When selling your home, an important fact to keep in mind is that the way you live in your home and the way you should present your home for sale are two completely different things.  With that foundation in mind, here are a few basic tips to make your home the shining star among all the homes on the market.

• Before placing your home on the market, go ahead and give away, sell, or throw out items you don’t plan to use in your new home.  This will save you time later too!
• For safety and security, pack all breakable, sentimental, and valuable items.
• Have carpets PROFESSIONALLY cleaned before putting your home on the market.
• Open all drapes and blinds to bring in as much natural light as possible.  Light makes rooms appear more pleasant and larger.
• Be sensitive to odors.  Excessive cooking, smoking, pet, and mildew odors are a quick turnoff to buyers.    
• Remove extra leaves from the table to make the dining room look larger.
• Remove all magnets, notes, and pictures from the front and sides of refrigerator.
• Make all beds every day.
• Keep closet doors closed and walk-in closet floors clean and free of clutter.
• Remove that fuzzy toilet seat!!!
• Replace dirty bars of hand soap with neat bottles of liquid soap.
• Make sure all light bulbs are working throughout the house.
• Keep all porches, decks, sidewalks, and patios swept at all times.
• Remove extra items such as tools, lumber piles, and automobile parts from the yard.
• Prune all shrubs to window height.  Overgrown shrubs reduce both the amount of light entering the house and the view.