What can you do to prepare your house for showing? What small steps can be taken to increase your chances for a quick sale? Efforts to improve the appearance of your house can contribute greatly to its marketing success. Small efforts such as replacing defective light bulbs; repainting damaged trim areas around doors and windows; cleaning the carpets; and adding finishing touches such as fresh flowers can make all the difference.

Create a marketing plan for your home that will help distinguish it in your local marketplace and attract buyers to your property. This may include advertising in the newspaper, posting your listing on the Internet, holding an open house and more. CENTURY 21 Sales Professionals often use the CENTURY 21 Customized Marketing System to create a personalized selling program for clients. Its purpose is to sell a home at the best price possible in the shortest amount of time.

A key part of the marketing plan is setting the list price. If a home is priced to low, it may cost you money. If a home is priced too high, potential buyers may be scared away. To determine the best asking price review the cost of recently sold homes, evaluate the competition and study marketplace trends. CENTURY 21 Sales Associates are trained to use this information to help you reach the right asking price. It is also helpful to discuss other terms and conditions, such as timing and items that can be included with the sale of the home. Both of these can make your home more attractive to potential buyers.

Now it's time to get your home ready for the spotlight. Start with a good cleaning, then eliminate any clutter, add a fresh coat of paint and tidy up the yard. Talk to your real estate professional about other tips that can help boost a home's curb appeal and impress potential buyers once they're in the door.

In addition, make sure you are aware of all the federal, state, and local disclosure laws. This information can be obtained by the specific local and federal government agencies or from your local Century 21 Office.

In some cases, a home sale can also be an invitation for danger. Here are some things you can do to make the process safer.

• Ask for identification
• Ask for pre-approval letters
• Lock up and hide collectibles and valuables
• Remember "For Sale" signs bring in buyers. Do not allow your children to open doors to strangers.
• If you have pets, make sure they are controlled
• Remove any dangerous items
• Talk to your CENTURY 21 Sales Professional about additional safety tips to help protect you and your family.

A buyer has made an offer - now it is time to negotiate. Rely on your real estate professional to guide you through this process. He or she will help you arrive at an acceptable price, terms and conditions. Once you have accepted an offer, help keep the deal together by meeting deadlines and criteria, including home inspections, appropriate buyer visits, scheduled deposits and other steps. In fact, during this period there may be a renegotiation of the accepted offer price depending on the outcomes of these visits. As the closing nears, you may also need to perform repairs or do additional work to the house as agreed upon in your contract. In addition, you will need to have the house "broom clean" prior to the closing so that the buyer can complete a final walk through. When you finally arrive at the closing table, come prepared with the appropriate certificates and approvals as required by your town, county and state. Ask the appropriate agency or get a list of what you need from your local Century 21 Office. Once the money has exchanged hands and all the papers signed it's time to hand over the keys and concentrate on your next big project - getting YOUR new home in order.

CENTURY 21 real estate professionals are dedicated to making the process of selling your home as easy as possible. Below you will find the 21 pledge points offered in support of helping you. *At participating offices only.

1. Dedicate myself to making the process of selling your home as easy and as successful as possible.
2. Respect you, your needs and be honest and forthright.
3. Hold your best interests in the highest regard throughout the process.
4. Value and respect your time, being as efficient and effective as possible.
5. Understand your needs and respond quickly.
6. Use my base of experience, knowledge, tools and the most up-to-date training to best serve you.
7. Provide regular progress reports throughout the process and discuss with you comments received about your property.
8. Explain each step of the process and act as a guide to help you make the most informed decisions.
9. Make recommendations to enhance the marketability of your property.
10. Use a written Competitive Market Analysis and local market information to help you set the right listing price to sell your home and get the value you deserve.
11. Review various financing alternatives and assist you in determining those which best enhance the saleability of your home.
12. Develop, present and agree upon a Customized Marketing Plan that will detail specific promotional efforts to help best market your property.
13. Place the internationally recognized CENTURY 21 yard sign on your property, with your permission and subject to local ordinances.
14. Provide worldwide exposure for your property on the Internet, including posting your property on Century21.com, a site which receives millions of visitors each month.*
15. Explain local real estate procedures and regulations.
16. Show your property to pre-qualified buyers.
17. Utilize the CENTURY 21 System of thousands of offices to expose your property to potential buyers referred to my office.
18. Utilize the vast and powerful resources of the CENTURY 21 System to get you the results you deserve, including leveraging a Network of 6,500 offices and 104,000 agents worldwide.
19. Submit to you all written offers, assist with negotiations, and provide an estimate of your net sales proceeds, so you understand all implications prior to any acceptance.
20. Upon acceptance of an offer to you, pre-settlement (escrow) activities throughout the closing process will be monitored as permitted by law or local practice.
21. Assist you in finding your next home, or offer to refer you to another office in another location.