Clutter stops buyers in their tracks!
No one wants to inherit chaos. We have all been in homes where the walk-in closet is no longer walk-in. We’ve been in homes where we had to jump over things hoping to discover a trail along the way. A buyer does not want to be on a quest to find the kitchen. We have all been in homes where the homeowner runs between us and a door and says, “Don’t open that, it took me 5 minutes to cram everything in so I could shut the door.” Believe it or not, this may be a problem.
If you don’t want to offend or don’t know how to talk to your homeowner -
Review Article: Have you ever been embarrassed to show your listing?
Here’s some help for your client to stop the disorder.
Print a PDF Version of the STACKS System for your seller.
———————————————————————————————
The STACKS Organizational System
STACKS stands for: Storage, Trash, Another Room, Charity, Keep and Sort. It is the best organizational system for even the largest of cluttered spaces. This step-by-step method will save you time and tears. In less time than you think, you will have an organized home ready for potential buyers.
The Tools Needed
- STACKS – six large boxes or plastic bins labeled:
- Storage: for items you’ll not need while your home is on the market. It’s important to get these boxes off the property and not store them in the house or garage. Buyers need to see as much space as possible, even in the garage.
- Trash: put it in the middle of the room and go for it. It is always surprising how much trash we have in a house. Don’t forget to recycle!
- Another room: do you know how much time it takes to run all over the house putting items in other rooms? Tons! Save it for later and stay in the area you’re clearing out. When you are done, then you can distribute it all at once.
- Charity / Sell: I recommend giving it to charity more than hanging on to it for a yard sale. You know things will sneak back to the house if you hold on to it for the big sale. For larger items you don’t want to give away consider consignment shops, an antique dealer, or sell it on the internet. Don’t save it for your kids; they have enough stuff!
- Keep: only items to be used for staging purposes or needed while you’re on the market.
- Sort: very important for keeping your speed up. Example: if you are cleaning the top of a desk and there is a lot of paperwork, put it in the sort box and keep going. Later, set the timer and go through the sort box. It is all about breaking the clutter down into smaller units so it’s easier to deal with.
- Packing wrap
- Large marking pen
- Timer
- Small and large Zip-Lock® bag
- Great upbeat music – no TV!
- Babysitter if you have small children
Develop a Plan of Attack
A solid plan is your first step:
- Make a chart of who is to help, then divide each room down to sections. This way it will not be overwhelming and you can celebrate small victories along the way. For example: Tom is going to clean and organize the cabinet under the kitchen sink, while Ann is going to clean and organized the pantry.
- Start with simple areas first to give you a sense of achievement. Hiring help or bringing in a friend can also help the process. This will save you time because this person does not have memories attached to all your things.
- Estimate how long it will take and schedule the time. Be generous. You do not want to cut it close when you are starting out, it will only discourage you. Use a timer! It will keep you on track. Even if you have a heavy schedule, break it down into small time segments. This will allow you to get everything accomplished. Best of all, you will be pre-packed and ready to move.
Buyers need to see past your life, and see the home behind it. They need to envision their own things and style of life. You need to show off what wonderful features and architectural details your home has to offer. When a buyer feels uncomfortable or feels there is not enough space, you’re not going to get an offer and your agent may be calling you for a price reduction.
You might be surprised. Once you live in an uncluttered home, you may never unpack those boxes.
Helping you get your home SOLD!
Angela Voss
Designology Home Staging
© 2010 / Real Estate Design Marketing a publishing division of Designology Home Staging. All Rights Reserved.
22 Responses to “Clutter stops buyers in their tracks!”
Leave a Reply
Upcoming Article
Whose bright idea was this?!
February 4th, 2010 at 6:37 am
Angela,
This is great information, laid out step by step, exactly how it is needed! The PDF is a great resource. Thanks!
February 4th, 2010 at 6:16 pm
Angela,
Thank you for providing such great information for my sellers! It truely doesn’t seem to hurt their feelings when the suggestions are laid out in your flyers, (besides, I love not being the “bad guy”!)
Please keep up the awesome job you do staging, photo shoots and newsletters as you are making my job listing properties easier and more enjoyable. Thank you again!
Mary
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:13 pm
Selling Your Home? Get Rid Of The Clutter! | For Sale By Owner Albany Blog says:[...] have accumulated a vast inventory of items over the course of many years, you may want to check out The STACKS Organizational System. It is a step-by-step method for dealing with de-cluttering and organizing your [...]
March 20th, 2010 at 7:33 pm
Selling Your Home: Dealing With Clutter | For Sale By Owner Resources says:[...] bigger picture. She also has a step-by-step method for dealing with the overwhelming task called The STACKS Organizational System. If you need to sort through and pack a lot of things quickly, her system is invaluable. If [...]
April 11th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
You seem very chuffed about this subject and it comes across. Looking forward to future posts. Thank you.
April 13th, 2010 at 3:03 am
This is a superb posting, I located your site searching aol for a related subject and arrived to this. I couldnt discover to much alternative info on this posting, so it was wonderful to find this one. I will be back again to look at some other posts that you have another time.
April 15th, 2010 at 2:57 pm
I have read a few of the articles on your website now, and I really like your style of blogging. I added it to my favorites web site list and will be checking back soon. Please check out my site as well and let me know what you think.
April 29th, 2010 at 3:03 am
This is a excellent blog post, I located your web page searching aol for a similar subject matter and arrived to this. I couldnt find to much alternative information and facts on this write-up, so it was great to locate this one. I probably will be back again to look at some other posts that you have another time.
May 11th, 2010 at 9:08 pm
I just sent this post to a bunch of my friends as I agree with most of what you’re saying here and the way you’ve presented it is awesome.
May 29th, 2010 at 12:24 am
Angela,
This is great information, laid out step by step, exactly how it is needed! The PDF is a great resource. Thanks!
June 1st, 2010 at 9:23 am
You certainly deserve a round of applause for your post and more specifically, your blog in general. Very high quality material
June 1st, 2010 at 4:36 pm
I just sent this post to a bunch of my friends as I agree with most of what you’re saying here and the way you’ve presented it is awesome.
June 2nd, 2010 at 1:36 am
Excellent article, this is very similar to a site that I have. Please check it out sometime and feel free to leave me a comenet on it and tell me what you think. Im always looking for feedback.
June 10th, 2010 at 10:03 pm
Thanks for the really great info, I will stop by more often.
June 20th, 2010 at 1:46 am
This is a very fascinating post, I was looking for this information. Just so you know I found your website when I was doing research for blogs like mine, so please check out my site sometime and leave me a comment to let me know what you think.
June 22nd, 2010 at 2:41 pm
been following your blog for some days now and i should say i am starting to like your post. and now how do i subscribe to your blog? Antique Brass
July 11th, 2010 at 6:32 am
I really enjoy reading the articles on this blog. I’ll bookmark this so I can read more later.
July 13th, 2010 at 3:09 am
I really enjoy reading the articles on this blog. I’ll bookmark this so I can read more later.
July 13th, 2010 at 11:51 pm
I really enjoy reading the articles on this blog. I’m a new real estate agent and will bookmark your site. Hopefully, someday I’ll be writing my own articles on my website
July 15th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
Buying a home is a very big decision. Such decisions need to be taken with lot of thought involved. Luckily for me when I wanted to buy a home I came across some good real estate people in Albany, they not only helped me find my dream house but also gave me a dream deal on it
July 19th, 2010 at 7:42 am
I truly enjoyed this. It is very educational and ueful. I will return to check on upcoming posts.
July 19th, 2010 at 8:46 am
You certainly deserve a round of applause for your post and more specifically, your blog in general. Very high quality material.