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VMH Top tips for selling your property when you have kids

Selling your property can be a stressful period for all the family and having younger children running around the house at the same time may not make the situation any better.

In today’s market having your property spotless is crucial, but when you add mischievous little feet running around with a bunch of crayons, it suddenly becomes a whole lot harder.

Don’t panic as we have put together our top tips to keep your little ones happy and reduce the chaos and mess.

Fail to prepare, prepare to fail

You should already know that preparation is key for every aspect when selling your house. It also helps when you have young children too. The classic situation of tidying one room in your house to return just an hour later to it being messy again (because of your little angels) is not ideal when having an open day, or when viewings are booked.

The best way to avoid this is to prepare by keeping the kids occupied with a movie and a snack in a close-by room where you can keep an eye on them. Even better if granny and grandad have a spare hour to look after them!

Make it a little less personal

Viewers often enjoy seeing the property in its current condition with family pictures dotted around the house. But if your house is full of sentimental pieces viewers can be distracted, removing the value of picturing themselves living in that house.

Consider removing a few sentimental items and remember the house has to look aesthetically pleasing to viewers, so the precious finger painting on the fridge may have to be put back up once they have left!

Kids: Rewards always work

Children often listen when they have a goal with a reward attached to it – also known as bribery! You can use this to your advantage when selling your house.

Set up a reward system that for every time your child does something to help, they receive a sticker. This could be when they tidy their toys away ready for a viewing or for when they’re quiet and well behaved during a viewing. Once they receive a number of stickers a well-deserved ice cream is the perfect reward.

Deep clean

As an added touch to boost your selling potential, give the property a full, deep clean. It may seem obvious but you may miss the sticky finger prints on windows and hidden crayon marks on the legs of tables.

Don’t be afraid to hire a carpet cleaner to brighten up the carpets again – if the buyers don’t notice, you definitely will!

A good tip is to focus on eye level items, but never forget the top and bottom.

Viewers will be marking everything mentally when they visit, trying to picture themselves in your home. They are immediately met with eye level objects but are not afraid to give the ceilings a good nosey, so don’t forget those cobwebs!

We have over 30 years property experience in Edinburgh and the Lothians, so GET IN TOUCH today and let us take the stress out of selling!