The Ottawa Real Estate Selling Checklist

Make sure that buyers looking at your home are left with the best possible impression. Here is an easy checklist to print out, and fill in to get you started: First Impressions/General:

• House exterior in good repair
• House number easy to see
• Evestroughs, downspouts and soffits painted and in good repair
• Garage/carport clean and tidy
• Litter picked up
• Cracked or broken window panes replaced

First Impressions/Summer:

• Lawns cut and raked
• Hedges and shrubs trimmed
• Garden weeded and edged

First Impressions/Winter:

• Snow and ice cleared away from walks
• Sidewalks sanded and salted
• Boot tray inside front door

At front door:

• Good lighting
• Doorbell works
• Door hardware in good repair
• Porch and foyer clean and tidy
• Fresh air in house

Interior Maintenance:

• Chipped plaster repaired
• Chipped paint touched up
• Doors and cupboards latched properly
• Leaky taps and toilets repaired
• Furnace wiped down and cleaned
• Burned out light bulbs replaced
• Squeaky doors oiled

Bathroom:

• Mirrors, fixtures and taps cleaned and polished
• Leaky taps and toilets repaired
• Seals around tubs and basins in good repair
• Floors cleaned, garbage containers emptied
• Inside of cupboards and cabinets clean and neat
• Towels clean and matching
• Countertops free of personal care items

Kitchen:

• Sinks and taps cleaned and polished
• Appliances cleaned
• Countertops neat and polished
• Inside of cupboards and cabinets clean, neat, and not overcrowded
• Small appliances put away

Create a Buying atmosphere:

• All lights turned on
• Air conditioner turned on in warm weather
• Fireplace lit in cooler weather
• Closets neat and tidy
• Halls and stairs cleared
• Drapes opened during daylight
• Background music playing quietly
• Carpets freshly vacuumed
• Fresh flowers in various rooms

Pets:

• Pets contained or absent during showing

Valuables:

• Jewelry and valuables locked safely away or taken with you
• Valuable property, such as objects of art, vases and figurines are out of reach, out of sight or locked away.

Additional tips on showing:

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________