America’s home sellers are in a commanding position, and statistics underscore this reality.
The inventory of available homes is down 18% from a year ago, meaning less competition. Meanwhile, homes flew off the market 10 days faster than they did at the same time last year.
But that doesn't mean that sellers can put little effort into prepping their homes for sale.
“Even in the steamiest of hot markets, it’s foolish for most owners to sell without eliminating their boxy furniture and many of their numerous belongings,” says Mark Nash, the author of “1001 Tips For Buying and Selling a Home.”
Ellen Waugh, a professional organizer who’s worked with many home sellers, says buyers can’t picture themselves living in a property filled with countless personal items, including storage areas brimming with accumulations.
“Sellers should know that potential buyers who come through will open every single cabinet, drawer and closet door in their house,” says Waugh, whose organizing firm is called The Tidy Pig.
Unfortunately, there’s no secret to plowing through one’s possessions in an expeditious manner. But hiring a professional organizer can help ignite action among people prone to delaying tactics.
Virginia Barkley, a professional speaker and author of “ClutterBusting For Busy Women,” says many people who’ve lived in a home for an extended period feel overwhelmed at the thought of paring down their possessions.
“It makes a huge difference to get outside help with such a big undertaking,” she says.
Barkley, who previously worked in the deadline-oriented field of film and television production, says the key to a successful home streamlining project is to plan ahead and maintain a positive attitude.
“You have to set a drop-dead deadline for yourself. And every single day, you have to remind yourself of your vision for the future,” she says.
Here are a few pointers for sellers:
-- Acquire the simple equipment you’ll need for the job.
Martha Webb, a home-staging expert and author of “Dress Your House for Success,” says an efficient decluttering program starts with the right gear.
To temporarily store items you intend to take to your next property, you won’t need fancy storage containers. In most cases, cardboard boxes will suffice. But look for boxes of uniform size -- like the bankers boxes sold at office supply stores -- which will stack neatly.
Once you’ve packed your boxes, place them in a temporary storage unit. Alternatively -- if you don’t wish to pay for the rented storage unit -- you could stash the boxes in your garage.
“Buyers are more accepting of a garage filled with well-organized boxes than they would be if the boxes were kept in some other part of the house,” Webb says.
-- Limit yourself to one room at a time.
Webb says you’ll feel crazy if you go back and forth from room to room, trying to battle clutter on several fronts simultaneously. Instead, she counsels you to take on just one space at a time, starting with your master bedroom and clearing out closets in this room first.
“Having ample storage, including large closets, is a huge issue for contemporary buyers. That means you’ll want to remove as much as possible from these spaces. Once you’ve cleared out enough, you should be able to see the back wall of your closets,” she says.
-- Show sensitivity when decluttering your kids’ bedrooms.
Young children feel an understandable sense of alarm at the notion that many of their toys will be packed up and put away. They need reassurance that their prized toys will be available to them once your family’s move is complete.
How can you calm your children’s fears? Webb suggests you transform the process into a game.
“Tell the children they can choose a few special toys and books to keep in their rooms until the move occurs. Mention that they can use these items -- along with the ones you’re putting in boxes -- for a ‘toy party' in the new house,” she says.
-- Allow extra time and attention to your kitchen.
“Kitchen storage is a major selling point for any house. The last thing you want is for buyers to see a kitchen so crammed with items that they’ll think it lacks sufficient space for their own dishes and food,” she says.
After you’ve removed all the superfluous items from your kitchen storage areas, clean out the cabinets and replace only those pieces you absolutely need for everyday use. The rest -- like extra cupcake pans or holiday casserole dishes -- should be sold, given away or sent to storage.
-- Remove items that could hurt your sale.
“Never leave anything in plain sight that could detract attention from the positive attributes of your property,” Webb says.
For instance, she recommends you remove all prescription medications from the medicine cabinets in your bathrooms. Leaving them there not only invites theft (especially of prescription painkillers), but also raises buyer questions about the people living in the property.
“Remember that it’s nobody’s business what medications you take,” Webb says.
She also suggests you remove from your bookshelves any titles that seem to convey a strong opinion on any topic, such as a political book.
“The odds are good that some people will see that controversial book and disagree with its author or contents. They might even judge you harshly for owning the book and -- fair or not -- that could translate into problems for your sale,” Webb says.
(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)