Selling your home can be a challenging experience, make no mistake about it. However, for parents with small children, selling their home can take on a whole new level of stress.

In short, you must make sure that your property looks its best at any given moment. So, how can you do this when you have small children running around?

The following checklist will help you prepare to sell your Plano home when you have small children:

1. Store what your kids aren’t using right now – If you’re like most families, your children really only play with a certain number of toys at any give time. Therefore, it pays to take the time to sort through your children’s toys and store or sell toys that they no longer play with or that they haven’t played with recently. Now is a great time to have a garage sale to sell all of that unused baby equipment or all those neglected toys!
2. Get organized – One of the last things your buyers want to see when they walk through the door is a mound of toys overtaking the living room. A great solution to this problem is to purchase a number of attractive looking bins or baskets that can store your kids’ toys while also looking attractive. Baskets and bins are also a great way to make quick work out of toy clean-up everyday.
3. Get the kids involved – Now is a great time to enlist the help of your children to keep their toys picked up and to develop positive attitudes about taking care of their belongings. Make a nightly routine out of working with your kids to clean up all toys before they go to bed. This will help keep things organized while also teaching your children the value of responsible behavior.
4. Hide toys before showings and open houses – Your last line of defense when it comes to toys is simply to hide them before potential buyers arrive. A hall closet, under the bed or behind the couch are all great last-minute hiding places.

Does the thought of selling your home simply overwhelm you? Does the mere suggestion of t he home selling process make you break out in a cold sweat?

If so, you’re not alone! However, the home selling process doesn’t have to be grueling, provided you know what to do -and perhaps more importantly, what not to do.

Although each home selling experience will be unique, there are a number of mistakes to avoid at all costs. Here are our top three mistakes every seller should avoid:

1. Not being flexible when it comes to showing your home or negotiating - In order to compete in today’s real estate market, you must be a flexible seller. If you prove to be difficult to work with or inflexible, don’t expect buyers to be knocking down your door with offers. Although it may be annoying or inconvenient to leave the home every time a buyer wants to view the home, it is necessary if you want to sell your Fort Worth home. Likewise, if a buyer puts in an offer that you feel is entirely too low, avoid simply rejecting the offer. Instead, counter offer to keep the lines of communication open.
2. Setting the price at what you want to sell the home for, not what the home is worth – We all think our homes are fantastic; however, we can’t use this level of thinking to sell our home; otherwise, we will likely not sell it. Instead, pay close attention to the local real estate industry and work with your real estate agent to develop a competitive pricing strategy.
3. Not taking the time to get your home in showing condition – Because buyers in today’s market generally have many homes from which to choose at any given time, they expect the home they purchase to be in move-in condition. In other words, if you expect your home to compete in today’s market, you better make sure that the home is spotless; that updates have been made; and that repairs have been made. You may also want to pay close attention to how you stage the home, as this can play a big part when it comes to getting that quick sale.