Clutter Eats Up Equity

When I first heard the concept that 'clutter eats equity' I had to laugh.

I immediately conjured up this visual in my head of a Ms. Pac-Man-type cartoon figure gobbling up closets and garages, complete with that distinctive video game sound to go along with it.

But the reality is less cute and charming.

Clutter takes up space all over your home.

Clutter leaves you with less usable space...and makes the spaces you DO have much less appealing, less open, and less airy.

It's often easy to ignore when you've been living in your home for years...until you decide to sell or move. And then you realize that your garage is stuffed full, your closets are bulging, and you can't open your junk drawer because there is something big jammed in the back.

Not only will your home not show as well, but moving will be a huge job, right?

When you have a lot of clutter, whether it's in the form of papers, old clothes, excess furniture, collections of figurines, or just too much stuff, your home will appear much smaller and less usable to potential home buyers.

The first impression will instead be that there is not enough room in the home for day-to-day living. Buyers will perceive that there isn't enough storage, isn't enough space, and reminds them over and over again that YOU are living in the space (which doesn't leave much room in their minds for THEM to live in the space).

So the very first step, before you even list your home, is to clear out a good percentage of what you have in every single closet, drawer, room, on every wall, and even outside (one of my clients recently commented how she realized that her shrubs had become overgrown and were clutter in the yard!)

Clearing out clutter when you want to sell your home is one of the most powerful, cost effective actions you can take!

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