What to Do Before Selling Your Home

Before you call a contractor or buy a single gallon of paint, let’s walk the home together. I look at it the way a buyer will: first from the street, then from the front door, then room by room. Then we sort everything into four buckets:

• Fix now — things that work poorly, look like deferred maintenance, or could come up at inspection.
• Refresh — quick, inexpensive updates that change how a room photographs.
• Leave alone — projects that cost more than they’re likely to return, or that a buyer would rather choose themselves.
• Document — ages, permits, receipts and reports buyers will ask about.

Talk to me before starting any of these. Some make sense for certain homes; many don’t.

• Major kitchen or bath remodels right before listing. They take time, can run over budget, and buyers often prefer to pick their own finishes.
• Half-finished projects. A partly updated room can raise more questions than an original one. If it’s started, let’s plan how to finish or present it.
• Very personal upgrades. Bold tile, custom built-ins or specialty features you love may not be what the next owner wants to pay for.
• Replacing things that still work. An older appliance or fixture that functions and is clean may be fine as-is. We’ll look at what’s competing with your home before deciding.

Because you are. Everything you pack now is one less thing to pack later — and one less thing competing for attention in photos.

• Counters: clear them almost completely. Keep one or two intentional pieces.
• Closets and pantry: aim for about half full. Buyers open doors.
• Personal items: pack family photos, collections, paperwork and anything with names on it.
• Furniture: in most rooms, taking one piece out makes the space feel bigger and easier to walk through.
• Garage, lanai and patio: these get photographed and walked through too. Clear floor space matters.

A short-term storage unit or a friend’s garage can be your best friend for a few weeks.

Photos go on the calendar after repairs, decluttering and cleaning are finished. Photographing a home mid-project is how a listing ends up with pictures that undersell it.

Not every home needs the same shot list. We plan it around what makes your home worth seeing: twilight exteriors for a glowing pool and lanai, aerials when the lot, the view or the setting is part of the story, a floor plan when the layout is a selling point, and video when the home has energy worth showing. You can see how that played out on real listings on my Listing Tours & Marketing page.

Pricing is a strategy, not a guess. We’ll look at recent sales, what’s competing with your home right now, and what’s already under contract. You can help by pulling together what you have:

• A list of updates and when they were done (roof, A/C, water heater, windows, pool equipment, kitchen, baths)
• Permits, receipts and any warranties that transfer
• Any reports you already have, such as a wind mitigation report or survey
• HOA or condo association contacts, fees, rules and any approval process for buyers
• Your mortgage payoff estimate, so we can talk through an estimated net

Want a starting point first? Try the home value tool, then let’s refine it with what an algorithm can’t see.

Your own timeline — where you’re going next and when — usually matters more than the calendar. That said, a few South Florida realities are worth planning around:

• Season: activity shifts through the year, and it doesn’t look the same in every neighborhood or price range. We’ll look at what’s actually happening for homes like yours when you’re ready.
• Hurricane season (June–November): build in time for yard cleanup and storm prep, and know that an approaching storm can affect showings and closing schedules.
• Associations: if your HOA or condo association has an approval process for buyers, that time needs to be part of the closing timeline.
• Prep runway: give yourself enough time to do the work without rushing photos.