Selling Your Desert Home continued...

General Rooms Checklist:

Baseboards (usually dirty and often scuffed, but most scuffs can simply be washed off). Consider thorough cleaning and spot-painting before a full repainting is undertaken. Gouges and chips should be filled before painting. If you have door stops on these baseboards, check to make sure they are in good order. Replacing them is cheap, and easy and can make a world of difference in appearance.

Smoke alarms must, by law, be fully functional. Go ahead and make sure they all are. While you're at it, you might consider installing new backup batteries in all of them. Nothing is worse (during a showing to perspective buyers) than a smoke alarm intermittently shrieking that its battery is no longer within specifications.

Door handles, hinges, locks, and locksets are one of the most overlooked areas. Grab a screw driver and a can of WD-40 and you're ready to make most door handles, locksets and hinges a joy to use. Make sure the knobs and handles are tight. Also, go ahead and fully close the door to test the mechanisms. Some doors are just not ever closed, and may be slightly out of alignment – in which case, you need to properly align them. Don't just oil the hinges, give the interior mechanism of the lockset or handle a shot. Just push in the nozzle, give it a squirt and then work the mechanism. Be sure and wipe off any excess lubricant. You'll actually feel it improve, and hear it become quieter. If you have a keyed lockset, don't use WD-40 to oil the hole where the key slides in. Get some graphite for locks at the hardware store and put the tiniest 'puff' of it directly in where the key goes. Insert the key and slide it in and out several times. Now, work the key several times – until it all feels smooth and new. When you remove the key, wipe the excess graphite from the key, and from around the keyhole. Sliding glass doors get some special treatment. If you have holes in a door, consider filling them and touch-up painting. If necessary, repaint the entire door. Lastly, check any sealers that are used to prevent air and water leaks. These can rarely be repaired, so just replace any that need it. Doors are very noticeable! (For excellent touch-up paint results that are faster, better, and cheaper, buy a package of SMALL (1/4" – 1/2 " width) cheap artists brushes at the discount store. These will fit into small places great, and will assist you in not using too much paint. Also, when you're through with one, just throw it away – which saves clean-up time!)

Lights are simple. Make sure they all work. If not, replace bulbs or switches as necessary. Make sure fixtures (or bulbs on some decorative fixtures) are clean and look good both with the lights on and off.

Ceiling fans need to be in good working order, naturally, and any lights on them inspected and replaced as necessary. Even if it is your custom to do so, don't leave the ceiling fans set to high speed – it's noisy. Make sure the fan blades are nice and clean.

Door molding (and sometimes on windows) is usually quite dirty on the top rail. Clean it as necessary. Checking this is a lot like kicking tires on a used car lot – people just do it. So make sure your top moldings are clean and dust free.

Walls and ceilings should be checked for holes, cracks, and stains. Washing, filling, and spot-painting should be considered before a complete repainting is started. If you do have to repaint an entire room, be sure to fully air it out for several days (if possible) and add a fragrance to more rapidly dissipate the fresh paint odor. Be sure to carefully check the entire ceiling for old holes used for hanging baskets, holiday decorations, etc. Attend to existing holes by filling and touch-up painting. Heating and air conditioning vents (registers), both the intake and output, get quite dirty. Vacuum them using the brush attachment, and then wipe them down. Touch-up paint these as necessary using appropriate paint and color.

Windows and window coverings should be checked closely, as many of them are rarely ever 'used.' Check to make sure all the windows open and close properly and fully – lubricate as necessary to achieve good motion and low noise. (petroleum jelly, used very sparingly, makes an excellent lubricant for aluminum.) Check all locking and holding mechanisms. Adjust and lubricate as necessary. Clean the glass, inside and outside. (A decent investment might be a small, $3.00 squeegee and some plain white vinegar. Mix water to vinegar at a ratio of about 10:1. Wet a sponge with the cleaning solution and scrub the glass. Now simply squeegee it off, and finish with a 'polish' using a paper towel. It's a very fast and inexpensive way to clean LOTS of glass!) Whatever the window covering, make sure it is not torn, or bent, or broken, and that it opens and closes properly. Clean, adjust, and repair as necessary. Determine how the room shows best, with respect to the window coverings, that is. Should they be open or closed – or partially open? Will it be different at different times of day?

Floors come in so many ways that it's best just to say make sure they are clean, safe, and uncluttered. Shampoo carpets, wax floors, paint floors, seal floors – do whatever is required for your particular flooring to make it look its very best. Don't leave objects on the floors, such as toys or other potential hazards. Be sure the floors are dry – especially in garages and basements.

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