Merchandising Your Bath

Like kitchens, bathrooms play a major role in the sale of a home. Prospective  buyers want a bath that is in overall good repair, has ample storage space and  is sparkling clean. Your bath may already be updated and well-maintained, but if  it’s not, you can easily make it more appealing to prospective buyers.

Make It Brighter

Your bath should be as appealing and decorative as the rest of your home. A  brighter, lighter bath painted and decorated in a neutral color will have the  strongest appeal to the largest number of buyers. And if you stick to a  one-color scheme, buyers will find it easier to imagine how their towels,  accessories and other furnishings will look in your bathroom.

Painting the walls and ceiling is the easiest and least expensive way to  update and brighten a bathroom. Generally, gloss or semi-gloss finishes are more  soil, steam and water-resistant and can better withstand repeated scrubbings.

Store Items Neatly

To make your bath look more spacious, keep all the counter space – the  vanity, countertop and back of the toilet – clean and clutter-free. It’s best to  move all personal items such as cosmetics, toothbrushes, combs and hair dryers  from sight.

And don’t just shove everything into your linen closet or medicine cabinet – arrange items neatly because buyers will often look inside. To increase your  bath’s storage capacity, add a few wire baskets or rolling storage carts if they  don’t clutter the room.

Clean And Odor Free

Smell is one of the first things buyers notice upon entering a home, and the  bathroom especially can be a troublesome area. Maintaining an older bathroom is  important because outdated and worn surfaces are likely to trap odors and may be  harder to keep clean. Beyond regularly wiping the walls, floors and porcelain  surfaces with a mild detergent, always have an air freshener handy and put a  toilet bowl disinfectant in the tank.

More Tips

• Scrub your sink, tub, shower and toilet.
• Polish the chrome fixtures.
• Fix a drippy faucet or running toilet.
• Remove mildew stains and stains from tiles and re-grout or re-caulk if necessary.
• Clean lime deposits from shower head.
• Clean out all clogged drains.
• Clean your mirror, window and window coverings.
• Display your best towels and rugs.
• Hang a new shower curtain.
• Put out decorative bars of soap.