5 Helpful Tips in Keeping Your Home 24/7 Show-Ready
When you are in the process of showing your home, it could mean that people can drop by last minute to see what it looks like. These buyers are not like your neighbours, popping in to borrow a cup of milk.
These are people that you need to impress as soon as they walk through the front gate.
They will judge the house. They will scrutinize every corner, every nook, and every wall. If you do not have a live-in housekeeper, it can only mean one thing: you need to keep it clean at all times.
Here is how you can keep your house show-ready 24/7:
#1 - Start at one point and work the room
Many people do not clean properly because they do not know where to start. It might overwhelm them to see how much work they actually need to do.
The best thing to do is to start at one point and work your way through the room.
Follow the top-to-bottom rule, meaning start from the fan and anything else high up before you tackle the floor. Then you follow the left-to-right rule. It will keep you on task and make cleaning go that much faster.
#2 - Use mobile storage
As soon as you have decided to show your home, pack up everything you don't use and don't need.
All of the non-functional stuff needs to be removed from the house.
The less stuff you have, the less you have to clean and the more effective your home staging will be. Once you have determined what you don't need, find a way to quickly hide it when potential buyers are swinging around. Plastic and cardboard boxes work great and you can reuse them when you move to your new place.
#3 - Fake good cleaning habits
It takes a lifetime to develop good habits, so it probably isn't going to happen in the half-hour before a potential buyer is knocking on your door.
The best solution for this is to fake the good habits you have always wanted. Take small steps during the day to save yourself the stress of cleaning everything in the afternoon.
Pick up as you go, make it a habit to keep your toiletries under the sink, and unload the dishwasher as soon as the drying cycle is done so that you can load again. It probably won't go as smoothly as you want it to, but every bit helps.
#4 - Create the illusion of clean
If you are running short on time then there is no way for you to properly clean the house the way you want to.
Luckily, you can create the illusion of it being clean: focus on the stuff people notice first especially the kitchen and the bathroom. Countertops should be clean and clear of clutter.
This also applies to the fridge door and the floor underneath it. The shower and the tub should be sparkling and the tiles should be clean enough to eat off of. Wipe down fixtures and faucets for that extra shine.
#5 - Add flair
Do not underestimate the little touches that make your house look extra clean and amazing.
Create sitting areas and intimate spaces even though it might not be practical for you. Make sure the bed is evenly made up and void of any lumps and creases. Add a bowl of fruit or some flowers to the kitchen to give it that extra splash of colour.
But be careful of doing too much. This could make you go back into clutter country - and you want to avoid doing that.