It's time to sell your house. All of a sudden, your comfortable home-sweet-home becomes a product you need to market and sell for the highest price possible. Get your house ready for the market—and prospective buyers—with these simple ideas.

1. REMOVE THE CLUTTER. Your house will look larger and more organized with all the clutter pared back. Clear surfaces on tables, leaving only a few decorative items. Have a garage sale before your open house and sell the extra stuff you won’t move. Stow worn furniture and overflow items such as toys, bikes and other large pieces in a rental storage unit.

2. HIRE A CLEANING SERVICE No one wants to buy someone else’s mess (or dust bunnies under the bed), so a thorough housecleaning will help sell your home. Steam-clean carpets, wax wood floors, wipe down surfaces and repaint nicked cupboards, doorways and toe kicks.

3. SNIFF OUT ODORS Invite a good friend (one who will tell you the truth) to walk around your house and do a sniff test. Figure out where bad odors come from (mildew under the sink, dirty laundry in the kids’ bedroom closet) and eliminate them. Bad smells are subliminal red flags that may turn away prospective home buyers.

4. GO NEUTRAL While you may love the pulsating orange walls in your dining room, a prospective home buyer may not. Repaint bold-colored walls with a fresh coat of neutral-colored paint. Popular choices are beige, white, off-white and light gray because these colors suggest newness and cleanliness.

5. ENHANCE THE HOMINESS Put out clean towels and new soap in the bathrooms. Toss a crisp, ironed tablecloth onto your dining room table. Add small vases of fresh flowers (sweet-scented blooms such as lilacs or peonies are extra nice!) to bedrooms and bathrooms.

6. GO FOR A DRIVE Prospective home buyers aren’t coming to meet your kids or cocker spaniel. They’re coming to see if this house could be their next home. It’s easier for them to visualize themselves living in the house if the current inhabitants (that’s you, kids and pets!) aren’t there.

7. STREAMLINE STORAGE AREAS A big selling point for any house is storage space. If your drawers are overflowing and your closets are bulging at the seams, your house will feel cramped and disorganized. To make your storage areas seem roomier, remove half of their contents.

8. LET THE SUN IN Every house looks cheerier with the golden rays of the sun streaming in. Make sure your drapes, curtains or blinds are clean and in good repair. Wash your windows, pull open your window coverings—and let the sunshine in.

9. DECORATE YOUR FRONT DOOR. Your front door is a prospective home buyer’s first impression of your home. Make sure the front entry is swept clean of leaves or other windblown debris. Hang a pretty wreath on the door or place a basket of blooming flowers near the entryway to make it inviting.

10. MAKE IT SMELL LIKE HOME. Before a prospective buyer visits your home, pop a tray of frozen chocolate chip cookies or cinnamon rolls into the oven. The house will fill with the scent of baked goods—the fragrant essence of “home.”