In my many moves and showing of houses over the years, I have developed a quick house showing cleaning checklist of things to do before an open house.  This checklist plans for two hours of time before the showing.  If you have less time, ask family members or friends to help with some of the tasks to maximize your time.  If you have little ones, get a bigger kid or adult to babysit so you can focus.

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Before The House Showing

You need 3 empty 18 gallon Rubbermaid Totes or Bins with lids and your 1 home staging bin as described in my Preparing Your Home For Sale article.

• pray for strength and energy
• open a few windows to get fresh air in
• empty clean dishes, load and start dishwasher
• place remaining dirty dishes inside plastic garbage bag (so you won't have to wash the bin later, trust me) and place that bag into bin 1 and take to garage or vehicle
• pick up all items on hard floors, put in bin 2 and take to garage or vehicle
• light candle or candle warmer
• sweep and wash floors where necessary
• wash kitchen and dining room counters, tables, chairs, high chairs, booster seats
• wipe front of appliances in kitchen and take down kitchen towels
• quick dusting
• bathroom mirror
• bathroom tubs, showers, counters
• toilets
• take down bathroom towels
• pick up all items on carpet areas, put in bin 3 and take to garage or vehicle
• vacuum carpets where necessary
• take out all the garbage
• make all the beds
• spray closets and furniture with Febreze
• tell kids to use the bathroom and get shoes on

• get home staging bin and set everything out (fresh towels, pillows, decor, etc.), empty bin to garage or vehicle
• take dirty laundry bins to garage or vehicle
• turn on all lights
• tell kids to get coats on and we are leaving in five minutes
• open all curtains and close and lock windows
• shut off candle or candle warmer
• put pets in crates or kennels or take them with you
• 20 minutes before the expected arrival time, get your shoes, coat, keys, wallet, kids (pets?) and head to a playground or indoor play area at a favorite fast food restaurant, walk in another neighborhood, run errands or drive around while the house is being shown
• pray

After the house showing:

• take down home staging items and put them back in bin and carry to garage
• put dirty laundry bins back where they belong
• bring dishes bin back inside
• bring other bins back inside to sort out and put objects into correct rooms
• carry remaining bins back to the garage
• relax until the next showing, which could be tomorrow!

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