Remember Me
forgot your password?

Quick-Clean Your Home For Home Tours

Even when you have your home staged for selling, you may still dread a phone call from your Realtor®. “Hi, I have some people interested in seeing your place – can we swing by in an hour?” often sounds like the knell of doom for busy families who are still living in their home even as they’re trying to sell it. A daily regime of home cleaning will go a long way to making this easy.

Kitchen:

Anything in the sink shouts dirt and disorder (even if it’s clean). Embrace the policy of cleaning as you go and keeping things out of the sink, which means that dishes get done at every meal instead of at the end of the day, so they don’t have a chance to pile up. Wipe down the counters and stove top whenever you clean utensils, which will both keep them free of crumbs and stains and make stains less likely to form. Sweep or vacuum the floor once a day.

Bathroom:

The toilet needs to be absolutely spotless. Keep a small box or bucket of cleaning supplies under the sink or in the cupboard so it’s easy to wipe the toilet seat and rim, the sink, the mirrors, the faucets and the shower/bathtub. Toothbrushes and other personal accessories should be stored in a cabinet or drawer – neatly! After every use, the shower and/or bathtub should be wiped down. Sweep/mop floors every day.

Bedrooms:

Strive to instill the habit of making one’s bed every day after one gets up. The bed is the focal point of the room and if it is neatly made, the whole room looks 50% cleaner. It also encourages you to neaten the rest of the room. Put away clothing and accessories as soon as you take them off – either hang them back up or put them in a laundry hamper. The laundry hamper should be emptied as soon as you know there are people coming to walk through. Children should be encouraged to put their toys away in bins or boxes given to them for that purpose.

Living room

The sofa should be organized first, followed by the coffee table. Make sure videos, CDs, DVDs and games are put away, as well as controllers, etc. Books and magazines should go on the shelf or in a rack. Keep a container or two to store miscellaneous items away from view. Do a quick trip with the vacuum to pick up crumbs or dust bunnies.

It can be hard to adapt to a constant state of clean for your home, but if you keep up on the housework, you will find that a short-notice walkthrough won’t cause you a lot of stress. As you get more used to keeping things clean as a matter of course, it will be nothing to do a quick trip around the house to quick clean before your prospective buyers arrive.

Lynn Bulmer

View the many Washington D.C. homes for sale at LynnBulmer.com. Let Lynn be your guide to Georgetown real estate.

Rate this Article: 0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s)
Print Email Re-Publish

Add new Comment



Captcha

  • Latest Real Estate Articles
  • More from Lynn Bulmer

Realtor Websites - The Key To Enhancing You Online Image

By: Michael Bartonolis | 03/01/2010
You will need to enhance your online visibility with realtor websites if you want to step up your lead generation efforts. If people are not informed that you have a website, people would not be able to contact you and that is why search engine optimization (SEO) has become very popular with real estate companies.

Looking into some good tips about buying houses in the real estate market

By: Clint Jhonson | 03/01/2010
Looking into the market of houses with a plan to buy one is not something that you should do lightly. This should be a move that comes with a great deal of thought and planning so that you won't end up regretting the decision that you have made. It is best if you would look into some tips to help you out in looking into some real estate for sale first before settling on any property. Remember that an informed decision would always end up in a smart move.

5 Things You must have to succeed in Real Estate Wholesaling

By: Eddie Case | 03/01/2010
Perhaps this is the reason why more and more people are succumbing to one of the most popular styles of Real Estate Investing – Real Estate Wholesaling. It is because in this business, there are no bosses to order the employees around. There are no deadlines to meet and no clutter of work do to. One only needs to be equipped with the tools needed to succeed in a business such as this, and he is bound to get what his heart ultimately desires.

The Benefits to Visitng and Living in Westby, Montana

By: Tony Mandarich | 03/01/2010
Westby, Montana, is nestled in the extreme northeastern corner of the state. In its unique location on the combined border of Montana and North Dakota, you need only venture seven miles north to find your way to Canada. This area of the state is wheat and cattle county with gently...

All about Rent to Own Homes

By: Clint Jhonson | 03/01/2010
Finding homes to rent is quite easy. And buying a home too can provide you with a wide selection to choose from. But you might find that rent to own homes are not always as easy to find. Nowadays you find more and more people looking for rent to own homes which are also known as lease to purchase homes which provide the person renting the home the choice of buying the home.

Placing a Bet on Dubai’s Revival

By: Daniel Marshel | 03/01/2010
The chips are in and the stakes are hot. They should be, for in contention is one of the world’s most beloved cities-the emirate of Dubai. Just at the start of this week

Real Estate

By: Jordan Benson | 03/01/2010
What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about Real Estate? May be land or buildings. To get things in perspective, this term means any piece of land and anything that’s on it - like, a house, or a building, the trees and all the air above the land!

Real Estate in all Inland Empire and Southern California Areas

By: Mikeal Whitemore | 02/01/2010
In today's highly volatile and competitive real estate market, timing is everything. Many good homes in the Inland Empire and Southern California areas are sold before they are ever advertised. Beat other home buyers to the hottest new homes for sale with our New Listings Notification by Email. This feature is available to VIP Home Search members, who can set up their own home search to run automatically, daily or weekly, and get email alerts for newly listed homes matching their VIP home.

Buying Beautiful Brownstones

By: Lynn Bulmer | 10/12/2009 | Real Estate
Brownstone row and town houses have some beautiful design elements that set them apart from many modern homes. In some areas the Brownstones’ stone street face are highlighted by bow or bay windows while many others have copper and black painted wrought-iron accents.

Buying a Home in a Recession: Home Buyer’s Adaptation

By: Lynn Bulmer | 10/12/2009 | Real Estate
The benefit of buying a better house for your money instead of just more house is that your home will retain its value longer if it’s built with quality construction and finishing. Due to the current trend to buying and building homes that have a more direct correlation to the amount of space that a family actually requires compared to how much space the home has, desirable homes have become somewhat smaller in general as well.

Chimney Sweeps - More than Mary Poppin's friends

By: Lynn Bulmer | 13/11/2009 | Tools & Equipment
Many homeowners do not realize that repeated burning of fires will create a buildup of residue (creosote) on the chimney walls. Creosote and ash in your chimney is a recipe for disaster. This combination is highly flammable and is the main cause of chimney fires, which at worst, could ignite the entire house. That is why it is so important to have your chimney inspected annually.

Straw Bale Construction - what's old is new again

By: Lynn Bulmer | 14/10/2009 | Real Estate
Straw bales are relatively easy to work with. Basic saws and other hand tools can be used to cut and/or shape walls and window openings. These bales can be sculpted to provide unique shapes within the home, such as window seats, or coved ceilings.

Sourcing a Good Foreclosure Deal

By: Lynn Bulmer | 14/10/2009 | Real Estate
Check out local free lists of foreclosures, bank-owned properties or short sales. These properties may go quite quickly in the competitive, bargain-hunting world of real estate today. Some homes will be snapped up within one hour of being put on the market.

Successfully Buying a Pet-Friendly Condo

By: Lynn Bulmer | 02/10/2009 | Real Estate
What happens if your condo association finds out that you're harbouring a pet against their regulations will depend on the individual bylaws for your complex. Consequences generally range from fines and having to get rid of the pet, to lawsuits over breach of contract. Renters harboring illicit pets are often evicted if the pet isn't removed immediately.

When You Should Find a New Buyer's Agent

By: Lynn Bulmer | 01/10/2009 | Real Estate
If you find yourself calling your buyer's agent regularly with no return calls from them or you never get responses to your emails, you might want to consider getting yourself a new agent. This agent either has too much on their plate or just doesn't consider you an important enough client to communicate with regularly. This isn't to say that you should expect calls to be returned the moment that you leave a message, but they should be able to get back to you in a day or so.

Submit Your Articles Free: Signup
Article Categories




Use of this web site constitutes acceptance of the Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy | User published content is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Copyright © 2005-2008 Free Articles by ArticlesBase.com, All rights reserved. (2.90, 5, w3)