Declutter, Depersonalize and Pack up

Declutter, Depersonalize, Pack up

Now, as you start the process of decluttering your house and depersonalizing your space, please just look at this as a way to get a jump on all that packing you’ll have to do anyway. The purpose of this process is to allow other people to see themselves in your house, instead of seeing your smiling faces on all the walls.

The fact is, living in a staged home will feel a bit like living in someone else’s house, which is the endgame, after all.

At this point, we’ll give you a checklist for each room in your house of items you should put away. As a general rule, pack up all personal photographs. Set all décor items aside because we may want to use these later. Start a box for items you’ll want to donate and bring a trash bag into each room.

Let’s get started…

 

Kitchen:

The most important real estate in your kitchen is your work space.

• Start by taking everything on your countertops and moving it all to one central location, like the kitchen table.
• Pack away everything that is non-essential. If you only use the toaster oven once a month, pack it away. Put away the bread machine (after all, carbs are evil now), the waffle maker, the pile of mail, the kids’ art projects (fun fact: you can throw away art now and it will never be missed) and anything else you don’t use daily.
• Find space (even if it’s in another room/closet/basement) for small appliances you can’t live without. Just get them off your counters.
• Now, clean your surfaces and backsplash. It’s the perfect time because of all the empty space.
• Items that are allowed to stay in your newly cleaned kitchen: a coffee maker and a tea kettle on the stove. If you have a good sized kitchen and/or an island, a bowl of good-looking fruit and a healthy plant could be a good idea.
• For showings and photos, remove all dish drying racks on counters and any towels hanging off handles. This is just visual clutter.
• Go through your cupboards. Just start packing unnecessary items. For example, if you have 47 coffee mugs but use about 5 of them, pack up (i.e., get rid of) the other 42. Clear out utensil drawers to the items you actually use. Put the George Forman grill in the “donate” pile. And, chances are you won’t be entertaining the Queen, so pack away the china until your next house.
• If you have glass front cabinets or open shelving, choose some nice dishes to display. We’d suggest things like simple stemware, white mixing bowels, canisters, a few cookbooks, etc. We’ll help you chose the best items to compliment your kitchen.
• Clean your appliances, inside and out. Often times, appliances are sold with the house, so expect potential buyers to open them and look inside. Even if your appliances aren’t staying with the house, expect potential buyers to open them and look inside. Take everything out of the fridge, wipe down shelves and drawers, throw away any science experiments and try to put things back in a way that looks organized and tidy. Clean the inside of the oven either with your self-cleaning feature or a can of easy-off. Put a sopping wet rag in your microwave for 2 minutes, then wipe out any splatters and goop. Wipe the outside of all appliances.

 

Dining Room/Eat-in Kitchen:

Now that you’re getting good at this, take a look around the dining room and note any areas that seem to be cluttered.

• If you have a hutch or built-in cabinets, basically anything that offers more storage in this room, start by paring down. Pack away any seasonal dishes now.
• Clear off any “piles” that may have accumulated on surfaces.
• Unless your dining area is very large, you may also need to remove any extra furniture lining the walls. People need to be able to easily get around the table and through the room. Excess benches, small tables, etc, should be removed.
• If there are still family photos on the walls, pack these away.

 

Bathrooms:

As a general rule, bathrooms should basically look like they’ve never been used.

• Clear off the bathroom countertops. Put away all personal items. All. Of. Them. If you use these items daily, put them in drawers or cabinets. If your cupboards are stuffed with half-used bottles of lotion and “spa gift sets” from years past, now would be a great time to purge. Fill your “donate” box and trash bag like it’s your job.
• Once your counters are cleared, start in on your shower/tub. Clear out anything, and we mean anything, you don’t use on a regular basis.
• Put all plungers and cleaning brushes under a counter so they’re not visible.
• Clean every square inch of everything.
• For your own safety and security, pack away any valuables and put any medications in a secure location. Remember, a bunch of potential weirdos will be walking through your house while you’re not home.

 

Living Room:

• Make sure all family photos are packed up.
• Take all decorative items, collections, books, throw pillows and blankets and put them aside. We’ll decide later on what can be used in staging.
• Remove all children’s toys and/or baby paraphernalia.
• Pack away any DVD’s, CD’s, excess electronics.

 

Primary Bedroom:

• Clear off nightstands as much as possible. A lamp and book, maybe an attractive clock, are all that should be left for now.
• Take inventory of your bed pillows. If they’re in great shape, fantastic. If they’re lumpy and you need three to the job of one, consider replacing them.
• Make sure all clothing is neatly put away
• Double check that all personal photographs and jewelry are packed up.
• Gather any décor you have and set it aside for possible use later.

 

Other Bedrooms:

• Your goal in children’s bedrooms is probably going to be toy management and keeping the rooms clean and tidy. So, pack up all the toys that aren’t well loved. Pack up items that are personalized to the child (ie, names on the wall, photos, etc). If the rooms are painted in bright, juvenile colors, we’d strongly suggest painting them in more neutral shades (we’ll even help you pick a color.).
• Guest rooms need to be tidy and uncluttered. Pack away the items you’ve been storing in the closets. Clear off surfaces wherever possible. And set aside all décor items for possible use.

 

Home Office:

• Inventory your furniture in this room. Is there too much? Do you need multiple bookshelves or do they make the room feel small and cluttered? If something can be removed, do it.
• Now, take everything off the bookshelves and clean them. If there are tons of paperback books, consider packing them away now. Pack away family picture albums and picture frames, awards, trophies, plaques, and diplomas.
• Clear out all of the paper from the desk surface. Try to keep only a computer, a pencil cup, and a lamp on your desk surface. We’ll style this later.
• Take down any cork boards, white boards, message centers, or family calendars.
• Items to keep in this room could include hardcover books, baskets/bins for shelving, a world globe, interesting accessories, cool book ends, and plants.

 

Mudroom/Entryway:

• Pack away any seasonal items that aren’t appropriate to the current season.
• If shoes are stored here, there should be a limited number of pairs and they should be placed neatly.
• If there is a bulletin board, take down any family calendars (for your safety) and anything that makes it look cluttered.
• Make sure the floors and surfaces are clean.

 

Laundry Room:

• Consider purchasing baskets or bins to hide any cleaning products on open shelving.
• Don’t leave dirty laundry in this room during showings or photos (clothes in the dryer would be fine, however).
• Wipe down the washing machine and dryer and clean the utility sink

 

Basement or Attic:

• If your space is finished, this is another space to tackle with the “stager’s eye.” Are there rooms that could be staged as a home office, playroom or extra bedroom? If so, declutter anything that doesn’t need to be in there (just like you’ve been doing).
• Tidy up storage areas so people can actually walk into them.

 

Garage:

• Now is a great time to clean out the garage so cars can be parked in their home. Organize any items stored in there. Get rid of anything you forgot you owned.
• If this is your only area for storage, you may start neatly stacking boxes out here that you’ve so diligently packed up.

 

Exterior:

• If you have a yard or patio/porch, make sure it is free of debris, toys, bikes, etc.
• If there is peeling paint anywhere, make a note of which areas need attention.
• If there are dead plants, thrown them away.
• Clean up any patio furniture.

 

Lastly, Tips and Tricks:

• Make sure there are no seasonal items in your listing photos. It may seem like a good idea to have pumpkins all over your house in November, but when December hits, your house will feel out of place to anyone looking at those photos.
• For photos and showings, we suggest picking up small rugs that are typically in bathrooms, kitchens, hallways. These items look like visual clutter in photos and can make a polished space seem messy.
• Make sure all light bulbs work in every room.

 

This is where we offer our deepest and sincerest “Congratulations!!” on what you’ve just accomplished. We’re so very proud of you. The work you’ve just done was the hardest work of all. Now, let the fun begin…