Is your home ready to go on the market? Nervous about upcoming showings and possible open houses? Don’t worry, we’ll walk you through it!

At this point, staging should be all set so your home should look great! But make sure you still do a little prep work before showings start. That means clean, put away personal belongings, and remove your pets, etc.

You’ll also want to check your walkways/driveway to ensure there’s nothing blocking the way, clear of snow/debris, rake leaves, etc. Some of these things you’ll have to do before each showing (like remove your pets) but other items can be done every so often. Make things easier on yourself by working with your Realtor to have items like booties at the entrance to reduce dirt being trafficked through the house.

You’ll also want to talk with your Realtor about the best strategies for scheduling showings. Sometimes the best times for showings during weekdays are when you’re away at work so you don’t have to worry about coming and going. In other instances, you’ll want to schedule showings around when you’re available to get to the house to do things like removing your pets.

Weekends are most popular for showings as the prospective buyers have work and other obligations during the week as well so it’s helpful to find ways to be away for most of the day. That way you can have several showings scheduled at once. The more prospective buyers that come through the higher your chances of not only receiving a great offer but maybe multiples. In today’s market with the lack of inventory, many homes are selling over a weekend. That makes it easier to deal with the inconvenience of showings.

With that in mind, your Realtor may recommend hosting an Open House (or two). This way you can have fewer hours of needing to be away and still have a large number of people coming through to see your home, as there can be multiple parties present during an Open House (unlike with showings, which are generally restricted to one group at a time).

With an open house, there are a few things you’ll want to do to prepare to maximize the opportunities available.

• Have plans to be away for the time frame of the Open House

• Clean, clean, clean – more than you may have done for showings just to prepare for the amount of traffic coming in and out without any time in between to straighten up

• Consider setting the mood: Have a screensaver on the TV or play soft music, consider having the fireplace on or windows open (weather dependent), bake some delicious treats or light a couple candles, but something subtle. Discuss with your Realtor to ensure they will keep an eye on anything that is running.

• Put away your valuables – it’s something you were probably doing with regular showings too. With an open house everyone is running in and out so it’s just safer to not have anything out in the open or easily accessible.

As your real estate partner, our team will help keep all of this organized, remind you of any necessary “to do’s,” and work with you to help this part of the home selling process go smoothly. We want to help minimize the inconvenience that comes with showings and Open Houses so you can get back into the privacy of your home and continue to prepare for your move.

Our team has YEARS of experience working with sellers from start to finish. Let us use our expertise to make your move efficient, timely, and productive.

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