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The house has been renovated, and I have some old furnitures for display. 98% of my stuff are packed and stored in the unfurnished basement. Just try to make the house neat for showing.
Now, I have a question...
If I can afford to rent an apartment, should I move out before I put my house on sale?
If I decide to stay, would the visits from potential buyers make me crazy?
I have a cat, would it be a problem? She is a great hider, but how about her food bowl and post?
Maybe these are silly question, but hope you can give me some advise. Thank you very much.
With any luck showings will make you crazy! People must see the home to write an offer!!
If you have a cat be sure there is NO smell - clean the cat box after each use. Odor is a huge turn off and will kill a deal. If you remain living in the home - be sure you leave for each showing. Potential buyers will not feel as comfortable with you standing there. [I've even had buyers who will not look at homes if the sellers are present.]
It sounds like you have every thing neat and tidy - it's very important! It's hard to live in a fish bowl but it can be done.
Thanks, MMichelle. Now I know what to do with my cat stuff.
So would you suggest me to move out first? The concern I have right now is I can save some money from renting an apartment, but then will need to keep the house clean all the time and be prepared to leave the house when somebody is coming for a visit. I even think about not to cook with oil so the smell won't stick in the new paint. Is it too much? I can feel my life has been changed since I had most of my stuff packed. Just a camera and a laptop to kill my time...
I can't even count how many houses I have seen in my latest search. I can tell you that I was never put off by a bit of a mess or other normal things that go along with actually living in a house.
Smells are a different thing. I ended a few visits pretty quickly because of some smelly houses. And that goes for candles/deodorizers as well.
I can tell you that a house that was vacant made an impact on what I thought about offering. Vacant houses in my mind equated to someone making double payments and was hopefully more desperate to get out.
Need to? Like "oh my goodness there is RICE COOKER ON THE COUNTER I COULD NEVER BUY THIS HOUSE"?? Probably never seen that reaction...
I have seen buyers say "not much counter space in here" even in BIG kitchen when there is giant 10 quart rice cooker taking up about a square yard of space. If you can tuck it away that is darned good idea.
Coffee maker? Unless it is some giant beast you can probably leave that out. (and if is giant I doubt you can tuck it away...)
Tooth brush? While there is the "yuck factor" and most folks due tend to use the tooth brush well past the point that it ought to be replaced, so year, stick that sucker in cabinet or drawer or something unless it so brand new it hurts...
The reason I asked is because I was asked to make the house just like a model house so it can give the buyers good impression, but I'm still living in the house and it will be very inconvenience if I have every hidden or stored. However, after reading what you wrote I think I need to do so...
The reason I asked is because I was asked to make the house just like a model house so it can give the buyers good impression, but I'm still living in the house and it will be very inconvenience if I have every hidden or stored. However, after reading what you wrote I think I need to do so...
If you know in advance you have a showing, put the stuff away if you can. If for some reason there is a showing and you don't have a chance to to that, don't worry too much about it. It's not the end of the world.
I've found I can get the house from "lived in" to "showing condition" in about 15 minutes. That is, assuming you keep it pretty clean to begin with. Just stuff like dish drainer, toothbrushes, etc. Also, usually you have plenty of notice (at least a couple hours, usually a day) before a showing.
Having my house on the market has actually been good discipline for me since I tend to wait too long for a "big" cleaning and decluttering.
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