Hmmm … How to phrase this correctly – “Selling your home with Children” sounds like an Estate Agents sweat shop, whereas “Selling your home and Children” is wrong on all sorts of levels. I think I will go with “Having Children and Selling Your Home”, although that sounds like you have gone into labour during a viewing … to save me from further dragging myself through the mire, I trust you see what I am trying to convey!

Ask anyone and they will tell you that selling your home is up near the top of the most stressful things you can do, but add in the factor of children, from new born to teenagers and it might well be easier to traverse K2 blindfolded.

Right up until the point your children leave home, they have this belief that a magical being transports all the dirty crockery from their room, washes it up and puts it away, the same goes for any mess they leave behind; they can obliterate the kitchen and when they come down in the morning it’s like a show home – Might I suggest that before your home goes on the market that it’s time to prepare.

IT’S TIME FOR THAT CONVERSATION

Ewww … NO, not that conversation, I mean the conversation about moving home.

Obviously you will have discussed (with those old enough to understand) that you will be moving house and to do that you will need to sell the family home (if you have teenagers I do sympathise as you have just “Ruined My Life” even if you’re moving next door!).

By having this conversation you are making them part of the process, which is great – because you are going to need all the help you can get!

IT’S PACKING TIME

Hopefully there will be quite a few toys which the children don’t play with all that much and it’s time to start packaging those up and moving them into the loft, this will make getting the home ‘viewing ready’ a whole lot easier – in fact if there are other items that can be moved into the loft or storage that would be good too – don’t shove them all in the cupboards, purchasers love to open cupboards!

A PANIC BAG

If you have little ones, then you are used to packing a bag with everything you need for a car journey, keep one to the side with a few little toys, a drink, a few snacks and maybe a book, so you can depart the house at a moments notice if the Estate Agent calls with a viewing – this might be the viewing that sells your home, try not to put it off if you can.

CLEAN AND TIDY

As hard as it will be, try to keep a routine of tidying up everyday or maybe attack a different room each day and just try to keep the toys to one or two areas. Kids love to play, so why not make cleaning up fun, even teenagers get in on the act too – well no one likes to be left out!

TOY STORAGE

It might be an idea to invest in some storage containers for the toys that may fit into a corner of a room or indeed be part of the room. If you have put unused toys away in the loft, then you will need less storage, which leaves the rooms looking less full.

I know it will be hard, I look at my children’s toys and often think ‘I never had that many toys’ (not that I’m jealous), but if you try to follow the above hints it will make your ‘selling home life’ a lot easier and the quicker it sells, the sooner you can get back to standing on Lego bricks!

Why not share this post with someone you know who is about to move and has children, I’m sure they will thank you for it.