When selling your home, having it look the best it possibly can is the first task on your mind. Attempting to do so when you have busy children can be hard to start with, let alone to keep it in that pristine condition the whole time your house is waiting to be sold. There are a few easy steps you can do to maintain the house shape even with little ones at home. After all, because you’ll be moving them and their routines will be changed anyway, they don’t need the pressure of having to act like little robots.
Organization is Key
Most children tend to stockpile toys of all varieties. They like variety and tend to have an acquisitive nature. “Mine!” is frequently among a child’s first few words. As a parent you might have gotten used to the appearance of toys tossed around in a mess, but a person who is not used to children can all too easily notice it. The very first thing to do in getting the home ready to show is to organize the children’s belongings so they can easily be put away and mostly out of sight. Get storage that can be used in the room without being too big.
Pick up the Outside as Well
The outside appearance is what provides the first impression to a buyer and so it is very important. Try finding ways to set up, or store, the children’s outdoor playthings and other toys in a neat and tidy way to present the outside of your house as attractively as you can. Toys that cannot be put away in a garage, tool shed or other outdoor storage do not have to be all put away but they must not be what gives the initial impression.
Paring Down Your Excess
The periodic practice of clearing out things that are more than what is needed on a regular basis such as donating to the Salvation Army is just as pertinent to children’s belongings as it is to all the other old treasures. This is a valuable skill whether you are moving. Children as well as adults have to make choices. Handling how to let things go and dealing with change is a vital part of living. That can be a learning opportunity for children, though it will be important to get their participation and not force their decisions. That would only hinder the learning.
Discipline will be necessary to maintain everything in order once you are all organized. Trying to keep everything reasonably tidy once it is all straightened out can be a challenge, but it is not out of the realm of the possible. Once you have appropriate storage, keeping everything in order will be lots easier. Take steps to limit the number of different things your children are playing with while you are in the process of selling your home. One idea is to make the challenge of keeping the house straight a game, or adventure or challenge for the children. They in turn may even remind you to keep the rest of the house in their places as an additional benefit.
There is no need to turn your home into a sterile and overly regimented house where no children can play. Many people in the market for a family home have children themselves, and are happy to see that a house is lived in, and some toys being in evidence is pretty normal. Just be aware that it should be kept on the neater side of normal. Perfection is hardly the norm in an active family home.
If your children are wild with toys you could even buy an extra rug to play on that can be put away when potential buyers come by to see the home. Keeping the finger paints and other messy materials put away and out of sight might be a good idea.
In summary, it’s not too impossible, is it, to allow the children to continue with their normal lives while offering your home and keeping it in the attractive condition in which it needs to be. There is some gain to be experienced for the family, gaining practice in cooperation. A little patience and persistence, along with regular attention to clutter, will make the sale of your home with small children easy to handle.
This information was provided by Colorado’s best Boulder real estate specialists at Automated Homefinder.