Putting your house on the market is a stressful time, with paperwork, lawyers, grooming and prepping, sometimes staging.
Then, once the house is on the market, you need to balance juggling the normal day-to day life routines while at the same time hosting strangers who need to see your house looking immaculate, sometimes with very little notice.
No pressure.
Maybe to make the process smoother you should move out of your house during the selling process. What do the agents say?
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Ray White Remuera agent Nick Lyus says, yes, you should move out as it’ll reduce the stress involved.
“You are selling your biggest asset and emotional asset and sometimes removing yourself from a situation is a good thing to do.
“And then you’ll have your house looking perfect 24/7,” he says.
You’d need to move out for about four to five weeks as that’s how long the campaign usually runs for.
If moving out for a month doesn’t fit your plans or your budget, then Lyus suggests maybe leave your house just during the weekends to allow the agent fit viewings into weekends consistently.
Parents with young toddlers or children often struggle to stay on top of cleaning so going away and loading up the car with prams and toys will keep rooms decluttered for the weekend, Lyus says.
“It’s a good interim solution. Get everything done by Friday, load up extra mess with you so the agent has the perfect house to show on the weekend. Then, you can come back on Sunday evening and explode again.”
The process of selling your place is costly. You need to pay for lawyers, agent fees, stagers, moving trucks, cleaners, maybe a renovation or a fresh coat of paint.
Moving out to a temporary place will add extra costs, potentially around $5,000 for movers, rent and other costs, and could shake up your budget.
However, New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty agent Pene Milne says it’s becoming a little bit more common to move out of the house while selling it.
“For majority of people it’s not a financially viable thing to do trying to juggle moving out, renting and having a house for sale. But we see it a little bit more than we used to,” Milne says.
Leaving the existing house empty makes the house spotless, ready for viewings every day at any time, she says.
“Some people proactively chose that to simplify the stress in their life when selling, so they don’t have to deal with constantly keeping it in perfect state while they also work and they have kids.”
Milne says it is real estate agent’s job to look after the property and the vendors, and to make the process seamless.
“We help them smooth it out so they [vendors] are not as burdened and have to be on display seven days a week. It’s more about planning viewings for when they have a cleaner come in or when the kids are going to be at school.”
