10 Things to Do Before Your List Your House

Thinking about moving? One quick tour of your happy home might curdle that dream before it gets out of the planning stages.
If your décor style is early desperation and you can't remember the original color of the carpeting, it's time to roll up your sleeves and tell someone into getting your home ready to sell.

10: Find Your Papers
Before you exhaust yourself trying to get the fingerprints off the walls, locate all the important papers you'll need to entice a potential buyer. The operating manuals for your appliances and HVAC system, notes about the paint colors you used on your walls and any applicable warranties are important to have on hand.

9: Get Estimates
This type of estimate is about what it'll cost to replace the stuff in your home that's on its last legs -- like the furnace, roof or water heater. You may not be prepared to overhaul worn-out items now, but knowing how much it will cost could give you an edge in negotiations.

8: Straighten the Mailbox
You want potential buyers to drive by and think someone else's home (and not yours) is the eye sore. If you're planning on listing your home, you have to lure people inside. To do that, you've got to eliminate the telltale signs that the property isn't owned by a Stepford family.

7: Declutter
This is the time when you go through your belongings and discover that there isn't anything worth keeping. It's a sad but liberating moment. If most of your stuff is granny castoffs from the 1970s, decluttering your home will be easy.

6: De-Personalize
Have you ever looked in a friend's handbag? Didn't it just scream, "Invader! Get out! Get out!" Well, you don't want your house to do that. You want your house to be so benign and neutral that anyone could imagine living there -- without you.

5: Clean
If it's been a decade since you washed the blinds, expect the process to be painful. Actually, dirt, dust and grime may not be the worst part of tidying up. The worst part is getting at stuff to clean it.

4: Detail the Landscaping
Removing dead branches from trees, pulling weeds, painting fences and fixing driveway cracks will keep your home from giving the impression that it's gone native.

3: Hide the Pets
Animals shouldn't live in houses. Well, that seems to be the mantra of the real estate industry. If you own one of those slobbering, hairy pests -- that loves you unconditionally, protects you vigilantly, amuses you with its absurdities and never judges you for your failings -- hide it.

2: Plan to Get Rid of the Kids for a While
Well, actually, this is a good one to indulge in from time to time even if you aren't selling your home. When you're thinking of placing a listing, underplaying the presence of juvenile humans on the premises is a good idea.

1: Take a Deep Breath -- and Some Pictures
Yes, with some work and a little luck, you may be able to get out of that dump and into the home of your dreams, or at least into a house where all the toilets work. Take some pictures before you do a major cleanup, though.

Thinking about moving soon? Inbox me now and let's put your home into market for top dollar!