After 35 years of marriage, the retired couple was breaking up.
One of the hardest parts of their “nasty, messy divorce,” as their real estate agent described it, was selling their house: a Cape Cod with cobalt blue shutters.
Among other things, selling meant sorting through more than three decades of accumulated possessions.
The very thought of such an unpleasant project led to procrastination. For weeks, the couple fussed and fought, making little headway toward their goal of deciding which items should go to the wife, which to the husband, which to charity, and which to the dump.
Finally, they accepted a deadline from their agent, Karyn Schonherz, a broker-associate for the Prudential Realty chain.
“I called them every other day to see how they were progressing,” Schonherz recalls.
Five days before the deadline to list the house for sale, the couple still hadn’t purged themselves of their clutter. So, with their permission, Schonherz took a drastic step. She called a moving company and had all their excess belongings hauled away and placed in temporary storage.
From the day the “for sale” sign was pounded in their front yard, it took just two weeks to sell the Cape Cod for a healthy price. Had they not decluttered the property, they might have been forced to sell “as is,” accepting 10 to 15 percent less than market value, real estate specialists say.
Although few home sellers require such dramatic intervention to prepare a home for market, many find the process daunting. Advanced planning will more than pay you back for your time, insists Harriet Schechter, an expert in the art of organization and the author of several books on the subject.
Preparing your home for market not only will involve purging yourself of stacks of newspapers and shelves of bowling trophies, but also will involve numerous other tasks, small and large. Perhaps you’ll need painting, carpeting, floor refinishing and yard work.
The only way to approach the entire project is to break it into small pieces–creating a systematic and time-saving approach, says Schechter, a professional speaker and owner of The Miracle Worker Organizing Service.
“It’s like the old saying: `How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time,’ ” Schechter says.
Need a contractor to install inexpensive replacement carpeting without overcharging? Need a quick yet competent housepainter? Need a landscaper who is diligent yet modest in his charges? Then the solution to your quest could be found in your agent’s little black book.
“If you can’t get it together, ask your agent for help. We have a lot of resources at our fingertips that the average homeowner doesn’t have,” Schonherz says.
Here are some pointers to help would-be home sellers prepare for market:
– Focus on the outside of your home before the inside.
Mohammad Hassan, the co-owner of a Century 21 office, says an increasing number of home buyers are previewing homes from the street before setting an appointment to go inside.
Five years ago, about half of all prospects did drive-by previews, compared with 70 percent today, Hassan estimates.
One reason is that buyers are busier than ever. Another is that the public is becoming more technologically savvy, which means many are spotting home listings on the Internet and then driving by properties that sound appealing. They take the time to visit only those properties they like from the outside.
What does all this mean for Joe and Joanna Seller?
“Sometimes the buyers’ first impression of your home is the last impression they’ll ever get,” Hassan says. Hence, it’s important to focus foremost on your exterior.
– Organize your organizing mission.
For every 15 minutes you spend planning, you can expect to save an hour’s worth of wasted effort, says Schechter.
She recommends linking together related chores as a way of saving steps. For instance, you’ll save time by hiring a landscaper who will also haul trimmings away from your yard, rather than bring in a contractor for each task.
– Invite your friends to a “purge party.”
Although many Americans are plagued with the problem of excess belongings, they still “love to poke around in other people’s stuff,” says Schechter. “After all, one person’s clutter is another person’s treasure,” she says.
– Schedule multiple pickups from charity organizations.
Setting a time when your excess items can be picked up by a charitable organization is one way to give yourself a deadline that should add to your momentum.
There are many charitable groups that will volunteer to pick up unwanted household items. But as Schechter has learned through experience, the truck doesn’t always appear as promised. That’s why she suggests setting multiple appointments to be certain your castaways are hauled off promptly.
– Take note of the heavy penalty for inaction.
If you’re under time pressure to sell a crowded home you’ve inhabited for many years, you face two alternatives. You can either tackle the often unpleasant chores associated with readying your house for market or take a steep discount and sell your house in its current condition.
The reality is that trying to sell a crowded, dirty or cosmetically flawed property could mean settling for far less than the home would fetch were it in good condition and order.
