There is a reality of the real estate market that is often overlooked. When selling a home, it is basically on show or on stage 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Sellers need to remember this fact as even though it may be 11 pm, prospective buyers may still drive past the home and even at that point what they see should be impressive. You may not be wanting to show your home late at night but your home is "on stage" no matter what time it is. What this means for any seller is that their home must be in show condition no matter what time of day or night it is. The last thing any seller wants to do is to have to clean like a maniac at the last minute to accommodate a quick show. Unfortunately one thing that happens a lot with a home sale is the "drive by show." This is a completely unplanned show that occurs when buyers and their realtors are having a quick drive around the available homes in the area and they see something they like and don't want to wait to see what lies inside. Most realtors will bristle at doing shows on the fly like this but ask yourself if you can really afford to lose a prospective sale?

It can be a chore keeping the home in show condition as show condition and living condition are usually two different things. Daily living does tend to create a bit of a mess, especially if children and pets are part of the equation. It does not take a huge effort to make sure that things stay in pristine condition on a daily basis. You may have to learn to live without a few things as if the home is professionally staged, usually there will be some things that get stowed away as they are unnecessary to the showing of the home. Ideally home shows will be scheduled and you will have the appropriate time to prepare for them but as I stated before, those last minute, no-notice shows can happen. If they do happen then you need to be ready for them. If someone absolutely has to see your home at the last minute without notice it could mean that they are desperate to buy. It could be that they have to transfer to the area and get settled quickly or any number of other reasons. No matter what they are, if a buyer is needing to buy, you must be ready to show them your home. This will be much easier if you don't have to tell them to wait for 20 minutes while you clean up the dinner mess or something of the like.