Do you know that realtors think that four out of five prospective buyers are put off from buying a property in the first minute? It is worth investigating this fact, if now is the time that you are planning to list your house.

In fact, now is a good time to list your house, everyone is settling in for the winter, kids are back to school, and no one wants to move house. Say, what?

This means that the prospective buyers who come to your house now are ones who are deadly serious about moving and buying. You will not have to waste your time and effort removing every last speck of dust for Mr. and Mrs. Speculating - now you will be welcoming the real McCoy to your home. Apparently you have one minute to impress them!

If you do not want to splash out on a professional stager, then at least try and think like a professional as you attempt your own home-staging. Home-staging is the new buzz word of realty.

It is the art of transforming your own home into a 'stage' for others to imagine themselves acting out their lives on. Think of it as making your own home look like one of those show homes in a brand new housing development.

One of the key elements of this home staging is to remove all of your own personal effects. These photos, fridge magnets, golf trophies etc can all be carefully packed into boxes leaving spacious and clear shelving.

What is the first thing that is noticed about a house? You only need to open the door a few inches to get a whiff of the smell of a home. In fact, it can be the smell that puts off prospective buyers in the first minute. Make sure you have a plug-in air freshener always in use near the front door; smell is the first thing we notice about a house!

Do not eat anything that smells strongly until you have sold your house!! This means smoked fish and curries amongst other dishes. The ghost of strong cooking smells can hover around for days!

Fling open your windows every day to make a cross breeze and to completely change the stale air in the house. While you are doing this, it is an opportunity to check that your windows and frames are perfectly clean with no tell-tale condensation marks.

Once you are quite sure that you have a pleasant smell in your home, the next thing that will be noticed is obviously the visual appeal of the vestibule/hall/ entry area.

You are selling your home in the rainy/snowy season, but this does not mean it is okay to have shoes all over the hall. If it is at all possible in your home, start locking your front door and encourage everyone to use a back or side door; this way you can keep your hall immaculate!

If you do not have a concealed spot for your 'boot tray' - then now is the time to move stuff over and make one. The hall or coat closet must have room for it; other items will have to be moved.

This brings up the next suggestion: a professional stager will encourage you to rent a small storage area in your locale. This will actually help you to move, because you can start to pack boxes and cart them off to the storage, labeled and ready to go.

However, this is not the real reason for the suggestion; the fact is that home-staging requires a lot of your personal paraphernalia to be out of sight. Cluttering up the garage is not an option, so storage is the obvious and most logical solution (and it is not expensive).

One very inexpensive way to add a welcoming ambiance to your home is to pay attention to your lighting. The new 'enviro' light bulbs are great on the electricity bill but hard on the eyes. Try and use softer lighting at least for the time your home is on the market.

The pale pink and pale apricot light bulbs that you can buy will bring a homey atmosphere to your house. As you open the front door, visual warmth will exude from your hallway and your home. Your real estate agent will advise you on the other aspects of home staging.

However, first impressions are very important, so have soft music playing, swing the door wide open to give a spacious feeling and make sure that Fido does not come bounding up.

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