Although many of us aren't exactly "hoarders", we do tend to collect piles of unnecessary items throughout our lives. If you're trying to sell your home, an important first step is to get rid of the clutter. Not only will this help in the efforts of staging your home, but it will ease your moving experience as well. Here are some areas in your home that you'll want to declutter:

Bookshelves and end tables
As you'll probably notice, this article is going to highlight the importance of simplicity. Our bookshelves, end tables, mantles and other common surfaces of the home can become cluttered with decorations and knick-knacks. Now is a good time to clear off some of those items and decide if they are pieces you will want to keep. If you're moving into a new home, you might want to start fresh! For staging purposes, even if you do want to keep some of these things, you should pack them up and keep the amount of items on display to a minimum.

Furniture
For showing purposes, minimal furniture is best. You do not want your living spaces to be completely empty, but you also do not want to pack them with unnecessary furniture either. Creating an atmosphere where potential buyers can understand how a space can be utilized, without hindering their own vision for the space, is so important when selling your home.

Countertops
Do you really need the waffle maker, toaster, instant pot, air fryer, mixer and coffee maker on display in your kitchen? It's time to either find some cabinet space to keep these neatly out of sight, or simply pack them up and get them ready to move to your new home. If you've only ever used that fondue maker twice since it was gifted to you five years ago, it might even be time to get rid of it completely.

You can keep a couple of essential appliances on the counters for staging, but the less you have on your countertops, the bigger it will look. If you feel like that space is too empty, consider putting out a nice fruit bowl or a simple piece of dcor, instead of an appliance.

Walls
Yes, our walls become cluttered too. You might not even realize your walls are cluttered, but a potential buyer will. To get your home ready to sell, you'll want to take down your family photos and, depending on how many hangings you have on the walls, some of your artwork or dcor as well. You don't want your walls to be blank, but having your family portraits on display all over the house will not make a potential buyer feel like it could be their home. Again, simplicity is key, so decluttering your walls can really help your home sell!

Closets
Closets, aka the places in a house where we store all of our junk, also need to be cleaned out in order for your house to sell. If you are unable to clean out your closets completely before showing your home, you at least need to organize them. This is a prime opportunity to go through your storage and figure out what can be kept, sold or donated before you make the big move.

Tip: If you haven't used something within the last year, you probably aren't ever going to use it. It's time to part ways with your unnecessary clutter.

Cabinets and Drawers
Similar to your closets, you'll either want to completely clear out your drawers and cabinets (think kitchen and bathrooms), or at least get them neatly organized. Junk drawers and medicine cabinets tend to hold unwanted items for years - purge them! Messy storage areas make it hard for a potential buyer to imagine utilizing that space themselves, which could in-turn deter them from purchasing the home.

 

At the end of the day, decluttering your home can feel like a weight has been lifted off of your shoulders. Even if you aren't looking to sell right away, clearing out these areas of your home can give you a fresh start.

Looking for more advice during the buying/selling process? Visit www.crye-leike.com/blogs for more real estate tips and tricks!