Selling your home?

Thinking about selling your home? The following is a to-do list to help protect your privacy when showing your home to prospective buyers:

1. Remove all private or personal photos, diplomas, awards and trophies.

2. Remove all calendars. These often contain a great deal of private information, often noting when you’re not going to be home.

3. Store all valuables.

4. Remove all bills, letters, magazines and library books. Shred papers with personal information that are no longer needed.

5. Password protect your computer to block access to your private files.

6. Turn off your printer and fax machine before each showing. Printers and fax machines often have the capability of printing the last numbers dialed or received.

7. Turn off answering machines (if you still have one!). This avoids personal messages being left while strangers are in your home.

8. Unplug phones with caller ID features.

9. Remove or conceal digital devices that contain information about you or your family (cell phones, iPods, USB drives).

This list may sound a little extreme but you can never be too careful when it comes to protecting your privacy.