Eliminating Stuff Your Crested Butte Home For Sale

This post continues the series of Tips to Selling Your Crested Butte Home – Eliminating Stuff Your Crested Butte Home For Sale

Will people say “wow” or “eww” when they walk through your Crested Butte home for sale?

It can be tough after many years in your mountain home to get rid of things (some that you may still be using). Still, it’s best to take a hard look at your stuff and either throw it away or move it to a storage unit. The common advice is to make your home look like a “model home.”

Buyers do not want to open a closet and see it packed with twenty-year-old ski clothes, gear, and games; instead they want to see how big the closet is. Can you make time to get to your home to do this? (There may be decisions about personal items that a property manager or maid service cannot handle for you, and I have quality moving and storage people that can handle everything for you.)

Eliminating Stuff Your Crested Butte Home For Sale
– Examples

• Do you have plants inside your Crested Butte home? Get rid of them.
• Do you have a garage or basement shop area full of old stuff? Get rid of it.
• Are you thinking the Buyer will want your old oil, grease, paint, fertilizer, bug spray, and other 1/4 full harmful liquids?  Get rid of it!
• Do you have a refrigerator, freezer, or pantry full of food? Eat it, or get rid of it.
• Do you have  old TVs that weigh 150 pounds each. It will cost $100 each to dispose of them at the dump in Gunnison. Get rid of them!
• Do you have walls filled with family photos? Take them down, fix the holes, and repaint the wall.
• Do you still have any of those vintage bright-colored neon one-piece ski suits from the 1980s or 1990s? Don’t they look funny now? Well, that one-piece ski suit is similar to what the buyer thinks your house looks like if it has vintage 1980s or 1990s furniture and furnishings.

I am not suggesting you spend the money to replace all your vintage furniture, but fewer pieces will be better to reduce the impact of the old furniture, and to open up the space. You should also be sure to remove any old and/or worn pieces of furniture.

A Seller Who Lost Over $100,000 Because of “Stuff”

Are you thinking to yourself : “This is a pain in the rear to de-clutter the house and deal with all of this stuff now. If someone puts an offer on my house, then I will fly in and deal with it.” This is a wholly rational point of view from the seller’s perspective, and things may “work out for you”. Or this may be short-sighted…

However, I know a seller who was s second homeowner in Dallas who got an offer on their home that was a cash offer and a two-week quick close (a rare dream offer). The buyer was motivated and was working against a deadline and wanted to have all of their family in very shortly after closing.

Most sellers would be jumping for joy at the prospect of this offer. The home was being sold partially furnished, and there were many pieces of furniture, artwork, personal items and years of accumulated stuff that needed to be cleaned out of the 4,000 square foot home.

The seller was out of the country on vacation and did not want to deal with the logistics and coordination of movers and sorting though all their stuff while on vacation. They had prior commitments and could not get back to their mountain home in time given their vacation and business schedule.

They agreed to the terms of the contract, but they pushed back on the buyer regarding the closing and possession dates. The buyer walked. The home was on the market for another year and had a price reduction until it sold for more than $100,000 less than the previous contract (plus carrying costs for Insurance, Utilities, Property Management, Taxes, Maintenance, Repairs, HOA Fees… etc). The lesson here is clear: if you’ve decided to sell your Crested Butte home, be prepared to sell.

Why Long-Term and Short-Term Renters are NOT helping You sell your home.  Why should they?  They have paid you money to live in your home for a week, a month or a year and showings are an intrusion to them. Worse if your home sells, then a long-term renter will have to find another place to live. If you want to see clutter – come with me on some showings of rented homes. Clutter City. Remedy – specify terms in the lease regarding showings up front, access and appearance.

Do What it Takes!  You may find yourself in a similar situation – it is better to hire people to do this for you and get it done, than risk the sale because of  “surprise” offer terms. I have had numerous clients that I have helped coordinate with movers to literally remove every item from the home (including very expensive large antique items to boxing up personal files) and storing in climate controlled storage.