Did you know eliminating clutter from your home is one of the most cost-efficient, effective ways to improve its perceived value to buyers? In exchange for your effort, your home will seem larger, filled with potential, and much more desirable to viewers.  Another benefit is how much less stressed you will feel every time you walk in or open your closet and see order instead of chaos! Think de-cluttering your home is too daunting a task? Try choosing just one thing and focusing on it.

Small steps are better than no steps at all.

OVERLOAD OF CLOTHES: There is probably a huge chunk of apparel in your closet that isn’t being used. Get rid of it. Only keep the items that you wear. Simplify your closet, and you’ll simplify a part of your home.

WHERE TO BEGIN: You have two options, depending on your schedule:

Test in an afternoon or weekend: Take everything out of your closet, try each item on and determine what items you still like/wear. Anything that needs to be mended, mend; anything that you don’t want, give away. Only keep what fits you and looks good on you.

Test over time: If you lack a big chunk of time to de-clutter, try this instead. Move your entire wardrobe to another closet and pull just what you need out of it every morning. After you’ve worn something, move it into your regular closet. Continue this for a few weeks/months, and you’ll know what items are being worn consistently.

SOME THINGS TO REMEMBER:

Think Seasonally: If there are clothes you wear, but not in the current season, put them into storage. You won’t be wearing them out-of-season, so putting them away frees up closet space and makes your closet appear much more inviting to your buyer.

Think Objectively: If you’re hanging on to an item for purely sentimental reasons with no intention of ever wearing it again, take a picture and move on. If you really, really can’t part with it, add it to a keepsake/memories box. Don’t keep it in the closet.

Think Practically: It’s a good idea to get rid of wire hangers, if at all possible. They get tangled and broken and contribute to a messy look. Donate them to your local Salvation Army or shelter and invest in matching plastic, wooden or popular thin felt covered hangers you can find at Walmart or Target. Low cost. High end look.

Think Purposefully: Try to make a commitment to yourself to only use your closet for wardrobe items. It’s not the place for your computer, old books or photo boxes. By relegating your closet’s use to its intended one, you not only de-clutter, you de-stress!

THE RESULT
Cleaning out your closet may feel like a lot of work, but consider all the benefits:

• You’ll find it easier to pick out clothes in the morning.
• The room will look more presentable to potential buyers.
• Your closet will seem more spacious.
• You won’t have to go through the process when you sell/move.
• You’ll be giving to charity.
• Donations are tax-deductible.
• You will feel fantastic!

It’s often noted that there are benefits to closing on a home you’re buying at the end of the month. Are there any advantages to closing at the beginning or middle of the month? What’s the difference? If I’m buying a home for a certain price, why should it matter when I close? If you’re obtaining a mortgage, the day you close will determine how much money you need to bring to closing. It won’t, however, change the monthly date your payments will be due. Let’s say your due date is the 1st of each month. Then you won’t have a mortgage payment due until the first of the second month after you close. So now let’s break down “best day to close” theory.

Because mortgages are paid in arrears (for the month passed), the date you close will determine how much money you have to bring to closing as you’ll be paying the interest needed to cover the remainder of the current month.

Examples:

If you close on May 6th, you will need to bring enough money to closing to cover 25 days of interest for that month (31 days in May – closing on May 6 or 31-6 = 25 days of interest due).

If you close on May 28th, you will only need to bring enough money to closing to cover 3 days of interest for that month (31-28 = 3).

With either option, because you’re closing in May, you won’t have a mortgage payment due until July 1st. So, if you’re already stretching yourself to have enough funds for your down payment at closing, setting your date at the end of the month will reduce the amount f cash you’ll have to bring.  Closing at the beginning or middle of the month will require you to bring more cash to closing but you will have more time in the home before your first mortgage payment is due. This might be helpful if you need to get kids registered for school or start your new job, etc.

So you’ve moved into your new, perhaps older, home that wasn’t built with the largest of closets. Or, you have an extra room and even though you have a good sized closet, you’ve always wanted a special ‘dressing room’ all your own. Be brave. Get creative and turn that extra bedroom or den into your private retreat. And you don’t have to spend a lot of money. Add a closet organizer with racks and shelves to a long wall, add individual hooks to the wall to create a stylish display and easy accessibility of hats, scarves, jewelry, handbags…whatever works best for you. You can add a storage bench against a wall for more storage or use a larger upholstered one in the center of the room which adds to the design an storage space.  Add shoe racks or buy inexpensive racks that match the wall piece and stack shoes in their boxes or plastic shoe boxes. You can also add behind door shoe or purse racks or hooks for robes or sweaters. There are so many things you can do to make it your own! The space in the photo was created for under $150 over a weekend. (tip: Put hooks  up with 3m type adhesives so you can rearrange your wall and design easily and again at minimal cost.)

When the grandkids visit, you can always add a toddler bed or blow up mattress while they’re there and then simply put it away when they’re gone and return to enjoying your very special personal space.

Sometimes your home doesn’t need a whole makeover in order to get ready to sell. Sometimes it just needs a few some simple changes or updates to make it fresh and ready to entice its next owner.

• Take a slow and objective walk through your home with a clipboard and as you enter each room, make a note of what you think needs to change. Then have an objective friend who you trust and hand them a clipboard and ask them to do the same thing. Compare notes over a cup of coffee (or glass of wine) and make a project list for yourself.
• Are the dents in your carpet sunk down to the sub-floor because the furniture hasn’t been moved in years? You don’t need to pay a professional stager. Have a friend whose home you and others always admire for its great design and decor? Invite them over to help you rearrange your furniture and if necessary update your decor (nothing major but sometimes your decor screams a bygone era). If necessary, get rid of any furniture (put in the garage or storage) that look sad and worn out or adding to a cluttered feeling. Review….Rearrange….Refresh & Sell!
• If you take down a framed photo or piece of art, is the wall beneath it a completely different color than the rest of the wall? Can’t afford to paint all your rooms? Give your walls a good old fashioned washing? May be tedious but costs less than paint and can have the same positive affect. Also, wash your baseboards, trim, doors, windows and ceiling fan blades. Get rid of any and all cobwebs even way up in that vaulted ceiling. You might think no one will notice them BUT THEY WILL!
• If you’ve followed the advice you’ve seen in articles and on diy tv shows and painted your entire home in neutral beige or taupe tones, add color and energy to your spaces by the simple addition of live green plants. Live plants bring life to your home. There are plenty of plants that look great and can be easily maintained. When doing an open house or showing, a vase of fresh flowers will do the same thing. People don’t want to live in a dreary monotone home. Give it life with life!
• De-clutter! Again, have a trusted friend who you know will be and you’ll let be honest with you. Buy bins if you’re not ready to get rid of your knick knacks and stash them away out of view. You can decide later what you want to keep and what you don’t want to have to move later.
• You can update your kitchen or baths by simply changing the hardware on your cabinets, updating window treatments and giving your appliances a good scrubbing. Clean the outside, top and inside of the oven and microwave. Again, the kitchen is a great place to place a few small pots of fresh herbs. Basil and rosemary are great for your kitchen. A pot of lavender is a wonderful addition to the bath.
• Have a messy home office but you need all those papers and files, etc? Invest in a few attractive office organizers. Again, they don’t need to be fancy, expensive items. Both Walmart and Target have great office organizing options.

You don’t have spend a fortune to get your home updated and ready to sell. You simply have to invest your own time and energy to get a great result! The only downside is that once you’re finished, you might not decide to sell! Hmmm, but even that can be an upside!!

You work sooooo hard to make sure your home looks clean, crisp and move in ready for your prospective buyers/renters to view. But a common mistake many people make is looking at all the big stuff (painting, landscaping, appliances, etc.) and miss the small things that can scream out at your buyers/renters. Walk through your home and take the time to look up, look down and take a good look all around. Then get our your cleaning supplies or paint brush and let those finishing touches now yell out this home really is move in ready!

• Look Up: Bathroom Ceiling Vents. These hold on to so much dust that once you take it down and look at it, you’ll wonder how you were ever breathing at all.  It’s simple to take down, wash and put back up. But make sure you also take the time to clean the vent fan and around it before replacing the cover. If the cover shows any kind of rust or discoloring, pick up a new one. Cost is low, return is high!
• Look Up: Remove all bugs and dust from ceiling light fixtures. Take down and wash it thoroughly. Then clean around the bulb area before replacing the fixture cover.
• Look Up: Walk through every room with a long mop or swiffer type product and look at the corners or all ceilings and along wood beams for cobwebs. Takes only a moment to remove yet leaves a lasting impression.
• Look Up: Ceiling Fan Blades are notorious for accumulating a tremendous amount of dust which, if left long enough, will be able to be seen or felt as it falls from the blade when they turn on the fan to see if it works.
• Look Up and Down: Ceiling/Wall/Floor Heating Vent or Cold Air Returns: Just like the bathroom vent cover, because of the blowing air and dust that circulates, these also hold onto a lot of dust. The tendency is to use a swiffer or broom and just brush off the dust but since the vent themselves have dust in them, that fresh, clean appearance won’t last long. Take the extra time to remove the vent covers, wash or wipe them down thoroughly. Then use your vacuum hose to clean out the vent itself.
• Look All Around: Stand outside your front, back and side entries. These areas, especially if you have light fixture, accumulate a bunch of cobwebs and bugs. Use a shop vac or wet cloth/mop to clean all around the entryway. Remove the light cover and clean the area and cover thoroughly.
• Look All Around: Take the time to clean your windows on the inside and out. Nothing makes a room look dirtier than sun shining through a dirty, streak, dust filled window. On the other hand, a sunbeam flowing through a clean window is inspiring!

These are just some ideas to help you get an idea what you still need to do. Some of these tasks can seem tedious but in the end a few things will result: If you’ve had allergies you may see an improvement due to the reduction in dust; your home will feel cleaner, look cleaner and present a better and hopefully lasting impression!