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  Selling a house is a lot like romance, it really pays to set the mood

      Clear out as much furniture as you can. Put it in storage, give it to Goodwill, or have a garage sale. “What you want to do is open the house up so it does not look cluttered -- it looks spacious," says Michael Love, president of Interior Options Inc., a New York interior design firm. "And people can picture their own stuff in it.  Hallways and doorways, in particular, need to be clear and open.

Go through the house and clear off all the horizontal surfaces like kitchen and bathroom countertops.  Old magazines, toss ‘em. Knick-knacks, pack them away. Counters need to be clear and clean, remember less “stuff” makes your home look LARGER

A home should smell good. That means no noticeable odor -- no pet scent, no stale cooking smells and no cigarette smoke. People just don't realize how much odor plays into this. I find that people who smoke or have pets become so accustomed to the smell, they don't notice it.  Instead, have a friend whose judgment -- and nose -- you trust give your home the real sniff test.

If you just go through with Lysol before a showing, that won't help. Instead, get rid of scent problems at the source: scrub the house, have the air vents cleaned, replace old, smelly carpeting and smoke outside.

If the property needs work -- dated wallpaper, ratty carpet -- have it replaced. The more changes buyers calculate they'll have to make in the home, the more concerned they get, and the less likely they will buy your home.

Does your neighborhood included of families with small children.  Is a potential buyer of your home going to have a baby or small child?  If so ask yourself “would I put my child on these floors to crawl around on? If not, you know what you have to fix.  Likewise, if your walls sport grimy smudges or handprints, it might be time to paint. 

Buyers are much more sensitive to cigarette smells then ever before. If you’re a smoker, you don’t smell it but everyone else does.  Many shoppers won’t tour a home by a smoker, or if they do they hurry through.  To eliminate the odors open all the windows in the home, air the home out for 3 days.  Clean the walls and ceilings with hot water and Lysol.  Rent a steam cleaner, clean all the rugs, let them dry and clean again. Remove all the old sheets, bed spreads and replace with new ones.  Get rid off all the ashtrays. Purchase or rent an air purifier

There's a difference between an old house and a classic home. If the house looks 40 years old with 40-year-old paint, 40-year-old appliances and 40-year-old carpet, that's a hard sell, a hard sell usually means a lower selling price. Keep everything fresh up-to-date and well-maintained.

One dark room is "cool,” But if the whole house is dark, that's a problem. open the blinds. Turn on all the lights. Add lights in rooms that are dark. If Mother Nature isn't cooperating with your marketing efforts, use more flowers and things that suggest sunlight.

When it comes to walls, color is popular. The problem is that the next buyer might not like the same colors. Paint is a relatively inexpensive way to make a house look clean and fresh. And if you're going to repaint prior to selling, stick with neutrals. Despite the fact that it's more boring to live in, it's still an easier sale. And remember that white reflects the light best and makes rooms look their largest.

Get the carpet shampooed to get out any stains or smells. If that doesn't work, replace them. And consider, if you can, wood or laminates as an alternative. Wood floors make a house look bigger and people love seeing hardwood floors they are a lot easier to keep clean.

If you have a deer head on the wall, you might want to take it down. It could be a turnoff to some buyers.  Play it safe with books, magazines, movies, DVD’s you display while showing your home. Anything provocative could turn off a potential buyer.

If your wallpaper is peeling -- especially in bathrooms -- remove it and consider replacing it with a coat of paint remember, go neutral, white is always best. Look at the corners if the wall paper is pealing, buy some wallpaper paste.

You need to "empty the closets of half the things they have in them, empty closets look roomy -- and space sells. Do the same thing with kitchen cabinets. (And if you donate your extra clothes and surplus food to a shelter or food bank, you won't have to worry about moving them to your next home.

Flowers not only smell good they brighten up a room. Showing your home on a budget? A dozen of Roses cost $7.99 from Produce Junction.

If it's a cool summer day, have the windows open conversely, if it's cold and dreary, light candles and start a fire in the fireplace.

When people are looking to buy a home they are extremely observant and meticulous. Dust a half hour before a showing, take out the trash, and check the corners for cobwebs.

You don't have to go to the extreme of one seller I had -- who before a showing set up the bedroom to look like the night maid had just been through and pulled down the comforter, fluffed the pillow and placed a book open on the bed. You don't want it to look so staged that it's artificial, What you want is for them to walk in your home and say 'I could see myself living here”

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