Are you selling your house? Bet you've heard of ''curb appeal", but have you heard of "clean appeal"? Well, it shouldn't surprise you that clean houses sell faster and for a higher price than dirty ones. Uncluttered homes sell for a higher price than cluttered ones. (NY Times) Cleaning your home is clearly part of the process of getting your house “market ready.” In fact, it’s listed as the number one way to sell your house the fastest by LearnVest and many other websites.

So, why is this finishing touch often so overlooked?

After all, you’ve put in new floors and painted the walls with a fresh coat of paint. You’ve even fixed that leaky sink. But, you are tempted to skip out on getting it cleaned for someone else to enjoy.

Admit it. Somewhere in the back of your mind you are thinking about the décor you are going to buy with all the money you will save by cleaning it yourself. Who needs a professional cleaner? You totally have an extra hour to gather supplies. And of course, that 15 hours to actually clean your home is no problem. You’ll squeeze that in between gathering your health records from your doctor, registering your kids at their new school, forwarding your address with the post office, and packing your entire house.

If there is ANY doubt that you will have time to clean your home, book a professional cleaner. The worst that can happen is that you magically find oodles of time on your hands and don’t need them, so you cancel and lose your $50 non-refundable deposit. Better that, than try to find a cleaner two days before you need one!

So what can you expect from a cleaner?

When you choose Helpful Housekeeping as your cleaning company, you can expect: dependability, reliability, professionalism, honesty, and modesty.

We are licensed, bonded, insured, and carry workman's compensation.

We provide you with an estimate that is based on square footage. (See www.helpfulhousekeeping.com/move-in-move-out-cleaning for exact prices.) This estimate includes all supplies and labor.

We give you a customized checklist created for your residence. You will know what is and is not included in the price estimate, as well as additional pricing if you want any extra items like windows or the inside of the fireplace added. (Be sure that you have clarified with the buyer their expectations and yours BEFOREHAND so that the sell of the house is not delayed.)

We reserve your cleaning date on the calendar. Reserving your date is as easy as signing an estimate sheet where you agree to the price of the cleaning and pay a $50 non-refundable deposit.

We bring all the supplies to the job and complete the checklist.

We take before and after pictures. As a proof of compliance and job completion, it is standard for the company to take pictures of the home to be cleaned and after it is cleaned. These pictures may be requested by the seller or real estate agent by text or email at no additional charge, but must be requested within 3 days or they will be deleted.

We leave a “Welcome to the Neighborhood Bucket” for the new owners of the home with a bucket of cleaning supplies, cleaning tips, and local business coupons and brochures.

So, before you decide not to have your house professionally cleaned…think about this quote from HGTV: “The first impression is the only impression.”