When you’re selling in the summer, outdoor staging takes priority. While it’s always smart to make your exterior clean and neat, buyers are likely to spend more time looking at the outside of your house during warmer weather.

Here are a few tips to improve your home’s curb and exterior appeal.

Get rid of clutter. Just like indoors, your outside spaces should be as neat as possible. This means removing your children’s toys, bikes and scooters, as well as your gardening and lawn care tools. If you have a shed, clear it out and get rid of anything you won’t need in your new place.

Clean or replace your outdoor furniture. While you may not mind faded chair cushions or a rusty metal table, these items can signal to buyers that your home is older and, perhaps, not perfectly maintained.

Paint and polish. Check out your fence, your deck, your patio and even your garage. You can add a touch of color by painting a portion of your fence or adding a blue ceiling to your porch. Painting your garage walls is a fast way to give a facelift to that section of your house. Check to see if your deck and patio need a power wash or refinishing. Touch up the trim around your home, too.

Examine your lighting. Make sure your home looks great for buyers who are shopping during the evening hours, too. Inexpensive solar lights can add a romantic look to your backyard or line your front walk. Make sure your front door light looks good and is always on at night.

Trim and clean up your landscaping. Sweat equity can be the biggest cost to a more appealing yard. Pull the weeds, trim the shrubs and trees, and add some mulch or edging for a crisper look.

Add color with inexpensive annuals. If you don’t want to plant before you move, you can always put annuals in pots near your front door and strategically placed in the back yard. Not only will these add some color to your home, but also you can bring them with you when you move.

Showcase outdoor entertaining options. If your yard has the space, consider buying an inexpensive outdoor rug and setting a table with tea lights, a party tray, flowers and a basket of colorful napkins to demonstrate the area’s functionality for parties.