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If a stranger were to knock on your door and ask to come in, you’d likely say no. Yet when you’re showing your house, this is exactly what you’re doing. You’ll let stranger after stranger come in to tour the home and see if it’s a good fit for their needs. So how can you ensure your home is safe? These home security steps will ensure you can safely show your home with minimal risk.

1. Always Use an Agent

Always use an agent to help sell the home. This will ensure someone is in the home when it is being shown. While some buyers try to sell on their own, this opens you up to showing the home without anyone else around, which is potentially dangerous. Using an agent ensures someone is always with the buyer when they tour the home.

2. Keep It About Business

If you are in the home when potential buyers come through, don’t fear small talk, but be careful. Keep the talk simple and related to the home and its features. Do not divulge too much personal information about yourself or your family. Remember, this person is a stranger.

3. Confirm the Identity of Buyer’s Agents

If someone calls you or your agent claiming to be a real estate agent who wants to see the house, do some research. Your agent would be able to verify that the person is, in fact, an agent. If you cannot find a record of them, do not open your home to them.

4. Hide Your Valuables

Hide your valuables before any showings or open houses. You don’t want potential buyers to grab your favorite pearl earrings as they go through your bedroom to tour the home. As you’re hiding valuables, consider hiding your prescription medications. Unfortunately, some prescriptions are high theft items, and you need your medications for your own health. Consider investing in a small safe to stash these items before you start showing your house.

5. Stash Your Remotes

Do you have a garage door remote? Don’t leave it out! A potential buyer could pocket it and return later to rob your home or your garage. Keep all keys, remotes, and fobs with you when you leave for the showing, or store them out of sight if you are staying in the home for the showing.

Opening your door to strangers is part of the process when you’re showing your home, but you do have to be smart about it. Take these ideas into consideration, and do what you can to protect your home and your family while you’re in the selling process.

Home staging is essential because it makes your house look beautiful to potential buyers. That is, the house will look its absolute best for homebuyers who care to check it out. Home staging helps you to improve the appearance of your home by highlighting the most impressive assets of your home to draw the attention of prospective buyers. If you get the home staging methods right, you will sell your house faster.

It is therefore critical for sellers to dedicate time and effort into staging their home because it comes with many benefits. Moreover, you don't need to spend loads of money on staging; most staging processes are inexpensive to implement, so you don't have to pay a tremendous amount of money to get your house prepared for a sale. Here are some ways to present your home effectively to potential buyers:

Stage where it is necessary 

Not all rooms are treated equally as far as home staging is concerned. The idea here is that you should concentrate your home staging efforts on the rooms that have the highest chances of influencing the decision of the buyer and spend less time on places that do not have much significance. You should, however, keep the entire house clean and prepared just in case someone decides to look at every room.

De-personalize the space 

One reason for staging is to help the prospective buyer see the house as their own. To achieve this, you should get rid of personal touches that indicate that the house belongs to the seller and not the buyer. To de-personalize the space, remove all framed photos you hang on the walls, do not keep clothes in the open, keep them out of sight and remove all personal items like contact solutions and toothbrushes from the bathroom. When you do it correctly, you are trying to assist the buyer in connecting with your property.

Remove clutter

Clutter occupies space and space is one of the factors that make a home sell faster. Therefore, make your home look spacious by taking out everything that is not necessary. Pack them out of the house for the time being and out of the way of potential buyers.

Clean the house thoroughly 

An immaculate home suggests to the prospective buyer that the current occupant has a good maintenance culture. So, it is essential that you clean every part of the home thoroughly. Ensure that the entire house is clean and not just a part.

Staging your home is one critical step in the home sale process so be sure to talk to your real estate agent so that you can plan for it properly.

An open house offers an excellent opportunity for a seller to showcase his or her residence to a large group of buyers. As such, it is important for a seller to plan ahead for an open house. If a seller devotes time and energy to prepare for an open house, his or her residence may make a positive impression on buyers.

Ultimately, there are several things that sellers need to consider before they host an open house, such as:

1. Home Interior and Exterior

A home's interior and exterior must dazzle buyers during an open house. Otherwise, a home is unlikely to make a long-lasting impression on a buyer.

To upgrade a house's interior, a seller should clean each room. Mop the floors, wipe down countertops and ensure each room is neat and tidy. Also, professional home cleaning companies are available that can help a seller quickly remove dirt, dust and debris from his or her residence.

Meanwhile, to upgrade a home's exterior, a seller should repair any damaged or cracked siding. If a seller requires extra assistance, he or she can reach out to local home improvement professionals to perform house exterior repairs as well.

2. Lawn Care

A home's messy, weed-filled lawn is unlikely to garner buyers' attention. In fact, this lawn may prove to be an instant turn-off to buyers when they attend an open house.

For sellers, it can be quick and easy to enhance a home's lawn. By mowing the lawn, trimming the hedges and performing other lawn care tasks, a seller can transform a drab lawn into a stunning one.

A seller should continue to take care of his or her lawn throughout the house selling cycle, too. If a home has an amazing lawn, this residence may capture buyers' attention, regardless of when a seller hosts an open house.

3. Clutter

Antiques, knick-knacks and various decorations may fill your house, but these items may appear to be "clutter" in the eyes of homebuyers. Therefore, you may want to put your personal belongings into storage before you host an open house. This will allow you to keep your personal items safe during an open house. At the same time, it will help buyers envision what life could be like if they purchase your residence.

Preparing for an open house sometimes can be difficult. Thankfully, you can hire a real estate agent who can help you plan for any open house, at any time.

A real estate agent can provide recommendations to help you prepare for an open house. Plus, he or she can share buyers' feedback following an open house and ensure you can make your residence into an attractive option for buyers.

Ready to host an open house? Consider the aforementioned factors, and you can get ready for an upcoming open house. And as a result, you can boost the likelihood that an open house leads to multiple offers to purchase your residence.