Moms Experienced at Selling Houses

You already got some great suggestions. Something else you may want to do is use paper plates and utensils, this will limit dirty dishes.

If you have multiple bathrooms, you could just use one so the others are always clean.

Have a toy box or bin ready so you can throw anything in it asap

Good luck

I sold my house last year, with a 6 mo old and a 4 year old, 1 indoor cat and dog. It's true it has to be ready at a moment's notice. We would get a call that someone was coming by in 20 minutes, or so. I had a large, empty bin with a lid. I would go around the house and pick up everything and drop it in the bin , pop the lid on, and shove it in the closet.
As for the cat, we just hid the litterbox and the cat hid anyway. So no biggie there.
And the dishes- same as the toys. I had a smaller bin with a lid. I would just dump the dirty dishes in that bin, pop the top on, and slip it under the sink.
BTW- it was the person that came by 20 minutes after calling that bought the house. Never, ever turn away a buyer when they want to come by because you aren't prepared. Be prepared all the time! They could always go to another home that is ready and buy that one!
Hope this helps!

I would have the same issues (and more) if ever to sell too. I could sell my house and turn a profit but I dont want to go through the hassle of selling and moving etc. I know it happens every day to millions of people who have showings.

We sold our house almost a year ago now. It sold in 21 days! Even in a depressed market this is the best time to sell. My kids are 3 and 4 now, so I get the challenge of keeping the house in tip-top shape with little ones running around. We do not have any pets. Some points to consider:
Like you we decluttered hard. After that I hired a professional cleaning company to come in and deep clean. ( I hired The Maids and they were awesome!) Just that one cleaning allowed me to keep up with the day to day cleaning.
I kept baby gates up at the time because my daughter was still having trouble getting up and down our staircase, but they came in handy to keep them confined to one area of the house to make it easier to tackle a certain area instead of a whole house of mess! We only kept out a small amount of essential toys. The rest were packed in big plastic bins and rotated in and out on a weekly/two week basis.
Are you going with a realtor? In the past we always sold our homes on our own, but given the market is such a buyer's market we thought we needed all the help and exposure an agent could give us. We interviewed several people. We chose a woman that was at the top of her game. We have one of those home show cable channels that show a listing of current homes for sale in the area. It seemed like every other listing was hers! Yet, she still managed to give us undivided attention. Our house was on the show, website, she had open houses (the second one was cancelled because the house sold so fast!) and flyers available on the sign in our yard. She also would have put our house in a free magazine, but again our house sold so quickly it didn't make it to print in time!
We updated our house regularly over the years. Fresh paint and carpet in neutral colors, wood flooring, and it was staged in a current way. We knew we might take a hit on our equity, but the upside is you pretty much gain what you lost in the next home purchase (in most cases).

I would always make sure there weren't dirty dishes in the sink, but I wouldn't worry too much about the dishwasher. I doubt many people would look there. You still have to live in the house for goodness sake! As for the cat, I would take her with you while they are showing the house. You can also request from your agent that they give you at least a two hour notice before a showing since you have small children. They are usually pretty flexible with that.

Also we planted a St. Joseph in the backyard. You can find them at any Christian bookstore. Good luck!
A.

haven't sold in a long time!!! however, for people like me with allergies to cats? you should have your listing agent state there is a cat on the premises so the potential buyers can be aware. I know as a potential buyer, I appreciated that knowing first.

We had a dog. When we found we were having a showing, we took our dog to our next door neighbor. My daughter was 3.

We hired a cleaning company to come in once a week and clean the house. That went a LONG way in helping keep the house clean.
We also hired a mowing company to come in and keep the lawn mowed.

it was a buyers market as well. because we used the KISS method - Keep It Simple Silly - and got rid of everything that was not needed every day. I think we sold in 21 days and closed in 45. it wasn't long. We had an inspection done prior to us listing it and fixed what, to us, were the most glaring issues or things that would potentially be game stoppers for getting the best price for the house.

We also had to remember it wasn't our "home" anymore. It was a house. So we removed all the personal stuff - pictures, etc. We had carpets and had the carpets professionally cleaned as well.

I had a toy box in the family room for her toys. They were all put in there when we got a call for a showing.

GOOD LUCK!!!

We run a business in which we flip houses, so we sell several homes every year (although we are not living in them). My recommendation to you would be to show your house by appointment. It's really not a big deal to most buyers - it's not like most people just happen to be driving by with their agent, and say, "Hey! That place has a sign on the lawn, let's stop there!" No, typically the agent will want to preview the house (meaning they'll come by without their client) and if they feel the home meets the needs of their client, they will then make an appointment to show the home. THE single most important driver is price - if you're at the right price, your home will sell quickly despite the bad market. Make sure your agent has your home listed at the correct price the day you go on the market - dropping the price later makes you look desperate, giving buyers more leverage. Staging your home is necessary, but secondary to price.

When they DO make an appointment, as long as your house is pretty much within an hour of being spotless, you'll be fine. I'd take the litter box, the cat, and the kids out of the home when you know it's being shown (I know this will not make the cat happy, but it is what it is). When we know people will be coming by to view a house we're selling, I'll throw some cookies in the oven so the house smells inviting, and then you have a nice plate of cookies for them to snack on while they tour the house. Also, before you leave before the showing, turn on every light in your house. (Yes, every single one.) The more light, the better. As long as you've removed any clutter and the house is clean, you're good to go!

1. Stay out of the house as much as you can.

2. Can you have the cat stay with a responsible relative?

3. Go to Costco and buy a stack of paper plates and plastic utensils. Buy a lot of microwaveable dinners. It's more expensive and not very eco friendly but you won't have to wash a dish for as long as you need to. The only downside is trying to get back into the habit of using real dishes once you're moved into your new place.

You could tell your realtor you need x hours of notice before a showing. I would also always be ready for showings on Saturdays and Sunday's. Re: the dishes just rinse them well before putting them in thedishwasher but I can not imagine someone opening your dishwasher... Especially for a first showing. Good luck.

You have to know when the viewings are going to be - nobody just turns up. If they are very interested then they will wait for a time when you have been able to clean up. It was very hard trying to keep the house nice all the time, I had 2 indoor cats and a Samoyed (google for pics THE FUR!!!) Although it was nice to have a tidy house all the time - I said nobody could come without 24 hours notice.

We just sold our house 1 year ago. Although it had to be ready, that basically meant that we could get it ready in 2-3 hours. Most times we were given a day to be ready and sometimes longer. Don't worry about the cat, just make sure you lock the cat up when someone is coming over so the cat doesn't escape when people come in and leave doors open. My understanding is the lock box is there to make it easier so you don't have to be there, NOT for them to come over at any time. Make sure YOU make the rules for the real estate agent, they are working for you, and this could take many months before the house is sold. You have to be able to "live" in the mean time. Of course the more flexible you are the easier to sell your house. Good Luck!