Preparing your home for sale

Walk through the property with your selling agent and write down the jobs by room. Ask which areas will appear in the listing and which issues need attention before photography or inspections. Include the entrance, outdoor areas and rooms you use for storage. Your budget, the property's condition and the available time should shape the list.

Give each task an owner, an expected finish date and any dependency. For example: a tradesperson repairs a damaged fitting, you clear the room, then the cleaner can reach the surfaces. Arrange rubbish collection or storage before packing fills the walkways.

Use three headings: work that needs professional assessment, small jobs you can finish safely, and optional changes. A visual makeover is not a way to resolve or conceal a defect. Larger renovations need their own advice, budget and schedule; an attractive concept image does not establish what is feasible or approved.

Review loose handles, damaged fittings and other visible maintenance with the appropriate person. Use qualified tradespeople for work that needs them. Before authorising a larger job, ask for its scope, dependencies and completion date, then check those against the sales campaign.

Avoid treating every old finish as something that must be replaced. Ask your agent what matters for this property and market, and compare the work with the time and money you can commit. There is no guaranteed sale-price increase or faster sale from a particular cleaning, styling or renovation job.

Tell the cleaner which rooms are included, whether the home is occupied and when the photographer is coming. Ask about the tasks you need rather than assuming that windows, carpet treatment, heavy furniture moves or outdoor work are included. Make separate arrangements for specialist work.

Use our cleaning-before-selling guide for the room-by-room tasks, inspection resets and the later settlement clean. Check the deep-cleaning service scope before choosing a service. Simply Maid provides cleaning; repairs, property styling, furniture hire and digital rendering are separate services.

NSW's property advertising guidance says photographs must not give a misleading impression of the property. It specifically addresses digital changes to a property's appearance. Victorian guidance also warns against photographs that give a wrong impression. Labelling an image as illustrative does not, by itself, make a misleading alteration acceptable.

Keep original photographs and ask for a written description of the edits. Check that furniture or decorative changes have not also altered room proportions, views, defects or permanent features. Agree with the agent on whether an image can be used, what explanation is needed and how buyers will see the property's actual condition.

For private planning, a concept image can help you discuss an idea with a designer or tradesperson. Before relying on it, obtain the advice, measurements and permissions the proposed work needs. Digital presentation does not replace preparing the real home for an inspection.

After the kitchen and bathroom have had their last use, put away everyday items, remove household rubbish and do a final walk from the entrance through the rooms. Keep products and valuables secure. Allow time for everyone, including pets, to leave without rushing.

Use the inspection reset for households with kids and pets for the cleaning sequence. If the campaign continues longer than expected, adjust the routine or arrange help with a clearly agreed scope. Keep the later moving and settlement clean on its own checklist.

This is a new Simply Maid guide to preparing a home for sale. The comparison above explains how virtual presentation differs from work carried out in the property. Simply Maid does not provide PerfectRoom's former rendering service, and historical articles about that business do not describe Simply Maid's services or endorsements.