How to Sell a Home With Kids—Tips For Selling When You Have Children
Selling a home is stressful enough as it is. Throwing kids into the mix just ramps up that stress level even further. There are always challenges when selling a house. Some of these challenges—like determining what price to put on your home—are universal. Yet others, like selling a home when you have children, are unique to only certain sellers.
Since you are reading this article, chances are you are one of those sellers who face the unique circumstance of selling your home with little ones in tow. The steps you take to sell will need to account for your kids.
Fortunately, there are things you can do to make the whole sales process easier on you and your children.
1. Make sure your kids are aware of the sale.
One of the best tips for selling a home with kids is informing them of your plans well in advance of the actual for sale sign going on the lawn. Parents have a distinct desire to protect their children from upset or strife. It may be tempting to avoid talking about selling the home with your kids.
You may worry the thought of moving will frighten them or lead to arguments. You may not want to upset their routine any more than you need to. Whatever your reasons for not wanting to say something, know that in the end, your family will be better off if you have open communication about this big decision.
Remember, it is just as likely that you can get your kids excited about the sale and the new home that is coming as it is that they will be upset or worried. A big part of their perception of the coming event will be based on what you say to them and how you say it.
If you explain why you want to sell the house and what you want to accomplish—like moving to a better home, to a better area, to be around people that you love, etc.—then they are more likely to understand and get excited with you.
Clear communication will also allow you to enlist their help with the coming challenges. Keeping rooms clean, going out for showings, and being generally helpful are all things you will appreciate in the coming months.
2. Make the home appealing to the masses.
A lot of the things that you do to your home to make it more fun for your kids are things you are going to want to make more generic for the sale. Impressive murals on the walls, specialized play areas, fun colors, family photos—these things make your life and your kid’s lives more enjoyable, but they are not going to appeal to many buyers.
It’s possible there will be single buyers, married buyers with no children, retirees and all sorts of other people looking at the home. The kid-friendly features you have may be perceived negatively by many of them.
Your agent will probably recommend that you take things back to neutral when you prep the home for sale. You might need to paint the rooms more neutral, revert rooms to more general areas and take down your family photos for showings.
Try not to take the changes personally. You are making a business transaction, which means adjusting to what the market wants so you can sell for the best possible price.
3. Get Rid of The Kids Murals and Other Kid Heavy Decor
There is a big difference between living in a home and selling one. When you live in a home, you’ll mostly do whatever you want, including decorating to YOUR tastes. Doing so often includes the kid’s bedrooms.
It is not unusual to have what you may consider “a cool mural” on the wall of a kids bedroom. Unfortunately, these are highly personal and will make your home harder to sell.
Like wallpaper, they date a house. Themed bedrooms are something I discuss in the article on what will make your home harder to sell. Head the advice in the article if you want to sell for the most money possible in the quickest amount of time.
Having overbearing decor can be a showstopper for many buyers. You would think a buyer should be able to look past someone’s personal “stuff,” but that is not always the case.
Here are some additional tips for preparation when you have kids:
- Get rid of any kid posters hanging on the walls.
- Remove any kid-specific wallpaper.
- Take down all the “kid stuff” from the fridge.
- Put away toys, stuffed animals, and other overbearing things that could get in the way of a buyer visualizing the home.
4. Get a storage space.
Having kids usually means accumulating a lot of junk. You probably have a ton of toys and other kid stuff in your home at this point. Some of it may be saved for sentimental value. Some may be reserved to hand down to other families. Still, other things may be destined for the donation pile. You need to make room in your home for buyers to see themselves living there, which means clearing out all the clutter.
Renting a storage unit, a POD or some other storage space while you show the home will give you a place to put all your things that do not need in the house—like the piles of toys. Storage units are a good idea for other reasons, too. Your clutter may not be all kid-based.
It could be your collection of bobble-head dolls or your giant Lego collection. All of these highly-personalized collections are awesome to you and your fellow collectors but could push potential buyers away because they make it hard for them to see themselves living in the space.
If you need daily access to your belongings, then renting a POD might be the best option.
5. Clean, clean, clean.
Your children may be a lot cleaner than other kids, or they may not. Regardless, your home needs to be spotless when you show it to buyers. And there is a good chance that even if your kids are relatively clean, they will still make messes as they go about their playtime.
You need to be prepared for this challenge as you move into showing the property. Usually, sellers that are trying to sell quickly will attempt to keep their homes as clean as possible constantly—and be prepared to clean up right away if a showing is coming. As a parent, you are going to face the additional challenge of cleaning up after yourself and your little ones.
When you have children de-cluttering your home becomes even more critical. Kids are notorious for leaving stuff around at the drop of a hat. While this is usually no big deal, when selling a house it certainly can be! See how to de-clutter your home for some expert guidance when you are selling.
6. Don’t Make Notice 24 Hour Notice Required on Showings
Whether you are selling a home with kids or not, requiring 24-hour showing notice is a mistake in most circumstances. Selling a home with children certainly can make the temptation to do so even greater. That would be a mistake, though.
Whenever you put restrictions on showing your home, you make selling a lot more complicated. There are going to be times when a buyer just doesn’t have flexibility with their schedule. If you really want to sell your home, it is imperative that you get as much foot traffic as possible.
While this is far more challenging with kids, it’s worth it. The quicker you get your home under contract, the sooner you’ll need to stop being prepared every day. Be flexible – get your home under contract as soon as possible.
7. Plan out what your family will do during showings.
Let your children know that you will be showing the home to people who may want to buy it. How often you show and when is between you and your Realtor. Know that the more flexible you are, the easier time your agent will have selling the home.
Once you know when possible show times are, you can make a plan for how you will spend the time with your kids. There are plenty of fun things you can do, and not all of them need to cost a lot of money. You could go to the library, visit the playground, go grocery shopping, or hang out at a friend or relative’s house.
Talking ahead of time with your kids about what they think would be the most fun and go from there.
8. Think carefully about open houses.
Some real estate agents will tell you that an open house is a must to move your home. Please be aware that this is definitely not true—there is research that shows that open houses make up for a measly 2-5% of home sales.
In reality, open houses are far more about your agent meeting potential clients—your friends, neighbors, window shoppers—than about selling your actual home.
What you need to understand is that real buyers always will schedule a showing with a real estate agent when they want to see a home. Open houses work for real estate agents, not sellers.
One of the biggest reasons to avoid open houses when you have kids is due to the increased likelihood of criminal activity. Open houses attract would-be burglars and general theft. The agent cannot watch everyone in the home, which means visitors can touch, read, and steal your property. They can also case the home for future burglary, including unlocking windows and doors for easy entry after the open house ends.
Instead of letting strangers roam through your home and your kid’s rooms, consider finding an agent who does not insist on an open house. A good Realtor should not need an open house to market and sell your home in a reasonable time frame.
After The Sale Advice to Help Kids
Getting the kids to understand why there is a need for relocating is a significant battle. However, your work is not done once the purchase and sale are signed. It will be essential to have them remain excited from the start right on through the finish when you are packing and then the actual move.
Keep in mind they may outwardly show you that the move is no problem( if you’re lucky), but on the inside, they are probably still going through some turmoil. One of the best things you can do to help them adjust is by encouraging them to meet new friends right away.
Once you get settled into the new home, try to get some play dates set up with other families that have kids in the neighborhood. Getting them involved with projects and activities at school is another excellent way for them to meet new friends as soon as possible.
Adjusting to a relocation can be very difficult for some kids. Do your best to make the transition easier for them. Kids Health has an outstanding resource for helping kids to prepare for moving. It is worth checking out.
General Home Selling Tips
Whether you are selling a house with kids or not, there are always some excellent selling practices you should follow. The key to moving your property quickly is following the best home selling tips and not making any mistakes.
Here is some sound advice you should always follow:
- Understand how to pick the best real estate agent – make sure sure you do a careful interview of multiple Realtors. Never hire an agent based on price but for their track record of success.
- Price your home correctly from day one. The biggest mistake of some homeowners is “trying” a higher price to test the market. Real Estate data does not lie.
- Make sure you spend the time preparing your home for the market.
- Get any blatant defects corrected. You may even want to get a pre-inspection done ahead of time to be prepared for the buyer’s home inspection.
- Make sure the photography on your home is exceptional. One of the most critical aspects of selling a home is your photos. The photos are the first thing a buyer sees when looking for properties. They are really your first showings.
- It is essential to have a detailed marketing plan for selling your home. Use this article to understand what you should be doing to ensure your home is sold for top dollar.
- Make sure it is easy to see your home. Don’t make it difficult for buyers to get in. Avoid silly things like making your real estate agent attend the showings. A listing agent should not be at showings – a big mistake!
- Never allow dual agency, where your real estate agent no longer represents your best interests in the sale. Ask when interviewing agents if they practice dual agency.
All of the above advice is an important function of getting your home sold successfully for the most amount of money with the least amount of stress.
Other “How To” Home Selling Articles
- How to sell a home while going through a divorce – selling a house while in the middle of a divorce can be challenging, to say the least. See what you need to know to minimize problems.
- How to buy and sell a home at the same time – learn what it takes to sell and buy a house simultaneously.
- How to sell a waterfront home – See tips and advice on how to sell a waterfront property.
- How to sell a high-end property – learn what it takes to sell a luxury home with these helpful tips.
- How to sell a condominium – discover helpful advice when you need to sell a condo.
Use these how to home selling articles to make the best decisions.
Resources From Other Real Estate Professionals
- Selling a home with lead paint with kids – while this article was written for residents of Colorado, the lead paint law applies to every state throughout the country. If you have a child living in a home under the age of six, you need to know the lead law.
- Organize your house to add value – it has been shown over and over again that homes that look their best sell for more money. See what you can do to get your home organized for a quick sale.
- What sellers should know about escalation clauses – see what you need to know when selling your home on how escalation clauses work. It is very possible you could receive an offer with this kind of language.
The above articles offer excellent information to learn when you are selling a home.
About the author: The above Real Estate information on how to sell a home with kids was provided by Bill Gassett, a Nationally recognized leader in his field. Bill can be reached via email at billgassett@remaxexec.com or by phone at 508-625-0191. Bill has helped people move in and out of many Metrowest towns for the last 32+ years.
Are you thinking of selling your home? I have a passion for Real Estate and love to share my marketing expertise!
I service Real Estate sales in the following Metrowest MA towns: Ashland, Bellingham, Douglas, Framingham, Franklin, Grafton, Holliston, Hopkinton, Hopedale, Medway, Mendon, Milford, Millbury, Millville, Natick, Northborough, Northbridge, Shrewsbury, Southborough, Sutton, Wayland, Westborough, Whitinsville, Worcester, Upton and Uxbridge MA.
