Do you have children that can lend a hand? Here are a few ideas on how you can get them involved:
- Morning clean-up, evening clean-up
- Set aside time in the morning and evening to do light dusting, vacuuming, as well as put things away where they belong. Start the dishwasher and the laundry, doing a load each day so it doesn’t pile up. This way, when someone wants to see the house in an hour, you don’t have to go crazy loading your car with eight laundry baskets of dirty clothes, or spend time scrubbing the bathroom floors.
- Laundry Basket Game & Assign “Out the Door Tasks”
- Someone wants to see the house in an hour but the kids just got home from practice, shedding items as they walked through the house! That’s OK. Make it a game and have the kids put all the toys and other items that are “out” into laundry baskets and take the baskets with you when you leave for the showing. Older children can help with sweeping, turning on lights and younger kids can close toilet lids, do last minute dusting, and help pull loaded laundry baskets to the car as you are all rushing out the door.
Arrange with your real estate agent to have 30 minutes to an hour’s notice before a showing! Then have a written plan!
Who is in charge of what during the 30 – 60 minutes?
- Little Susie picks up toys and puts them in the toybox.
- Johnny gathers all the dirty laundry he can find and tosses it into the empty dryer.
Do “Someone’s Coming” Drills with the kids. Practice the drill.
Make it fun!
You could come up with a little song that you all sing as you are cleaning the house for a showing.
Let us know if we can help you with your home buying, selling or refinancing!
