Your bathroom is one of the most personal and private spaces in your home. Unfortunately, when you place your home up for sale, privacy is off the table. Through multiple showings and open houses, there will be people trampling through your home, snooping in cabinets, and poking around in the oddest places. Prevent any disasters by making sure that your bathroom is presentation ready. The following are some of the things that can freak out potential buyers when it comes to the water closet, lavatory, mens/ladies room, or whatever you prefer to call it.
Questionable decor
Here’s the thing: everyone, if asked, thinks that they have great taste. In bathrooms, however, as is the case in the rest of your home, tasteful neutrals are always your best bet when it comes to decorating. A buyer we know bought her starter home in a great neighborhood, for a great price. The consequence she had to deal with for the “right” home? The bathroom was painted firetruck red, with black fixtures. It looked, to be blunt, like a vampire bordello, minus any element of sexiness. In a similar vein, those revealing boudoir shots that you have hanging in your en suite are definitely not something you want to share with the public.
Anything that doesn’t belong there
It’s bad enough if you have dirty laundry on the floor or an overflowing trash can when buyers come to check out your bathroom - it really should be white-glove clean and neat - but any but the choosiest buyers will probably forgive this. What they won’t go for is a kitty litter pan in the bathtub (especially if it hasn’t been scooped!), a dorm fridge near the toilet (we aren’t making this up), or a dishpan with kitchen utensils crowded on the vanity. On an essential level, we are creeped out and disgusted by non-bathroom items in the bathroom. Trust us.
Yucky stuff. Yes, that.
Undoubtedly YOU would never leave your bathroom a stinky mess before letting prospective buyers look at it. But the way to ensure it stays pristine is to make sure that visitors at showings and open houses can’t use the facilities. We’ve heard too many horror stories about people making themselves a little too “at home” in a bathroom that isn’t theirs to use, and the horrendous assault to the senses that followed, especially if they were sloppy. A pro trick? Remove all toilet paper from the bathroom(s) before showings or open houses, just so that nobody gets any ideas.
