{"id":7602,"date":"2019-01-30T08:04:54","date_gmt":"2019-01-30T16:04:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=7602"},"modified":"2024-11-06T10:42:30","modified_gmt":"2024-11-06T18:42:30","slug":"how-to-get-house-ready-to-sell-with-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/how-to-get-house-ready-to-sell-with-children\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Get the House Ready to Sell When You Have Children"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a top real estate agent and certified D.A.D.,\u00a0David Shipley<\/a> of Chattanooga, Tennessee, understands a struggle many parents face: How exactly do you get the house ready to sell with children running afoot?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you really have to do is just declutter and put all the toys up and try to be diligent about that, especially when it\u2019s a showing time,\u201d Shipley told his clients who have five children, ranging from age 15 all the way to an infant. \u201cWith that many people in a house, as you can imagine, there\u2019s a lot of stuff. The garage is already full.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, 24% of sellers with kids need to move<\/a> because their current house is too small while over a quarter have to sell their home \u201cvery urgently\u201d\u2014that\u2019s a lot of compound stressors!<\/p>\n

So we\u2019ve put together these helpful tips based on our combing through of top parenting publications and culling the best advice on the web from people who have been there, done that when it comes to selling the house with kids<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Kid<\/a>
Source: (Rawpixel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1) Don\u2019t let the for-sale sign do all the talking<\/h2>\n

Selling a house with children has an emotional element too, with memories around every corner.<\/p>\n

Child development and behavior specialist Betsy Brown Braun, author of Just Tell Me What to Say: Sensible Tips and Scripts for Perplexed Parents<\/i>, told Parents <\/i>magazine that toddlers and preschoolers need about a month in advance<\/a> to process moving plans without much anxiety.<\/p>\n

Emphasizing what will stay the same\u2014particularly favorite belongings that are coming with you\u2014also helps ease youngsters’ stress.<\/p>\n

Of course, sometimes circumstances dictate that conversation has to come sooner, but sticking to your family\u2019s regular routine (same bedtimes, game night) can ease the adjustment, Brookline, Mass., therapist Katie Novick told Parents<\/i><\/a>. So can keeping your cool as much as possible and being positive about what lies ahead.<\/p>\n

If your children are old enough to help you pack, give them the power to make decisions<\/a> about what items they keep, donate, or discard, recommends the moving company Allied.<\/p>\n

Honor your old home and prepare for your new one by encouraging them to make a small memory book, complete with photos of favorite spots, and writing thank-you notes or visiting with kind neighbors.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/a>
Source: (Rawpixel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

2) Avoid open houses and stick to showings for your family\u2019s sanity<\/h2>\n

Showings are best, especially if you have young children, because you can whisk them out of the house for a short time and let potential buyers browse quietly, Shipley said. An open house<\/a>, because of its length, can disrupt youngsters too much.<\/p>\n

Talk to your real estate agent about how to best work showings into your schedule<\/a>. Many buyers like to look at homes after 5 p.m. on weekdays or on weekends, which might coincide with your child\u2019s soccer practice on Saturday mornings.<\/p>\n

You also can plan a fun outing, such as dining out, while your agent brings over buyers. Your agent also can consolidate showings by bringing multiple potential buyers at the same time.<\/p>\n

If you have the option to specify how much notice to have before a showing, ask for two hours<\/a> at least. With one hour to get everyone together and clear the everyday clutter, you might still be in the driveway when potential buyers arrive.<\/p>\n

3) Organize, pack, purge, and spritz<\/h2>\n

Speaking of the everyday clutter, designate favorite toys and belongings that won\u2019t be packed until later but can be stowed quickly for a showing, Shipley said.<\/p>\n

However you do that is up to what works best for your family. Some homeowners give their children free roam<\/a> of one area of the house to make last-minute cleanup easier. Or you can keep your vehicle trunk empty to stow everyday items\u2014perhaps in a rolling suitcase\u2014before potential buyers arrive.<\/p>\n

Morgan Hutchinson, a mother of two children, wrote in Vogue <\/i>magazine about having a \u201cdesignated junk zone<\/a>\u201d when her family put their home on the market. They kept the house tidy but used one to two large storage bins\u2014which stacked neatly in a deep coat closet\u2014for the everyday toys, mail, throw blankets, and whatever else needed to be swiftly out of sight.<\/p>\n

Hutchinson said she had her family use one bathroom whenever possible to keep their home\u2019s other bathrooms neat. For quick cleanup, she also spread an old white towel over her vanity when applying makeup to catch loose powder and brush hairs, and got her husband a beard bib<\/a> to avoid shaving messes. She also used rubbing alcohol and microfiber towels to make the vanity and fixtures sparkle.<\/p>\n

4) Make a house-showing checklist<\/h2>\n

You\u2019ll no doubt already have a running list of what to do before you move, so make a separate one for everything you should do before potential buyers arrive.<\/p>\n

This includes putting down the toilet seats, removing toiletries from the bathrooms, turning on lights, opening blinds and curtains, and storing small appliances. (HomeLight has a ready-made quick housing showing checklist<\/a> you can print and save.)<\/p>\n

\"Kid's<\/a>
Source: (Teddy\/ Rawpixel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5) Try to overlap access to your old home and your new home for a smoother transition<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re able to overlap having access to your old and new home\u2014for instance, if you can get into the new home a few days before you have to vacate your old one\u2014do it, advises the PBS Parents blog Supersisters, written by three sisters sharing motherhood tips. It\u2019s exhausting to move an entire house in one day and makes everyone grumpy.<\/p>\n

\u201cMoving room by room is one thousand times better than trying to sort out a sea of boxes,\u201d wrote one of the sisters, Patience Salgado, whose children moved seven times over ten years. \u201cIt makes for an easier transition for the littlest members of your family, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

If your move is a local one, hire multiple babysitters, set up playdates, or ask family and friends to keep the children occupied so you can ease the unpacking chaos and get settled, Salgado said.<\/p>\n

Selling a house and moving with children is definitely an adventure, but it doesn\u2019t have to be a disaster. With some organizing and preparation, you can get your house shipshape without much hassle and have your whole family ready for some new memories.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tips from top parenting sites and an expert real estate agent (who’s also a certified D.A.D.) for how to get the house ready to sell with children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":7605,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[328,319],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-families","category-selling-advice"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Get the House Ready to Sell When You Have Children<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Tips from top parenting sites and an expert real estate agent (who's also a certified D.A.D.) for how to get the house ready to sell with children.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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