There are a lot of stressors in everyday life. Add the chore of moving on top of it all, and it can
feel like your fragile house of cards is liable to collapse at any moment. In addition to managing
your own home buying process, you have to keep the house you’re leaving squeaky clean for its
next set of buyers!
When you’re focused on making space for your next journey, it can be jarring to stop and
prepare your current place for a showing—especially for a big event like our Twilight Open
Houses. But if we’ve learned anything from Marie Kondo, the popular Japanese organizing
consultant, it’s that tidying up can be taken in stages. And that it can be both fun and rewarding
in the end!
Let’s apply the Konmari method to preparing your home for a Twilight Open House or other
surprise showing. Are you ready to get started?
Lesson 1: Clothing
Let’s start by assuming that you’ve already pared down your belongings to only those that spark
joy before listing your home on the market. Now, you just have to keep your home neat and tidy
for prospective buyers. Be ready to shift into gear ahead of your Twilight Open House.
Clothing (and other “laundry” items) should be the first thing you tackle. Pick up stray socks,
clothes, and jackets from the floor, door hangers, or the back of chairs. Make sure your
entryway is neat, with the bare minimum of shoes and coats on display. Put all remaining shoes
in their place. Then go through the kitchen and bathrooms to grab dirty dish towels, bath towels,
and other items in need of laundering. Make sure clean hand towels are on display in case
they’re needed.
Lesson 2: Books
Neatly arrange any books or magazines you have out. If you’re reading something bawdy or
political, you may wish to shelve it until the showing is done. While you’re at it, straighten up
loose DVDs, video games, board games, and other media items you have around the house.
Make sure kitchen cookbooks or bathroom readers are also neatly placed where they are not in
the way.
Lesson 3: Paper
Putting away papers is doubly important during a showing. On the one hand, clear tabletops
and counters give the illusion of more space in your home. But even more importantly, it can
protect your safety and privacy. Make sure bills, insurance documents, and even personal correspondence are tucked away. This is also a great opportunity to toss last week’s
magazines, newspapers, and circulars into the recycling bin. Expired 20% off coupons do not
spark joy.
Lesson 4: Komono
Philip K. Dick invented the term “kipple” for the useless little items around your house that seem
to multiply while you’re not looking. Marie Kondo calls the “everything else” komono. Now’s the
time to do a thorough sweep for kipple in the kitchen, bathrooms, and garage. Stray twist ties,
gum wrappers, dirty dishes, school items, action figures…. If you don’t have time to put them in
their proper place as you go, designate a “house showing” bin to toss them into while you make
your sweep. But don’t forget to tidy them up properly as soon as possible—You definitely don’t
want the whole bin to multiply!
Lesson 5: Sentimental items
You may have already taken down family photos before you listed your home. If you still have
some around, we recommend grabbing them on your way out before the prospective buyers
arrive. In fact, many sellers have a box of all kinds of sentimental and personal items that they
remove from the home during showings. Items in the box can include jewelry, portable family
heirlooms, and medications. It’s unlikely that anything would go missing while you’re away, but
it’s a tidy way to keep all your most valuable items close at hand.
About Twilight Open House events
Open houses have been and remain an important part of the home selling process. According
to the “2025 NAR Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends” report, open houses are one
of the top three most important sources of information that buyers use in their home search.
49% of all buyers include open houses in their information search. And the trend is highest
among Millennial buyers (ages 35–44), 54% of whom consulted open houses.
This summer, Howard Hanna is excited to present a series of Twilight Open House events specifically to help capture those buyers! Taking place in the evening during the middle of the week, these events are scheduled to accommodate buyers
whose weekends are full during the summer months.
Are you planning to buy a home this summer? Don’t forget to attend a Twilight Open House
event in your area.
