How to Prepare Your House for Showing

Many sellers don’t know and aren’t told by their real estate agent that a little effort and time preparing for a house showing can help significantly in the sale. According to Richard Josephberg, CEO of Almorli Advisors, not only can the correct preparation reduce the amount of time it takes for a home to sell, but it can also earn more money. When it comes to presenting your house to buyers, you want it to look its absolute best. A negative first impression can directly translate into losing money of a full asking price. Before opening the door to potential buyers, follow these tips from real estate expert Richard Josephberg.

Cleaning seems so obvious, and is inexpensive, but the lack of it is one of the biggest complaints agents hear. The outside of your home is the first thing potential buyers will see. By putting the time and effort into maintaining your home and making routine updates, you can increase its overall value, says Almorli’s founder Richard Josephberg. He also suggests agents to be proactive in discussing with their sellers the cleanliness and presentation expectations for showing appointments upfront. To quickly boost the curb appeal of your home, you could clean the windows, pressure wash the exterior walls, stone, and concrete, and add accent plants.

Once you’ve cleaned the outside of the house, do the same inside. First and foremost, get rid of clutter. All real estate agents and professional stagers recommend decluttering and depersonalizing a home. Clutter and overly-personalized rooms can actually take off 5 to 15% of your home’s value. Home experts also agree that one of the most important steps to a successful listing is emotionally separating from the house and the objects in it. After 20 years of real estate experience, Richard Josephberg has found that editing down to just the basics can make your home look bigger and more desirable. The less clutter you’ve got in the space, the bigger it will look and the more appealing it will be to buyers. When potential buyers come into your home, they want to feel like they have counter space, storage space, and square footage to work with. Basically, they want to see a home with potential for their lives and their needs.