How to Handle Showings
Anyone who’s had to live in a staged house will tell you it’s no picnic. Sometimes you’ll have a day’s notice that a showing is scheduled. Sometimes you’ll have hours. Getting your house show-worthy in a matter of minutes can go one of two ways: you’ll either run through the house like a lunatic on fire screaming at everyone in your path that the house “isn’t clean enough!” or, you’ll go room by room with a system in place and be out the door in 15 minutes. Since you want your people to still like you at the end of this process, take our advice and do things the easy way.
1. Don’t Go To Bed Messy.
Every evening, set a timer for 20 minutes and make sure the house is picked up. The dinner dishes should be cleaned up, surfaces wiped down, piles of papers put away, jackets hung, floors swept, and laundry put away.
2. Get Less Sleep.
As much as it pains us to suggest it, getting up 15 minutes earlier could change your whole day. An extra 15 minutes will make sure all the breakfast dishes get done, all the beds get made, all the toothbrushes get put away, and any evidence of a busy morning are put aside.
I suppose you could always go to bed 15 minutes earlier, but we all know Netflix won’t watch itself…
3. Enlist Help!
If you have people living in your house, exploit their abilities. Give children specific jobs that they need to accomplish everyday. Young kids can pick up toys, make beds, put away toothbrushes, wipe down counters, and dust. Older kids can vacuum, sweep, and load the dishwasher. Bribery helps, so don’t be afraid to offer positive reinforcement.
4. Fake It ‘til You Make it.
Your house doesn’t have to pass the “white glove test.” It just has to appear to pass the “white glove test.” Have an empty laundry basket or duffel bag available at all times. If you run out of time before a showing, just go through every room and grab anything that offends you. Dirty socks, old shoes, dumb toys, library books, lunch boxes, floor mats, dish towels, what-have-you, and throw them in the basket. Load the basket into your trunk and it’s like it never existed in the first place.
Did you know you can basically clean a bathroom with a baby wipe? Spot clean floors, hide dirty dishes in the dishwasher, hide backpacks in a closet, and stash mail in a drawer. Get creative. Now, these tips will only work if you did your homework back in step 2. If you cleaned like you meant it the first time, maintaining clean is quick and easy.
5. Stay Away.
If the weather is nice, eat outside, play outside, be outside. If you have friends, invite yourself over. If you have a favorite restaurant, now would be a great time to visit. The less time you’re at home, the less cleaning you have to do.
6. Remember That This, Too, Shall Pass.
This time of living like the cleanest humans on the planet won’t go on forever. Putting in the hard work now, will hopefully yield quick results. Stay positive about the process by making anything and everything into a game with rewards. Your kids made their beds? McDonalds for ice cream! You made your bed? A trip to Starbucks! Two showings tomorrow? More time with friends! Play, “whoever can remember where we hid Fido’s leash gets to chose the restaurant for dinner.” Before you know it, you’ll be done with staging and moving instead. And then you can go back to your old ways, except that you won’t want to.