Clean Like You Have Never Cleaned Before
Every house, lived in or not, needs cleaning and upkeep to look its best. This includes dusting, vacuuming carpeting and rugs, and cleaning hard flooring like wood or tile. Prospective buyers will be coming in to tour your home, and they will be immediately turned off if it looks like it has been neglected to even a slight degree. You want them to feel welcome and comfortable, not wondering why there are dishes in the sink and dust on everything.
If you have a schedule to prohibits spending copious amounts of time cleaning and prepping the house to look immaculate, or if you are just not the cleanest person and tend to be more sloppy than tidy, then consider hiring a housekeeper to come by once a week or more while the listing is on the market to do the work for you. Worst case scenario, maybe consider staying with a friend or relative until the house is sold. This also helps when the listing agent has a potential buyer that wants to drop by for a look without much notice, your house will be clean, and you will not have to worry about staying out of the way.
Redecorate With A Neutral Style
Obviously going through every room and painting it a vague off-white color will make it look boring and sterile. You will want a look that is cohesive and has general appeal. Smart use of color, like a muted blue or green hue in a bright bedroom to increase the feeling of calm, or a very light yellow or coral in a dark kitchen to help it feel more open and bright, will be things that catch the eye of buyers.
Fix Anything That Is Obviously Broken Or Damaged
That cracked light switch plate? Fix it. That cabinet door with the wonky hinge that you have been meaning to get to for months? No better time than now. When people come to look at your home, they do not want to see a bunch of small things that you could not be bothered to address, because if there are a bunch of small things, their first thought will be “what else is broken.â€
With that in mind, get an inspection. That will tell you things, both minor and major, that will likely either prevent a sale or be brought up as repairs needed before closing. If you ask ahead of time, you can often schedule the inspection, and a return trip shortly after, so you have time to address the issues, and get a clean bill of health to show prospective buyers.