Sell Your House in Kansas City – 7 Things To Do

If you’re looking to sell your house in Kansas City, there are a few things you’ll want to do first. Prepping your house to sell may increase interest from potential home buyers and could even boost your home’s value as homes that appear to be well-maintained oftentimes yield higher returns.

Here are seven things you can do to get your house ready to sell in Kansas City.

1. Declutter

As the famous designer and architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe once said, “less is more”. Having fewer things scattered throughout your house makes spaces feel larger, more open, and more accessible. A lot of clutter tends to make your home feel lived in and occupied, but not in a welcoming way. Decluttering helps potential buyers envision what it might be like living in your house — a cluttered house makes this more difficult. Start by removing or stowing away children’s toys, folding and putting away laundry, keeping your kitchen free of dirty dishes, or putting excess items into storage.

2. Clean Thoroughly

Deep cleaning before listing your home for sale is important. You can do this yourself, or spend a couple of hundred dollars to have a professional cleaning team come in and clean every inch of your house. This is a deep cleaning, not a surface cleaning, which is why it may be best to have a professional cleaning team do the work. This really makes a difference to potential home buyers as most people can tell when a house has been thoroughly cleaned and when it has not. Don’t risk it! Find top-rated house cleaning services in Kansas City now.

3. Remove Personal Items

Potential buyers don’t want to see photos of your family, nor do they want to see your high school football jersey on the wall in your basement. Those are your memories and when potential homebuyers see them, it will deter them from envisioning the life they could make in your home. Try to neutralize the house to appeal to most buyers. Replace family photos with cheap but appealing framed photos from places like Target, HomeGoods, or Walmart. Do the same with personal wall art or obscure art pieces you may have displayed. Simple pictures that have a similar color flow with the rest of the room are great replacements and can be found affordably.

4. Clean Up After Your Pets

Many people are allergic to pets. And if they’re not then carpet stains, scratched furniture, and other signs of pets in your house aren’t appealing and will likely only make it more difficult to sell your home. Remove water and food bowls prior to showings and try to have the pets out of the house when showings are scheduled. Replace carpet that may show pet stains, change your bedsheets, and vacuum the pet hair from your floors and furniture.

5. Tidy Up

Start by making your beds, cleaning and putting away dishes, and picking up anything that looks out of place. This might sound self-explanatory, but we advise buyers to imagine what it could be like living in your house. If you don’t tidy up before a showing, it could make home buyers feel like they are intruding on a house that someone else already lives in. Which is true, but not the vibe you want to give off. You want buyers to walk away from a showing with a positive feeling. Leave as few signs as possible that someone currently lives in the house. Clean and organize like your in-laws are arriving.

6. Utilize Professional Staging

Professional staging companies can work with the furniture you already have as well as add their own pieces to help accentuate your home. Stagers can also help with decluttering, removal, and replacement of unwanted personal items. Hiring the right professional stagers will likely add value to your home, more than making up for the fee in the sale price of your home. At UpSell, our professional staging partner is Crown Staging.

7. Showings

When potential home buyers inadvertently run into the sellers during a showing, things can get awkward. To avoid the awkwardness, leave your house 30 minutes before the requested showing time and return at least 30 minutes after the showing is scheduled to end. This gives potential buyers ample time and plenty of space to view the home at their leisure. Don’t make them feel rushed as this may cause the buyer to have a bad experience or a negative memory of your house, which, in turn, decreases your chances of selling your home. Don’t forget to turn all the lights on, and open blinds interior doors before you leave. Leave the house feeling open, airy, and as bright as possible!