Pre-Sale Preparation Checklist
A faster action-focused checklist for the weeks and days immediately before photography and campaign launch.
Open checklist →Interactive planner + complete guide
The Complete Property Sale Preparation Guide.
Build a practical preparation plan around your photography or campaign date — from agent and conveyancing decisions through decluttering, repairs, cleaning, styling, photography, open homes and settlement.
Prepare for the campaign, not just the listing
Give every stage of the sale its own job.
Preparing a property for market is easier when you separate legal and agent setup, decluttering and repairs, presentation, photography, inspection maintenance and settlement. The planner below adapts to how much time you actually have and what is already organised.
✓ Adapts to photography / campaign timing
✓ Living-in and vacant-property pathways
✓ Conditional styling, cleaning and agent tasks
✓ Persistent progress + printable plan
Welcome back — your property sale plan and checklist progress were restored on this device.
Your plan
Your personalised property sale plan.
—days to campaign milestone
Your progress0 of 0 tasks
The photography deadline matters
Prepare for the camera before you prepare for buyers.
Photography is often the first hard presentation deadline. Once campaign imagery is captured, you can shift from one-off preparation into a repeatable inspection routine.
Before cleaning: declutter, complete priority repairs and remove items that will disrupt styling or access.
Before photography: complete the detailed clean, exterior presentation and styling reset.
During the campaign: maintain rather than repeatedly deep-clean — this is where a simple open-home reset matters.
The complete reference
Prepare the property, the campaign and the handover.
The planner gives you your priorities. This full guide explains how the major stages fit together — from engaging professionals and preparing legal documents through to presentation, inspections, sale and settlement.
Stage 1Set up the sale
Choose the professionals and understand the documents early.
Agent selection, sale method, conveyancing and legal documents shape the campaign before presentation work begins. In Victoria, sellers usually engage a legal practitioner or conveyancer to prepare or review the Section 32 statement and contract of sale.
Choose an estate agent deliberatelyCompare experience, marketing plan, communication, commission and expenses before signing a sales authority.CAV: selling with or without an agent ↗
Engage a conveyancer or legal practitionerGet legal documentation moving before the campaign creates unnecessary time pressure.CAV: conveyancing & contracts ↗
Understand the Section 32 statementIt contains important title and property information and must be provided before the buyer signs the contract.
Decide the method of saleAuction and private sale have different campaign structures and negotiation processes.CAV: sale method & price ↗
Stage 2Edit the property
Declutter before you start styling or cleaning around too much stuff.
The goal is not to strip the property of personality. It is to reduce visual noise, make spaces easier to understand and remove obstacles from repairs, cleaning and photography preparation.
Reduce benches and surfacesKeep useful styling pieces, but remove everyday clutter that competes with the room.
Edit wardrobes and storageBuyers often open storage. Overfilled cupboards can make usable space feel smaller.
Store surplus furnitureIf a room feels cramped, removing one piece can be more effective than adding décor.
Pack early where practicalItems you will not need during the campaign can become part of the move rather than part of the presentation problem.Packing supplies at Bunnings ↗
Stage 3Repair with purpose
Prioritise the defects that interrupt presentation or buyer confidence.
Not every imperfect surface needs renovation. Focus on maintenance, unfinished jobs and conspicuous defects that make the property feel neglected or distract from otherwise strong presentation.
Fix obvious maintenance issuesLoose handles, blown globes, visibly leaking taps, sticking doors and unfinished small repairs can undermine the overall impression.
Assess paint selectivelyTouch-up or repaint where marks, patching or strong colour significantly affect presentation — avoid creating mismatched patches.
Address exterior first impressionsEntry, paths, lawn edges, gardens, bins and visible cobwebs influence the property before buyers reach the front door.
Do not disguise known issuesPresentation work should improve appearance, not be used as a substitute for legal disclosure or professional advice.
Need several upgrades coordinated?If preparing the property involves painters, flooring, landscaping, repairs, staging or several different trades, Melbourne Property Hub provides strategic pre-sale upgrade support, including property assessment and project coordination.Melbourne Property Hub: Strategic Upgrades ↗
Stage 4Clean for presentation
Clean the property according to how buyers will experience it.
Pre-sale cleaning is different from simply making the home generally tidy. Photography, styling and inspection traffic make glass, walls, wet areas, kitchens, floors and high-impact detail areas especially important.
Work from highest-impact areasKitchen, bathrooms, main living areas and entry presentation often carry the strongest visual weight.
Give glass deliberate attentionWindows, mirrors and glass doors can dominate bright photography and natural-light presentation.
Assess walls and touch pointsMarks around switches, hallways, stairs and high-traffic areas can stand out more once clutter is removed.
Clean before styling where possibleIt is easier to complete detailed cleaning before furniture placement, styling accessories and photography setup.ExitMaid Pre-Sale Cleaning →
Stage 5Style & photograph
Make the photography day a hard presentation deadline.
Once photos are captured, your campaign will repeatedly present those images to buyers. Prepare the property so the marketing reflects the strongest realistic version of the home.
Coordinate styling and cleaning orderWhere professional staging is used, complete comprehensive cleaning before major styling placement unless your stylist advises otherwise.
Remove everyday visual clutterBins, excess cords, toiletries, magnets, pet items and cleaning equipment are easy to overlook.
Check every camera-facing zoneEntry, open-plan sightlines, bed presentation, benchtops, outdoor entertaining and bright windows deserve a final scan.
Keep the result reproducibleTake your own quick reference photos after styling so you know how to reset rooms for inspections.
Stage 6Maintain the campaign
Once the property is campaign-ready, switch from deep cleaning to repeatable resets.
If you are still living in the property, open homes can quickly become the most exhausting part of the campaign. A simple routine keeps the home close to presentation-ready between inspections.
Create a quick-hide systemUse a small number of baskets or tubs for daily items that need to disappear quickly before inspections.
Reset kitchens and bathrooms firstClear benches, sinks, towels, toiletries and obvious water marks before working through the rest of the home.
Control floors and entryVacuum / mop where needed, check entry glass and remove obvious outdoor debris before buyers arrive.
Protect your own timeIf maintaining presentation becomes too burdensome, campaign support can be more useful than repeatedly booking full deep cleans.Explore CampaignCare →
Stage 7Sale to settlement
The campaign ends before the property process does.
Once a sale is contracted, keep working with your agent and conveyancer / legal practitioner on settlement requirements, inclusions, access and the final property handover.
Confirm inclusions and exclusionsItems forming part of the sale should be dealt with consistently with the contract.
Plan removal and final cleanOnce the home is emptied, consider what level of settlement cleaning or custom final presentation is appropriate.
Keep legal / tax matters with the professionalsYour conveyancer or legal practitioner can advise on settlement documents and property-specific requirements.SRO: property clearance certificates ↗
Prepare the final handoverKeys, remotes, manuals and agreed property inclusions should be ready for the final process.
Victorian property-sale information
Use official and professional guidance where the sale rules matter.
ExitMaid can help with practical presentation and property-transition planning. Estate agency agreements, Section 32 statements, contracts and settlement requirements should be handled using current Victorian guidance and appropriately qualified professionals.
Selling with or without an agent — Consumer Affairs VictoriaSales authorities, commissions, marketing and selling without an agent.
↗
Conveyancing & contracts for sellers — Consumer Affairs VictoriaConveyancers, legal practitioners, Section 32 statements and contracts.
↗
Sale method & price — Consumer Affairs VictoriaAuction, private sale, pricing and campaign considerations.
↗
Property clearance certificates — State Revenue Office VictoriaCurrent information about property clearance certificates and tax amounts secured against land.
↗
Want the presentation clean handled before photography?
ExitMaid's Pre-Sale Cleaning is designed around property presentation rather than a generic housekeeping routine, with the flexibility to focus additional attention where the home will benefit most before campaign launch.
