Most Real Estate professionals will tell you to declutter your home before selling it. But why? Here are 10 reasons why removing clutter will make your home more attractive and thus more valuable to prospective buyers.

1. An uncluttered home looks more spacious and space is what most home buyers are looking for.
2. A prospective buyer wants to imagine themselves in your home, not feel like an intruder. That’s why removing all personal items such as family photos, knickknacks, religious items, art work with a political theme, and excess furniture is so important.
3. A cluttered home gives an impression that the house has not been well maintained, raising a prospective buyers suspicions of “unseen” damage.
4. Clutter is a potential liability. If someone trips on your clutter, falls and injures themselves, you could be liable.
5. Storage space, such as cabinets and closets that are partially empty convey the impression that the house has good storage available – a big selling point for most people.
6. Older or worn furniture items, even if they may be important to you, can make a house seem dated and old.
7. Clutter conveys a dirty home, even if you’re a tidy person.  If you’re not, by all means get it professionally cleaned!

8. Too much stuff, makes it difficult to focus on a home’s best features.

9. Don’t assume buyers will want to use your home the same way you do.  If you have a room set up as an office, take the advice of your Real Estate agent if they suggest staging it differently.
10. Less clutter means less stuff for you to pack up and move, which will lower your cost of moving, and less stuff to unpack or clutter up your new home.

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Tags: Decluttering, downsizing, Home Organizing, moving, Real Estate, Sell your home Posted August 17, 2016 by Lis McKinley, M.A., CPO®