Right! Given the choice would you prefer a perfectly finished and groomed house

[OrmRenewed]

over a scruffy messy place (but structurally sound and in need of no major work) for less money?

Because my place looks chaotic. And barring miracles it will stay that way. With 5 peoples in a 3-bed terrace, and both parents in full-time employment, the chances of our house being transformed 'Pimp my home' style are non-existent.

Not if the reduction in price truly reflected the work needing doing - when you say scruffy and messy do you mean it needs new decoration or new kitchen and bathroom or rewiring?

It is def. worth decluttering and painting some of the house if poss. IMO as otherwise the value knocked off by a buyer will exceed the cost of the work that really needs doing as the buyer will err on the side of caution.

Of course, the price also depends on what else is for sale in the same area.

Agree that it will sell if the price is low enough compared to a perfectly presented house

Has newish kitchen and bathroom - about 4 yrs old. I honestly don't know how to declutter. We have too many people in the house- the 'clutter' is stuff we use! I have wondered about renting a house for a month, taking time off work and then having a go at decluttering (and putting it in storage), and paying someone to decorate. But that isn't cheap.

I think it depends a bit on the type of house you have.

We've been looking for a period, probably Victorian, house. As we really like remodelling houses and want one with lots of period features, we've been really hoping for one that's had very little done to it/is badly presented etc because then it'll be a blank canvas for us to change, unappealing to more people, and more affordable.

But I think if you are trying to sell a more modern family home, which people tend to buy because they are practical, don't need rennovation etc, or you've already done work to the house which you need/want to recoup the cost for, then it needs to be presented as well as possible.

I'd defo recommend the storage option. There's an amazing amount you can get rid off - summer clothes, sports kit, outgrown toys, lots of books and things on shelves (more open space on walls makes rooms look bigger), very personal cluttery stuff like kids' modelling or judo trophies etc, seldom used appliances that take up room on your kitchen work surfaces like blenders or bread makers, everything you have stuffed under beds/on top of wardrobes etc because you can't possible be using all that very often anyway.

Then when you move you'll realise you didn't need half of it anyway and you can keep your new place more clutter free (for a while, anyhow...!)!

Thanks merkin - it's Victorian.

Hire a self store unit - one of the ones you can access as you like. Then, be ruthless - you do not need everything on a daily basis, so you can put the out of season clothes, holiday bags, camping stuff, CDs (if all of yours are ripped to MP3), take DVDS out of cases and put into a cd wallet. Cull books to storage to bring them down to a manageable number for your house.

Then do a really good clean, then do quick decorating - if your walls are already painted, then you can paint the walls in one room in a day no problem. Bribe friends with curry and a beer to help out.

It does make a huge difference to peoples perception of a house - it can go from 'oh god, we'd have to decorate it all right through' to 'oh, thats perfectly liveable with' - which is all you need.

Do you have any friends who would be frank with you (pref have recently moved) who would tell you what they would do

Orm - I visited someone the other day and their house sounds very similar to yours.

The thing that immediatley struck me was that it smelled of cats (people that do not have pets do notice they smell). I also noticed dirt and clutter. I cannot remember anything else.

I think clean, tidy and smell free both inside and out make a big difference. Most people decide they like a house within a couple of minutes.

Its OK to have a few untidy rooms but maybe declutter hallway, kitchen, main living room and your main bedroom. Kitchens and bathrooms really sell a house so sprucing those up make a big difference (e.g descale the shower head, new shower curtain, new blind at the window). Would not go in for mass painting but getting a professional carpet cleaner in freshens the house up both in look and smell. Remove pet food and cat litter from house as that is what really smells.

Renting a 'lock and store' place for a couple of months may be a good idea if you need to declutter and buying a couple of these to stand in the garden if you need ready access to essential stuff.

Oh and the other thing is mend/repair anything that is obviously broken (eg light switches, tiles off the wall, cupboard doors hanging down). A few small broken things make people think the rest of the house is broken too - even if it is not.

You can probably put more into storage than you think. All out of season clothes for a start, which will give you more storage space. Have one towel for each member of the family and a spare and store the rest. Only keep two sets of bedlinen for each bed, an extra set for anyone who still wets the bed sometimes.

Give each child an attractive toy box and tell them to put the toys they want to keep for the next few months into that. Anything that doesn't fit gets put into storage. Store books, each family member gets to keep some (say 10) and the rest get packed into boxes. keep a few aspirational cookbooks for the kitchen and a few intellectual books for the sitting room.

Go through your kitchen cabinets. Store all but 3 of your pots and pans. Store anything that you haven't used for a while, like food processor or baking stuff. Throw away out of date cans or dry food. Cut down the amount of crockery and utensils you have. Use the extra space in the cupboards to store anything that would normally sit on the counter like biscuit tin or even fruit bowl.

Try and get rid of most of the outdoor toys, like trikes. Especially if they look worn or are likely to be left where they can trip up a viewer.

In the bathroom, get rid of as much stuff as possible. Pick the toiletries and make-up that you would pack if going on holiday and store/throw everything else. Buy an attractive box (if you have enough floor space) to store loo roll or bath toys. Buy something to hold toothbrushes and toothpaste so they're not lying around.

Where are you moving to Orm?

Would agree that if you can't really get rid of the 'clutter' then storing it is a good idea. It will be like Xmas when you move and get it all back again. Or you will open it all up and think "Bloody hell we haven't needed this or missed it!"

someone advised me recently to make sure my clutter is at least comprised of beautiful or interesting things - am not trying to sell, just looking for ways to find life in a 1.5 bedroom cottage with 4 people a bit more tolerable

those blank, modern sort of interiors would make v dull paintings

cheered me up a bit anyway

Oh miffy - we have beeeooootiful clutter Well some of it.

Buda - only to a bigger house, nicer area. Or at least we are if we can afford it! Bit of a shock to find out how much it will cost us to increase our mortgage. So maybe not. We're still thinking through our options.