Managing Mud while Selling
The springtime is a popular time people consider selling their home. Our REMAX realtor office phones are buzzing as March approaches, and we understand why. The springtime seems like a practical time to sell, given the summer is an opportune time to move. There are many reasons for this, including:
The weather! Moving in the summer is just easier than winter (enough said)
Kids are out of school, minimizing disruption academically
Transitioning to a new school in September makes it easier for kids socially
People are able to take holidays easier
Springtime is also a season of mud and mess, which creates a challenge for the seller.
To make the summer move possible, spring becomes a critical time in the process to help you achieve your goals and get the most for your investment. In the early days of Spring, while the sunshine and warmer air are so welcomed, it comes with the aftermath of a long winter. The yard, mud, muck, rain and dead gardens, and empty trees are far from appealing during the first half of springtime. And if you have kids or a dog during your selling time, this can be an endless mess that not only makes your outdoors less appealing but is often tracked indoors as well.
If you are trying to stage and prepare your house for selling, keeping the springtime mud, muck and debris from coming indoors can be daunting and potentially stressful.
You can’t just hold tight,
waiting for the spring showers to end,
and the May flowers appear to go outside!
Obviously, the dog needs to be taken outdoors, and kids love to splash in puddles, but how do you keep the mud at a minimum, so you are not constantly washing floors? These may seem like common sense ideas, but creating basic rules and consistently implementing them will help you get through the dirty part of springtime. You and your family can enjoy spring without “mud madness in March” stress while you are selling your house with these tips:
Take outdoor play off your property
Driving to a park or green space to have some outdoor time and access to fresh air doesn’t necessarily help the clean mats in your car but your car is not for sale. You can protect your car upholstery by using inexpensive washable blankets that absorb mud and dirt and wash easily. In addition, children can change to other shoes or boots in the car and remove the filthy mitts or outdoor clothing to minimize what comes inside your sparkling clean staged home. It also means that running in and out of the house outdoors doesn’t happen.
Limit the entrance and exit to your house.
Choose the one door that is to be used by your family and keep the dirt that comes inside to one location! Having one entrance and exit will allow you to have only one central single area that needs ongoing attention during the rainy, muddy season. It may seem obvious but wiping feet on a mat and then taking shoes off at the door entry is necessary must-dos.
Mats are your best friend in the spring.
Put away your spring mat from Homesense till later in the spring or for showings. Use basic, functional mats outside to wipe feet and a mat or rug inside that can wipe away all the mud and be rinsed off or washed. Everyone stomps and wipes their feet outside, and no shoes leave the mat inside. Having towels serve as mats can also work. The point is to have a space designated to capture the mud before it treks throughout the house.
Make it fun and be creative.
The most important part of selling during springtime is to relax and accept the challenges of the season. If you dread it every time it rains or the kids want to go outside, the stress will trickle through the house faster than the mud. Get creative and make the transition into your clean house after a muddy outdoor time a process, not a pain. Having special towels designated for wet feet, colourful rain boots and the hooks or shoe rack to help your system will make it easier to ease into the mess. Celebrate the efforts your family makes to adjust to the new rules. Create games during the indoor transitions.
Despite your best efforts, mud will sometimes still find its way into your home. Whether you are trying to sell your home or not, getting rid of dirt is a part of the spring cleaning routine. Read here on what to do if your home is already muddy and how to clean it up quickly and simply. Managing the mud and muck in March is a challenge whether you are selling your home or not. Still, our goal is to help it be a stress-free experience so you can be jumping in the puddles making memories rather than continually cleaning throughout the season.
