Tips for Home Sellers on De-cluttering in the Fall – Guest Blog by Lin Nulman

‘Tis the Season to De-clutter

In the fall, sellers can find themselves with seasonal de-cluttering challenges, both indoors and outdoors. Especially if you’re selling a house that needs work, you want to minimize flaws and maximize appeal.  That’s why we’ve collected these tips for home sellers. The weather takes its toll on outdoor beauty and can make mudrooms and garages vulnerable to clutter.

It’s important not to neglect these parts of your home. Even if you don’t spend a lot of time in there, make sure they look their best. In fact, these areas are where your house makes its first impression and leaves that last, lingering image.

Organize the Great Outdoors

Fall may not pack the “curb appeal” punch of May in full bloom, but your front yard 

is still the first place potential buyers see. Don’t abandon it just because Mother Nature has.

Rake the leaves, and mow the lawn. These are tasks to do on a regular schedule. Same with snow: make sure paths and other traffic areas stay clear and safe. Same goes with cleaning the gutters.

Get anything dead out of the garden or yard borders. Many plants that do well in chilly-to-cold weather can add some needed color, including decorative kale, coral bell, oxalis, stonecrop, sage, and that classic standby, the mum.

It’s time to remove summer clutter, such as gardening tools, toys, and furniture looks forlorn in colder weather. If a porch or deck can be autumn-cozy, arrange some all-weather furniture with blankets, and stack wood in the fire pit.

Put some of those fall plants for the living spaces, and add displays of pumpkins and gourds. But don’t clutter up your curb appeal with too much holiday decoration. It’s not the time for a carpet of colored lights or porch-sized Halloween spider webs.

Empty Garages and Mudroom

It may not be a room you live in, but the garage still needs de-cluttering. For one, you want buyers to see that the car(s) will fit when needed during bad weather. Show off the space available for any type of storage. Clear it out, and clean the floor. Partially empty shelves and racks, and organize what’s left. Utilize wall space with hooks, or use bungee cords to hold items between the studs.

The mudroom is another place where outdoor and indoor items can get chaotic. Fall weather means tracks of leaves, mud, and snow, plus the need for extra clothing at hand. A mess here will compromise the look of the rest of the house.

Organize everyone’s fall necessities. First, put away the clutter of beach chairs and summer games. Give each family member a place for their outerwear, bags, and gear. Hooks are a simple organizational tool, and removable hooks are sturdy and easy to place.

A colorful bench not only looks cheerful on a gray day, but gives the room purpose and shape. Underneath it is the perfect place for storage bins to hold boots or footballs.

In Conclusion

Clutter is tiring, say the experts; it depletes energy and lowers spirits. A buyer out-and-about on a long day of house-hunting doesn’t want that. Instead, have your outdoor and semi-outdoor areas energize people. If getting organized is getting you down, there are great pros out there who can help with ideas and stamina.

And don’t forget that your real estate agent, your partner in the sale, can give expert advice on the “look” of your spaces, as well as recommend an organizer.

For more tips for home sellers, contact a real estate agent through Homelight.com!

About the Author:

Lin Nulman has been writing for HomeLight.com since 2016, and her work has been featured on many other websites. She teaches writing and literature at Bunker Hill Community College. Her poetry and arts writing has appeared in a number of journals, anthologies, and websites.