Consider the pros and cons of showing a vacant house

WASHINGTON -- It's a question almost as old as real estate itself: Should I move and try to sell my cave -- er, house while it's empty, or should I stay until the place is sold and then get on with my life?

Some agents say they achieve better results when the house is occupied, while others argue just the opposite.

Put Diane Sheldon of Intero Real Estate Services in San Jose, Calif., in the latter camp. "Personally, I prefer vacant," she says. Empty houses "seem to get to contract faster than occupied, and it is easier on the seller."

Those on the other side of the debate maintain that dressed is best, even sparsely.

"Leaving the property furnished lends a lived-in feel, and also helps buyers visualize where they might put their furnishings," says Monica McNamara of Coldwell Banker in Ocean City, Md.

Certainly, lots of people can't "see" how a property might live unless you show them.

But that brings up another issue with furnished houses. To put it bluntly, sometimes your sense of decor sucks. Your furniture is so ugly, so worn, so mismatched that it can turn off visitors who take one quick look around and skedaddle out the door as fast as possible.

Consider hiring a professional stager, someone who can advise you how to make your place as presentable as possible with your own furniture or bring in a truckload of the stager's own furniture after you've moved out.

If you can't afford a pro, consider paying a one-time, one-hour consultation fee and do the work yourself.

Not that unoccupied houses don't present their own set of problems. For one thing, empty often is seen as a sign of desperation. If a would-be buyer senses that the place has been "abandoned," he's likely to make a low-ball offer.

An empty house also tends to show all its flaws. Furniture and rugs usually hide the dings and dents. But once the furnishings are removed, the defects are there to see in all their splendid glory -- and for the buyer to fixate on and mentally calculate how much it is going to cost to repair them.

On the other hand, empty sometimes makes a smaller home appear larger -- at least to some people. Others say rooms, especially secondary bedrooms, seem smaller when there is no furniture in them.

Yet another virtue of unoccupied houses is that they can be seen at a moment's notice. No calling to make appointments, no waiting for the occupants to make the beds or do the dishes or round up the kids and the dog so they won't be underfoot.

"Sellers need to know that showing the home 'when the buyer wants' to see it is the No. 1 thing, especially in this market," says Dan Walker of RE/MAX Associates in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Otherwise, here are some ideas on how to make an empty house more inviting:

-- Clean. Top to bottom, purify the place. A fresh coast of paint -- in a neutral color, of course -- will do wonders. Clean or replace the carpeting, maybe even redo the wood floors. Wash the windows, appliances and baths. Make the place sparkle like it was brand-new.

-- Outside. Spruce up the exterior. Trim the shrubs, throw down new mulch, and paint the front door (and the rest of the house, if necessary). Hire a lawn service to keep the grass mowed on a regular basis.

-- Power up. The tendency is to turn off the utilities when you leave. But keep the juice on so the air conditioning keeps the place cool and inviting -- or the furnace running to keep the house warm and inviting, depending on the season. Visitors will need electricity to turn the lights on if they tour at night.

-- Window treatments. Keep them up. Don't take them with you. And clean them, too.

-- House sitters. Consider using a firm that places people and their furnishings in house on a temporary basis. These folks agree to keep the place clean, show the house on a moment's notice, and move out within 30 days. Beware, though, because there may be some legal issues if your house sitter decides not to pull up stakes as promised.

-- Experienced agent. Make sure that your agent has experience selling empty houses. Maybe the agent has some extra furniture he can put into your former home to make it look more enticing

-- Leave-behinds. If any room in the house has no ceiling fixture, leave a small lamp plugged into the wall so it can be seen at night. Also, you might want to leave a few key pieces of furniture, things you might be able to live without until the house is sold.

-- Leave appliance manuals on the kitchen counter. If you don't have them, order them from the manufacturer. Also leave a list of your last 12 months' utility payments for visitors to view. Another idea: photos of how the place looked when it was furnished.

-- Security. Vandals love empty houses, but insurance companies don't. So consider installing some type of alarm system, which will be good selling point anyway. At the very least, put your lights on a timer. And if you can, leave a car in the driveway.

Also, notify your insurer that the house is going to be empty, and ask what steps need to be taken to keep your coverage in force.

Lew Sichelman has been covering real estate for more than 30 years. He is a regular contributor to numerous shelter magazines and housing and housing finance industry publications.