Your home’s design shows always end with a walkthrough of a beautifully designed house. Professional stagers come in to furnish and decorate homes for sale. Often these designs are complete with beautifully set tables and relaxing porch and patio setups. In shows on flipping houses, experts always recommend staging houses. If there’s one tip homeowners can take from them, it’s that staging helps sell homes. Influenced by TV shows, most buyers think homes should be like the ones on TV.
Home Staging Influences Buyers
Home staging is organizing and decorating your home to showcase its best features. The intent is to make your home look clean, well-maintained, and uncluttered.
A study by the National Association of Realtors found that staging a home helps it to sell faster and at a higher price. Among buyers’ agents surveyed, 81 percent said staging a home makes it easier for buyers to visualize themselves in it. When decorated to a buyer’s taste, 34 percent of realtors said staging increases a home’s value. But realtors surveyed had different opinions on the amount of the increase. Twenty percent said staging increases value between 1 percent and 5 percent compared to similar homes that are not staged. Another 14 percent said the staging increases home value from 6 percent to 10 percent.
7 Ways to Stage Your Home to Sell
To expedite the sale of your home, refresh it both inside and out. Here are seven ways to stage your home:
1. Consider Curb Appeal
Potential buyers will drive by your home before scheduling a visit. Make sure your curb appeal is at its best. Start with general maintenance on the outdoor areas:
- Mow the lawn and trim trees and shrubs.
- Pressure wash the deck, patio, and siding if you have it.
- Repaint the exterior.
- Reseal a blacktop driveway.
- Buy a new mailbox.
- Update outdoor lights and doorknobs.
- Repaint the front door in a fresh color.
Then, complete your lawn’s look with some landscaping and decor:
- Plant flowers in colors that work well with your house.
- Decorate your porch with chairs, outdoor cushions, or potted plants.
- Get a new welcome mat.
- Replace your house numbers.
- Put away children’s toys.Arrange outdoor furniture and rugs to make your patio or deck look inviting.
And then, finally, make sure the inside of your home matches the aesthetic you’ve created on the outside. Buyers will look at your listing online before deciding to see your home. Staging helps them visualize how they’d feel in your home. Your decor should be clean, light, and neutral.
2. Remove Personal Objects
Personal objects can impact someone’s perception of your home. Clear photos and art from the refrigerator and remove family photos throughout the house. Put away knick-knacks, collectibles, and decorations, such as taxidermy, without broad appeal.
3. Declutter Counters and Closets
You’re moving soon, so this is a good time to purge cabinets and closets of excess belongings. Rent a storage unit if you can’t say goodbye to duplicate coffeemakers or those college sweatshirts. Clean the medicine cabinets and remove everything from kitchen counters, including most appliances. Also, clear personal belongings from bathroom counters.
4. Do a Deep Clean
Clean your home from top to bottom. Wipe down light fixtures, blinds, and ceiling fans. This is a good time to bring in professional cleaners to ensure your home is spotless. Bring in cleaning and restoration specialists like SERVPRO if you need specialized cleaning. They have the expertise to handle issues like removing candle soot on walls, carpets and upholstery cleaning or odor removal. Replace your air filters to help your house smell fresh and clean. Regarding staging rooms, realtors surveyed said the living room, master bedroom, and kitchen are most important to buyers.
5. Update the Living Room
To create more space, remove unneeded furniture—place seating to face a focal point, like a fireplace or television. Space the furniture to improve traffic flow and create conversation groupings. Paint walls a light, neutral color and replace dark curtains with light ones.
6. Brighten the Bedroom
Use simple bedding and light-colored linens. Clean and declutter the room. Have nothing on bedside tables except a lamp, book, or candle. Ensure the bed is not too big, or the room will seem small. Remove enough clothing to make closets seem organized and spacious. Declutter closet floors. Use one type of hanger for everything.
7. Make the Kitchen Sparkle
Time to get the cleaning supplies! Thoroughly clean the kitchen, including the inside and outside of appliances. Clean the fronts of cabinets, replace shelf liners, wipe down the backsplash, and put away appliances to make your counters look spacious.
Ways to Stage Your Home to Sell
Chances are, your home is your most significant investment. If you’re putting it on the market, Spending money to get the best return makes sense. Consider having your home professionally cleaned and painted. You can also hire professional stagers to advise you or to handle redecorating your spaces.
We hope you found this blog post on 7 Ways to Stage Your Home to Sell useful. Be sure to check out our post on Sell Your Home Faster With Proper Staging for more great tips!
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