Do I Need to Empty My House If I Want to Sell It?

When it comes time to sell your house, you might wonder whether you have to empty it before selling.

The short answer? It’s not necessary to empty a house before selling it — but decluttering and removing some personal possessions can help prospective buyers see your house as their home.

At Home & Manor, we specialise in helping homeowners prepare their property for sale. Read on to discover how and what to empty from your house before selling.

The Importance of Presentation

First impressions matter, and how you present your home for sale is no exception. You don’t need to entirely empty your property for sale (in fact, we’d recommend against that) but there are some simple, cost-effective ways to maximise your property’s appeal — and sale value.

First Impressions Matter

When potential buyers browse property listings and eventually come to view your property for sale, they are looking for a property they can picture their future selves making a home in.

A clean, clutter-free, neutrally decorated home makes a stronger impression on potential buyers. It indicates that the property has been well-loved and maintained to high standards, and allows them to imagine how their own possessions could fill the space, and how they could add their own stamp of personality.

Enhancing Property Appeal

A tidy and organised home can also work to highlight its most in-demand features and make it easier for buyers to visualise themselves living there.

Benefits of Emptying Your Home

There are some benefits of emptying your property before a sale and starting with a blank slate.

Showcasing Space and Layout

Particularly if a property is full of lots of large, statement pieces of furniture and distinctive personal items, emptying the home can be a way to help buyers see the real house underneath.

An empty property can help buyers better understand the space, layout, and potential uses of each room.

Easier Staging and Photography

Once you have cleared out all or most of your personal items, you are left with an empty space, which can be just as daunting or off-putting to potential buyers as a cluttered space.

Beginning your house sale journey with an empty home gives you the opportunity to deep clean, add a fresh coat of paint, and professionally stage the property to maximise the space for high-quality, professional photographs.

Facilitating Property Viewings

A professionally staged, uncluttered home can make viewings more pleasant, as well as making it easier to facilitate viewings. The ‘blank canvas’ of a clean, neutrally decorated and furnished house allows buyers to focus on the property itself.

Alternatives to Emptying Your Home

There are myriad reasons why completely emptying your home may not be practical — not least if you currently live there! Luckily, there are some alternatives that don’t involve a costly and inconvenient temporary living situation if you need to make the sale before buying your next property.

Professional Staging Services

A professional staging service can effectively showcase your home’s potential without the need to fully empty it. This might involve a combination of rearranging your current furniture and layout, replacing some personal decor with neutral items, and cosmetic redecoration (like a lick of paint or new cupboard doors).

Strategic Decluttering

If emptying your home isn’t feasible for you, strategically decluttering and organising key areas of your home could be the perfect compromise.

Keep essential furniture and items in place, and remove clutter, personal items, and statement pieces for professional photography and in-person viewings.

Renting Storage Space

But where do you move those personal items to? If you don’t have a storage area in the property (such as a loft, cellar or garage space), renting a dedicated storage unit can be a good middle-ground.
A storage unit allows you to clear out excess items by moving the things you use less-often (and can live without until you move house) safe and secure, while still keeping some furnishings so that your home remains functional for you and appealing to prospective buyers.

Considerations for Different Property Types

There are several factors that can impact whether (and how much) you may need to empty your property before listing it for sale.

Selling a Vacant Home

If your property is already vacant, it is likely already empty. While this allows prospective buyers to view it as a blank canvas, a completely empty property can actually have the opposite effect.

Buyers need to be able to picture their future lives in your property, so spending a little money on tasteful, neutral furnishings and decor before listing the property and hosting viewings can be advantageous.

Selling an Occupied Home

If you still live in your property while selling, you may be tempted to leave it as it is. Your belongings are what makes it feel homely, after all. But excessive clutter and an obviously lived-in property can be almost as uninspiring as a completely blank canvas.

prospective buyers need to be able to see through your stuff and imagine their own lives in your property. This can be a good time to ruthlessly declutter, deep-clean, and refresh the decor, potentially even moving some rarely-used items into temporary storage.

Impact on Sale Price and Time on the Market

Occupied properties typically spend less time on the market, selling faster and commanding higher sale prices than their empty counterparts.

There are a few key reasons for this. Empty properties can be perceived as not being as well-maintained as occupied properties. It is also harder to hide or move attention away from damage in an empty property than in a furnished one.

Additionally, we are visual creatures: potential buyers need to build an emotional connection to the property by imagining a life and a future there — which is much easier to do in an occupied property than an empty one.

Working with Home & Manor

At Home & Manor, we go above and beyond to sell your home.

Home & Manor’s Staging and Presentation Services

Our experienced and professional team are here to help you stage and prepare your home for sale. We understand the local market and can advise on what works (and what doesn’t!) when it comes to decluttering and property presentation.

Tailored Advice for Your Property

After an in-person inspection of the property and a face-to-face meeting to understand your needs and preferences, our team can offer personalised recommendations for staging, decluttering, and presentation based on your property’s specific needs and market conditions.

Conclusion

It’s important to consider the impact of clutter and personal items on prospective buyers. First impressions matter, and a clean, uncluttered, neutrally decorated home leaves potential buyers with a very good first impression about the kind of home they could make in your property.

So, while you don’t have to empty your house if you want to sell it, decluttering and tidying up before taking listing photos and before showings, can attract potential buyers.

Home & Manor can help you prepare your property effectively, so get in touch for professional advice and assistance with preparing your home for sale.