Presenting a house for sale

[slowrunner07]

I know the basics on how to present a house for sale - clean, no clutter, tidy garden etc, but I was wondering if anyone has any other helpful tips? Things you like or don't like to see in the sale photos or in person during a viewing?

Will be my first time selling a house so I have no previous experience to work with.

Stuff on the top of wardrobes or kitchen units, an untidily made bed, litter trays or dog beds, and any sort of smell!

For the photos, clear out as much as you can even if it means chucking everything in the car. But for viewings, don’t worry as much. Obvious things like make the beds, no rubbish around, easy to move around the space etc.

Buy lots of flowers…have lovely scented candles burning when people are viewing…or a cake in the oven 😃

Fake plants, or real house plants really help lift rooms and create a more homely feel.

Make sure windows are opened and the house is fresh, clean bedding, beds made, hoovered and just kind of lived in is lovely.

Not super showroom for me anyway.. I'd rather a clean fresh home and de cluttering can sometimes look a bit "bland" so if your house has personality don't strip it out completely.

For photos bag up and move most of the bathroom stuff.. unless you have beautiful Neals yard glass shower gels I'd move all the normal plastic bottles. Move sponges and cleaning products and make sure the shower screen is not limescale coated.

Sorry, but I disagree about scented candles burning and cakes in the oven - it far too try hard and obvious and feels a bit desperate (not trying to pick a fight, just how it comes across to me).

A small thing, but I hate seeing a toilet seat up in pics and on a viewing. I think clean, uncluttered kitchen surfaces and clean bathroom as far as is practical, no smelly rubbish bins, etc.

Great tips, thanks all!

Should I move the litter tray and dog bed just for photos or for viewings too?

Will buy some house plants next week (and hope they don't all die before the house sells 😄)

Remove all evidence of pets for photos and viewings. And pets!!

Agree on the no scented candles and all that crap. Viewed a house this week and they had candles and diffusers going everywhere. Smelled awful and out me off thinking that chemical smell would be ingrained in everything! And I agree on removing pet stuff and pets. Some people like them but it outs others off

Yes to removing all pet stuff for viewings. Best thing for animal smells is fresh air and keep on top of washing bedding etc. I used Lakeland’s worktop wonder to make worktops shine before a viewing and also mopped floor with Method’s wood flooring stuff. Allegedly my house didn’t smell of dog which I find hard to believe.

We had duvet for our bed for viewing as white duvet and cat not great combination so kept in wardrobe till needed and also new towels.
Washing machine and dryer good for hiding things in as is the boot of the car. Things like potted hydrangea and orchid instead of flowers as last longer. Take photos of the rooms yourself so you can see what stands out.

Don’t forget the outside, some pots by front door etc, weeding etc.

Don’t use all the candles and flowers, I’d think you were trying to cover up the smell of damp or something!

When my partner sold his house we hid the hoover/ ironing board/ mops and brushes etc in the car. Otherwise it would’ve shown there was no where to store them out of sight.

Some good tips above but the most important one is to price it keenly - people will look past surface faults if they think the property is good value. Most seem to accept now that prices are generally shifting downward. Particularly if your target market is first time buyers you will need to price it to get them to offer as they are rightly afraid of ending up in negative equity at the moment.

Yes remove evidence of pets. Some people won't buy if they know it's had pets in

For photos but relax a bit afterwards:

Toilet seat(s) down.
All bottles and products out of bathroom.
Bleach/loo cleaner bottles put away.
Towels hung properly.

Make your beds like a hotel bed. (Look at pics on hotel websites.) No crumpled duvets and creasy pillows.
Shoes and smelly trainers stowed out of sight or stacked tidely.
Pet evidence/litter trays out of sight.

Tidy cushions.
Crack open windows.
Toys away.

Kitchen surfaces cleared.
Draining board cleared.
Vacuum cleaner etc put away/in car if no cupboard.
Clean, swept, front door area.(First impressions count.)
Wheely bin area clean and tidy.

Phew! You can do it!

What has put me off on house viewings lately:
Bold painted patterns on walls.
Grubbiness on door handles and around light switches
Being jumped on by 2 dogs which were supposedly in the garage but actually in garden ending up with muddy paw prints all over us.
People being in the house for viewings. One put a person in every room (this was with an estate agent)

We paid for staging and it was definitely worth it, we weren't living thre but you can do partial staging for pictures on walls, interior decor, cushions and throws for beds etc that you take off and put back on for viewings.

We also washed walls, washed curtains, basically scrubbed it before viewings even started.

-Deep clean the house at-least once or twice a week (depending on how frequent the viewings are)
-look round each room with ‘critical eyes’ and tidy/remove anything that looks messy
-Air house every morning, then leave them cracked all day
-Polish work tops ect before viewing
-Clean windows
-remove anything that looks messy such as washing basket, hoover, mop if nowhere to store them in the house
-cut grass once/twice a week depending on how fast it’s growing and frequency of viewings
-don’t cook super strong things such as curry the evening before a viewing!
-every day before a viewing ensure carpets are hoovered and floors washed as well as any other surfaces

Don't make it impersonal or like a show home. I like to get a feel of how people are living in the space. Yes, make sure it's clean and tidy, but clear out all the toys or empty the kitchen counters. Move the litter tray, but I would t worry about other pet stuff - it shows how you use the home and that it's suitable for pets.
Agree that you don't need candles or smells of bread and coffee. Just make sure it's fresh and clean.

My DH is an estate agent - he has shown me some awful photos from competitors before. People sat on the sofa and unmade beds, takeaway containers on the table.
You'd be hard pushed to make it that bad!

Oh, and make sure the front door is clean. First impressions!

For the photos we moved extra furniture (mainly the Kallax full of DC’s toys) into the garage, made downstairs look huge. Deep cleaned for a couple of days. Mowed the lawn. Touched up paint in kitchen and hallway.

Had a viewing morning so only had to clean for it once. Then cleared out for the whole day.

• sort anything that makes it look like you don’t have enough storage (nothing stashed on tops of cupboards/fridge, etc)
• clear kitchen worktops
• sparkling clean everything
• plants / flowers in vase
• open windows before viewing so rooms are properly ventilated but not so it’s cold
• hoover constantly!
• turn every light on for the viewing (even during the day)
• if you have outside space, tidy it up to indicate low maintenance
• touch up paintwork if needed
• clean light switches
• use a good cleaner to scrub any scum/mould from bathroom tiles
• put away any bottles from bathroom and stick another plant in there
• good luck!

Thanks all! One more question - I have a desk in the spare bedroom where I WFH. Should we get rid of this for photos and viewings? It makes the room a bit cramped and you can't walk around the bed properly without squeezing past the chair. Or I could just move the desk chair out?

Was coming on to say this. Ensure the toilet seat is down. I hate seeing it up in pics.

Clutter - hide it. Don’t have all the toiletries lined up along the bath. Stacks of toilet rolls in show.

Clear the kitchen surfaces. Find a home in a cupboard for everything. No plastic bags hanging on doors. I do wonder sometimes do the photographers even care. You are paying for these photos.

Put all toys away for pics.

Front of house - cut your grass, weed, if you can put a nice healthy plant in a pot by the door. If it looks like a mess from the outside I know it’s not going to be much improved within.

Hide any pet bowls or paraphernalia. If I see them in pictures I won't even view

At viewing it doesn't matter cause potential buyer will smell you have a dog anyway.