Need to list your Sacramento home quickly? Here are a few tips to get it ready in a short amount of time...

I tour a lot of homes. A LOT. And not just in the course of showing a lot of homes to buyers. I make a weekly habit of looking at properties for the sake of reference, to know and be familiar with what is on the market in certain Sacramento area neighborhoods. This helps me help both my buyers AND my sellers.

One thing I see frequently is a complete and total lack of preparation of a home for sale. As in this photo here to the left in a Land Park home I toured - this home seller covered a big mess of stuff with some blankets. And it looked crappy. Take a few minutes and box that stuff up...WHY would a seller not want to present a home in the best possible light? And that leads me to wonder why on earth would a seller choose a listing agent who doesn't help them or suggest ways to get the house ready to sell?

I do sometimes get calls from folks who want to list their home right away...and with RIGHT AWAY comes a time crunch to get a home presentable for showings. Perhaps it's a short sale situation and there is a risk of foreclosure looming? Maybe it is a divorce situation and there is a court order to sell? Perhaps they found another house they want to buy and need their existing home on the market now? Whatever the case, it happens. Here are a few quick ideas for home sellers who want to have their home on the market asap...

First and foremost - clean your home. If you do not have the time to clean it yourself, please hire a professional. It is really important that your home smell clean, the bathrooms be free of the ring around the toilet, the shower enclosure be free of scum, the kitchen appliances and fixtures are free from grease, and the floors are clean. Added bonus if you can have your carpets professionally cleaned and your windows professionally washed.

Mow the lawns. At least the front lawn, even if you do not have time for the back yard. Blow leaves and tidy up planter beds. If you have kids, put them to work pulling weeds or scooping dog poop. Most buyers form their impression of a home within seconds of seeing the exterior. If the exterior looks uncared for, that's usually an indication of what the interior will look like. Added bonus if you can power wash your driveway and front walkways.

De-clutter as much as it's possible to. If this means your have to cram stuff into your closets or garage, then by all means do it. You will have to pack for moving anyway. Grab a few boxes and start thinning things out - put some of the knick knacks away, put away the unfolded laundry, box up your DVD collection, maybe pack-up the winter or summer clothes (depending on what time of year it is). If you have kids and their toys are everywhere, get a Rubbermaid tote that you can throw all of the toys into for showings. Added bonus if you can do something simple like set your dining room table with clean linens with a pretty, fragrant vase of flowers in the center.

These are the basics to maximizing your home's appeal with time constraints...of course if you have more time to prepare, that's ideal. Because taking some time, when you have it, to truly prepare a home for sale can yield a higher selling price in a shorter time on the market. But that's another article I wrote...