At Home With HouseHunt

Volume 2, Number 4 April 2004

"A good home must be made, not bought."

-Joyce Maynard (1953- ), "Domestic Affairs," Columnist and Author

Tip of the Month

Are you looking to do your spring cleaning before the beautiful weather gets too difficult to resist? You can make this annual job easier by following these tips before you clean:
Get organized. Making a list of the rooms in your home that you want to tackle, and the tasks to be accomplished within each room, will make the entire job easier. Also, make sure you clean each room fully before moving on to the next on your list.
Take stock. Make sure you have every cleaner, rag and mop you will need before you start cleaning to ensure an easy job with no snags.
Be comfortable. Wear old, comfortable clothes that you will not mind getting soiled. Cleaning itself is a dirty job!
Disconnect. Get rid of any distractions by turning off the television and unplugging the phone. Instead, try listening to some fun, energizing music.
Prepare. Put together a bucket of supplies you can carry from room to room, such as paper towels, furniture polish, an all-purpose glass and surface cleaner and rags. Also, bring a couple of garbage bags along with you. You can use one to carry garbage you find along the way and one to fill with items for charity.
Set the mood. Open the windows wide and let the sun shine in and the fresh air fill your home! The musty smells of winter will disperse and you will protect yourself from inhaling cleaning fumes and dust.

Synopsis: Having an open house is a tricky business. Then are a number of positives and negatives. Here is a simple guide if you are planning to have an open house in the process of selling your home.

The positive side of having an open house is that it gets more potential buyers to view your home. Eric Potts, the owner and broker of Assist-2-Sell, a company that was ranked 82nd in the country by Realtor Magazine, thinks that the more people you are able to have view your home, the better your chances of selling it are. However, there are also some significant drawbacks. Nosey neighbors cannot resist having a poke around. There are also significant security issues.

According to a recent Realty Times article, there are a number of things that can be done to prepare for an open house.

Tackle the security issues first. Hide anything that is small and valuable, either in a safe deposit box, or at a friend's house.

Next, think about curb appeal. Mow your lawn. Think about revamping the landscaping. Clear away any clutter or debris. Then make sure your front door is appealing, either with a lick of new paint, or a seasonal wreath.

Now think about the inside of the house. Get rid of any clutter, even if the items are cute or sentimental to you, they are still going to be classified as clutter to potential buyers, and end up only reducing how spacious a room looks. This tactic extends to furniture and closets. Make things look as big as possible and as neutral as possible.

Clean, Clean, Clean. Get those windows sparkling, and the grout shiny white. Fix those things you have been meaning to fix for a long time. Don't let a loose door handle, or a leaky faucet ruin a potential sale.

Once your place is clean and un-cluttered, work on atmosphere. Add some fresh flowers in strategic places. Have the fire going if appropriate. Despite the cliché, bake some fresh cookies, or an apple pie; the aroma will really attract buyers to your house.

Remember that it is very difficult to be objective, so get the advice of others. Also, remember that you are trying to sell the house; it does not matter if you do not like a neutral color in the living room, the chances are, a potential buyer will prefer a neutral color to the bold pattern you have struggled so hard to create.