and have them go through their toys and put them in categories. It will be easier for them to part with their playthings when they realize how many of each they have. And going forward, consider using a printable calendar to help them keep up.
This would also be a great time to explain to them why they should discard broken toys and donate those they no longer use. While they’re decluttering teach them how to keep their rooms in good order even as they’re playing so you don’t have to worry about a massive cleaning every time there’s an open house. If the decluttering is too much for you, consider getting the professionals involved.
Develop Some Quick Clean Strategies
With your hectic schedule, you can’t count on getting the house clean in one fell swoop every time there’s a showing. Having some quick clean tools and tricks in your arsenal will definitely be handy when your real estate agent tells you about a last-minute interested buyer. The Mom at Odds notes it helps to keep your cleaning supplies readily accessible and take advantage of automation like a robot vac.
Try to do laundry every day so it’s easy to put away, consider boxing up out of season clothing and putting it into storage, and don’t create additional work for yourself. You can get the kids involved on a daily basis by assigning them age-appropriate chores and turning cleaning into a game whenever possible. Put on some Baby Shark, and dig in!
Clear Out for the Open House
As The Balance explains, there are quite a few things you’ll need to take care of before an open house, but it’s usually best for you to be elsewhere on the day. After cleaning up and maybe setting out some refreshments, it’s time to step out. Keep in mind that if you have school-age children and the open house is on a weekday, then you won’t have to make plans for your children.
When you need to keep the kids occupied, though, there are some fun activities that you can enjoy as a family. For example, you could go for a walk or have a nature scavenger hunt. A nice picnic or a few outdoor games can make the time go by with ease. If you’d still prefer to be indoors or the weather is questionable, consider indoor entertainment like seeing a movie or visiting a museum instead.
Just the idea of keeping a house immaculately clean with children might seem laughable. Fortunately, it’s a possibility if you get the kids involved, or even bring in professionals on occasion. Add a few quick cleaning tricks and you can have your place house hunter-ready at the drop of a hat.
by Kristin Louis, creator of parentingwithkris.com
