Greenwich homeowners who’ve been finishing up cleaning the house may think they are, as the British say, “done and done” with 2021’s spring cleaning chores—but self-congratulations may have to be postponed for the moment. A living room cleared of the winter’s debris and bedrooms aired out and dusted do deserve the feelings of accomplishment they inspire—except for one last detail.
Greenwich homes may have sailed through the winter without any notable exterior damage, but before calling it quits, it’s advisable to step outside your newly tidied Greenwich home to conduct spring cleaning’s auxiliary chore: the exterior inspection. It actually may be the most significant part of a homeowner’s annual springtime cleanup campaign: spotting a budding maintenance problem at its first appearance can save a lot of angst and expense later on.
Here is a checklist of eight areas that will spur an exterior inspection comprehensive enough to declare a legitimate ‘done and done’ for Spring Cleaning, 2021. Almost all of our sales this year, whether representing buyers or sellers, involve tap dancing around one of these issues, following a building inspection. Best to avoid any buyer negotiation when an afternoon of cleaning can head off concerns at the pass.
- 1. Roof
- 2. Garage door
- 3. Front porch
- 4. Foundation
- 5. Gutters & downspouts
- 6. Deck & patio
- 7. Driveway & walkways
- 8. Yard pest activity
What to do when the condition of any checklist item is other than what you expected to find can be simple or involved (in fact, volumes of information exist for what to do about each). But in every case, if something is even slightly out of kilter, the best time to fix it is, universally, now.
Photo: The potting room at Ethelwynde, a great estate in Lenox MA. With 13 bedrooms and set on 31+ acres, along with a mid century guest house, it is an exceptional and one of a kind property.
