Selling a home can be incredibly stressful and difficult, especially if you need to do it quickly. It's possible that some houses in some markets in this country could linger on Multi-lists for years!

So, what should you do?

The first thing you should do is clean out the house. Have a garage sale, rent a storage space, and throw out most of your stuff. Just get the stuff out of the building. How far should you go? There should not be anything on the floor of any closet in your house and all rooms and closets should feel a little empty. Clean and make any repairs needed to get a good well-maintained appearance. Then depersonalize the house so that it starts to look like an upscale hotel room.

Make rooms look like what people expect. People expect to see living rooms, bedrooms, dens, dining rooms and kitchens. If you have some extra rooms you can have offices, playrooms, media rooms, etc., but only after you have fulfilled basic expectations. In a living room or den you should have a sofa, two chairs (or a loveseat) and a TV grouped toward the focal point (usually a TV or fireplace, sometimes a view). U shaped groupings or L shaped groupings work fairly well in most rooms. If you have a really big room remember groupings of furniture should fit into roughly 12-foot square groups. Bedrooms should have beds and 2 bedside tables in groupings opposite the entry door if possible. If the room is small, don't have any more furniture.

Then get fresh, clean paint on everything you can. It's not that hard to get to be a good painter. It just takes practice. You want your house to look new to a buyer. Fresh paint can make it look and smell newer. People want houses with lots of light so choose a light, pale, warm color. Relocation companies buy thousands of gallons of gallons of ivory paint a year and paint over the "custom" paint jobs people put in houses. They know it helps resale to have clean paint.

In a house with white trim work a color that contrasts enough to show off the trim. Pale blue or green can be great, especially in hot climates. Fancy trim work is an upgrade in any house and works better than over done décor because it has an architectural look as opposed to decoration.

Get heavy, lined drapery panels that run from ceiling to floor for living rooms, dining rooms, and master bedrooms. Hang them so that the panels leave the glass completely exposed and mostly hang on the walls next to the windows. It's a trick that makes your windows look bigger. Other rooms look less cluttered with shades or blinds for privacy if needed.

Skip wallpaper. Many buyers don't like it. If you have it in your house, get rid of it. If you can't get it off the wall, consider bead board (painted) or stone as long as it is not dark colored'or even new sheetrock. It is not that hard to finish sheetrock and it comes in ¼" thickness.

Then we come to the MOST IMPORTANT part of the process. Clean up the yard and the front of the house. Then do everything you can to make your home attractive from the outside. Why is this the MOST IMPORTANT? If buyers don't come inside you will never sell your house. It MUST look attractive enough on the outside to bring in buyers. Over the top wonderful is great. Cute houses may be hard to define, but as a general rule buyers like some rock, framed out windows, more than one color and landscaping. If you don't have a cute porch or portico, adding one can do wonders. Even a pergola can work. You might get the best advice from landscapers. The money you spend here may pay off better than any remodeling.

So you have the house ready and it's looking as good as you can make it look. The next thing you can do is all about marketing and advertising. Let all your neighbors know your house is for sale. If they like the neighborhood they will look for their own new neighbor among their friends! It's in their best interest and yours, too.

Go through your house with a very critical eye. NEVER assume a buyer can see potential through imperfections, even if they only involve removing too much furniture or stuff. Happy selling!

More info on your stop foreclosure information search:

Get Free Foreclosure Advice and Free Refinance Quotes
Get your free on-line foreclosure refinance quote and free advice from foreclosure mitigation specialist in minutes. Compare real offers from top national subprime and hard money lenders... more...

How To Invest In Mobile Home Parks
Mobile home parks are known for their cash flow, and this will usually grow in time. I asked a real estate agent if the mobile home parks in this area ever are for sale. Almost never, he told me, because they provide so much cash flow that owners don't want to sell. That's worth remembering. ... more...

Green Houses Gaining Momentum!
It is getting more and more popular to go green, and many Americans are leading the way in their housing choices. One area recently reported that their realty market was stagnant except for a big rush on newly built homes that came up for sale. They were powered by solar heating and were extremely ... more...

Remodeling Outdated Bathrooms That Sell
Whether you are Staging to Sell or Staging to Live we hope you find these suggestions helpful. When looking at remodeling a bathroom, three considerations come in to play: 1. Price - what is your budget to accomplish the remodel? 2. Motivation - Are you doing this for personal or re-sale reasons? 3 ... more...

De-clutter into Self Storage and Make 1000's of Pounds More When You Sell Your Home - Free Guide
You choose, would you rather have lots of buyers competing and bidding for your house or no real interest and the occasional low, derisory offer? Your home is your biggest financial asset and yet many people throw money away by not planning for the sale of their homes. That can add up to £1000's of ... more...