Open house prep checklist for sellers

It’s open house day, and buyers are coming to see your home in a few hours.

By the time you reach the point in the selling process of hosting open houses, decluttering, staging and curb appeal should have been addressed. However, right before an open house, you will want to reset the staging and curb appeal.

Here are some last-minute steps to show off your house.

• Deep clean: Even if you have deep-cleaned before, do it again. If professionals have already come, then try to do it yourself.
• Mow the lawn: If you haven’t looked at improving your curb appeal, then be sure to trim overgrown hedges, pull weeds and mow the lawn during the growing season.
• Invite outside perspective: Consider having friends come by and offer a fresh perspective on how the house looks. They could spot something you miss.

• Plug in air fresheners: Start getting your home smelling good by using air diffusers or plug-in fresheners.
• Erase evidence of you living there: Make the bed, hide the dirty laundry and put away all personal items. Get yourself ready and completely reset the staging.
• Reset the kitchen: After using the kitchen in the morning, put away any dishes or appliances that were used. Avoid cooking anything with strong smells.
• Dry the bathroom: If there are any water droplets in the sink, shower or on the floor, wipe them up. Remove any used towels, but display some clean, fresh towels.
• Clean again: Vacuum and sweep. Wipe down the surfaces and freshen up the bathrooms.
• Weather prep: If it’s raining, lay out some mats for wet shoes.
• Temperature control: Set the thermostat to a comfortable temperature. This will depend on the season but aim for about 70 to 75 degrees.
• Pets prep: If you have a pet, try to get them out of the house for the day and hide or remove all their accessories. Take the litter box out of the house and pick up the food and water bowls.

• Walk-through: Give your home a thorough walk-through and try to view it from the perspective of a potential buyer. Fix any issues you see. You can always put some things in your car if you don’t have time to get to a mess.
• Unplug air fresheners: Let them run all morning but unplug them about 30 minutes to an hour before the open house starts so the scent is not too overpowering.
• Turn on all the lights: Flip on all the lights for all the potential buyers wandering through.
• Prepare the listing flyers: Your real estate agent will likely take care of this but have some flyers with your home’s information on them for buyers to take.
• Final touches: Pull open all drapes, close all toilet lids and shut all closet doors.
• Sweetening the offer: If you want, you could offer cookies and water to buyers with the listing flyers.
• Leave: Let your real estate agent take over from here and leave the home. Buyers need privacy and space to consider your house.

After the open house, you may need to do some extra cleanup from people walking around throughout the day. Meet with your agent to discuss how the open house went. Ask if any potential buyers were interested in making offers or having a follow-up showing. Ask if the buyers had any feedback on the house and see if any of their concerns can be easily addressed.