Essential Last-Minute Tips for Showing Your House

Selling your home is exciting and a little bit stressful. Preparing your house for buyers is the tough part. You want to appeal to everyone but you still have to live there! Today I am sharing some last-minute tips for showing your house that you can implement before each showing.

A family room with neutral walls and furniture with a fireplace.

If you are thinking about selling your home you need to check out my post on 7 Important Things To Do Before Selling Your Home. I go into all the details on what you can do to your home to prepare it for the market.

You can also print out my home showing checklist so you will be able to go room to room and make sure all these things happen, before every showing.

*This post contains affiliate links. For more details see my full disclosure.

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Last-Minute Tips For Showing Your House

Once you have prepared your house for sale there are some last-minute things you can do to prepare for others to walk through. The one thing that will save you so much time and energy is to keep your house clean on a daily basis. It’s really hard to do but will make the hour before your showing so much easier to handle.

Showing The Kitchen

Make sure your counters and sink are free of dirty dishes. When we sold our house I would put all the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, even if they had to be hand washed. This kept my counters and sink clear and I would remove them when I came home. Once you have cleared the countertops and sink wipe them down.

I like to have a dishtowel that is only for showings, not to be used for anything else while the house is on the market. It’s always clean and looks pretty when I hang it up. After you sell the house then you have a new dishtowel to use!

Make sure your dining table is clean and clutter-free as well as the floors. Give them a quick sweep. Also, make sure the trash can has a lid or is out of sight.

A white kitchen with a pretty dish towel hanging on the dishwasher.

Showing the Family Room

Make sure everything is put away. In preparing your home to put on the market you should have designated a space for everything. I like to go through the home in the evening before going to bed and put everything away just in case there is a showing the next day. It saves me time and hassle the day of the showing.

Arrange blankets and pillows on the couch so they look nice.

A family room with an ottoman that has a tray on it with decorative vase accessories.

Run the vacuum if you have carpet or sweep up the floor if you have tile or wood. I love having this duster for this. It’s so much easier than using a broom and dustpan for quick once-overs.

Showing the Bedrooms

First thing you need to do is make the bed. I suggest doing this first thing in the morning in every room. This makes the last few minutes less crazy before leaving the house.

Make sure all things are put away and all surfaces of the furniture are clear and dust-free. This is tough in kids’ bedrooms but you should already have prepped the room and have a spot for everything. Just make sure all the toys are in their designated spot.

A bedroom with white walls and bedding, a wood headboard and blue accent pillows.

In closets make sure you can see the floor. The messier the closet is the more chance someone will think there isn’t enough storage space. Before putting your home on the market organize that closet and make sure you keep it that way.

Showing the Bathrooms

This is an important room. You want a potential buyer to see themselves using the space, not you. Cleanliness is key in the bathroom. Make sure the mirrors in the bathroom are clean (no toothpaste splatters please).

Put away all personal items, including your toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush, etc. Make sure all the counters are free of clutter and clean. Don’t leave toothpaste marks in the sink. That will make the buyer think of you using it and you don’t want that.

Trashcans need to be empty or stashed in a cabinet. I found putting them in a cabinet was easier. Why do you need to do this? Because you don’t want potential buyers seeing your dirty tissues or anything else that you might toss in a bathroom trash can. You want them to see themselves using the space not you.

Make sure the shower, tub, and floors are free of hair. I have a ton of hair, it’s long and thick and it seems like it’s constantly everywhere. When a buyer walks into the bathroom you don’t want them to see your hair because it makes them think of you in the space.

A mostly white bathroom with navy cabinets, round mirrors and a window.

Just like in the kitchen, I bought a set of towels that were only for showings and had them arranged nicely on the towel bar. I throw the used towels in the dirty hamper (which should be stowed out of site or have a lid on it). When we weren’t having showings I kept these “showing towels” in a spare room on the bed so they were easy to grab last minute.

General tips for showing your whole house

The entryway needs to be clear of shoes and backpacks, and the floors clean. If you have a storm door make sure that it is clean and fingerprint-free.

Laundry rooms need to be clean and no dirty clothes lying around. If you have dirty clothes just do what I do with the dishwasher, throw them all in the washing machine then pull them out after the showing. You can sort them out later. If you have clean clothes then it’s always best to fold and put them away immediately so you don’t have to do it right before a showing.

All floors need to be cleanly swept or vacuumed. All countertops need to be clean and clutter-free.

Open all the blinds and curtains. You want as much natural light to be coming into the home as possible. This will make the house feel bright and airy and so welcoming.

Here is my secret tip! I have a laundry basket (or a box) that I throw anything in that doesn’t have a home or I don’t have time to deal with and put it in the trunk of my car during showings. When the showing is over I bring it back in the house and have the items available. This helps keep the clutter down and my sanity in place (as much as it can be while trying to sell your home).

I know that this is a lot to think about so I created a home showing checklist that you can print out and go through for each room right before a showing. You can print as many as you need because hopefully, you will be having a ton of showings!