I cleaned out a lot of clutter before calling the one we'll use. I then pointed out pieces of furniture that will go and asked her opinion on others I wasn't sure about.

You don't have to sign the contract until you're ready, so you can declutter some, call and see what they say. If they say you need more or paint, few things to fix, stuff will be out of the way.

My house is fairly clutter free except for the storage area of the basement and garage (LOL) I have some minor sprucing up, clothes to throw away etc. I am wondering if having it in just about "saleable" condition will produce a positive affect on the realtor (the first impression syndrome) and have them price the house more favorably or are they trained to see through some of these issues and price it accordingly knowing that it will be a little less cluttered etc?

After. You may not need it depending on your market so why incur the expense? After interviewing potential realtors and getting their advice, make your decision.

As roselvr said, declutter now.

I'd stage it first including the decluttering, etc. Realtors can be swayed just like other people.

I agree. We always have our house 100% show ready before calling in the Realtor. First impressions are important.

I'd definitely de-clutter/organize before listing the house. As for staging, I'm not sold on this concept. I prefer houses to be empty. I bought my last two houses empty. I did stage the last house I sold as I had a friend just getting into the house-staging business and she did it for free in exchange for a referral. Took 5 months for the house to sell. Can't see where staging helped at all. I think houses sell for two reasons: the right person finds the right house for them and the price is right.

My main issue was that I've been "down" for close to 3 years between back problems, caring for my dad, then back problems again. While my house wasn't messy, it bothered me because I'm a neat / organization freak. I collect dolls & other things so I had a lot of packing up to do.

We had a few jobs that needed to be done, took longer than we thought due to the contractor, but the realtor we called was able to see past this and is standing by waiting.

As for staging, I used this as an opportunity (excuse) to go shopping for new bedding in one room, curtains in 2 others plus a nicer table cloth then what I normally have due to my daughter spilling. I've also wanted to hang some pictures on the walls, found great deals at JC Penney. I'm also trying to finish a few crafting projects like beading a lamp. I'm not going to rent anything to stage, just making sure the house is pleasing to the eye.

I would want to declutter and make the house attractive in part because I plan to interview several Realtors, one from each of the top agencies in our neighborhood. Even the ones I don't end up listing with will 'report back' on our house or mentally match it against their buyers lists, so the better impression we make on them, the more favorable the 'buzz' will be when we do list.

I'd clean and de-personalize first, then ask three realtors from different offices to come and give their opinions on what more extensive improvements (if any) they would advise. Realtors are used to seeing houses "as is" and know where improvements will help sell the place. AFTER you make any real improvements, you will be showing the house to all the realtors as "the product" they will try to sell.

I decluttered and staged before doing my realtor interviews. We painted every paintable surface, cleaned every possible area and did all the updates first. I worked my butt off full time for two months- there wasn't as much as one dead leaf on a tree. All non essential items were put into a POD. It was inconvenient not having all our possessions but in the long run it paid off. When the realtors came in they saw me as a serious and motivated seller who was willing to do my share in order to sell my home.
We sold in 30 days in an impossibly tough South Florida market, in large part because my home was turnkey ready from the get go.

we had two full price offers on our home the three days we had it on the market. here is what i did before calling any realtors. we packed everything that meant anything to us, we emptied out at least 30 percent of the furniture. we had it decluttered to the max and spotless. our garage was lined with huge stacks of boxes, mixed with the furniture. the three realtors that i interviewed all said it was much better to have all that in the garage instead of the house. we are having closing on may 21st which it less than 30 from the time we put it on the market.
ladybugbaby