A Guide for Busy Parents Preparing to Sell a Home

You may choose to sell your family home for any number of reasons. Maybe you are expecting another child and need a bigger space, or perhaps you want to move to a more family-friendly neighborhood than the one you live in now. Preparing to sell your old property when you have kids underfoot can be challenging. It’s essential to put in the effort since a well-presented house will often result in a faster, more profitable sale. Take the steps below to keep your space clutter-free and ready for showings at all times.

Start with your curb appeal.

Keep the kids inside for a day and take care of the exterior of your house. Curb appeal refers to the first impression a potential buyer gets of your home when they’re still standing on the sidewalk (by the curb). The first step to sprucing up the exterior is cleaning it. Give your siding a good powerwash and have your windows professionally cleaned. Then, take care of basic landscaping by mowing the lawn and trimming the trees and bushes. Finally, add aesthetic extras that will beautify the exterior. Plant some colorful flowers in the garden. If you don’t have time for that, you can get some planters of already-blooming florals and place them on either side of the front door. 

Get rid of your kids’ clutter inside.

According to Bustle, a cluttered space tends to look smaller than it is. Get your home ready for guests by eliminating the clutter in your house. Since it can be hard to keep things tidy when you have little ones running around—and leaving their toys everywhere—rely on stackable bins for easy organizing. Get different-color containers for each child and tell them to keep their goodies in their very own compartment. This system also makes it easy to clean up quickly if buyers make last-minute appointments to view the house. You can sweep odds and ends into the bins, and you’re good to go.

Hire professionals to help prepare your home for selling

As parents, you have to juggle many duties. You probably don’t have time for a top-to-bottom intensive cleaning on a regular basis. Luckily, some professionals can do the job for you. Once you’ve cleared away the clutter, hire a service to stop by and tidy up. They will take care of extra steps, like shampooing furniture and deep-cleaning rugs, that you might not be able to get. Once you’ve had professionals get your space squeaky clean, the entire family will be more inclined to keep it that way! 

You may also want to hire a professional designer to help stage your home. The Studio R design team can help you stage your home to perfection through window treatments, accent lighting, paint schemes, and much more! 

Create a last-minute checklist

Sometimes selling a house requires you to be ready for spur-of-the-moment visitors. You don’t want to miss out on opportunities for potential buyers to stop by, so it’s important to seize these moments. But when you have kids to care for, it can be tricky! Write down a last-minute checklist that you can consult when you have to get the house ready quickly. It can include tips like removing pets, securing valuables, opening curtains to let in light, using an oil diffuser to minimize odors, and quickly stashing any dirty dishes in the dishwasher. Place the list on your fridge so you can grab it soon if you’re feeling frazzled and get your house perfectly polished for guests—with no issues.

Juggling a family while trying to sell a house isn’t always easy. These tips will help you control the situation and ensure you don’t miss out on opportunities because of disorganization. Once your house is sold, you and your family can get excited about moving on to your new home.