Let’s talk about staging your doors! Doors, you say? Yes, doors! Home staging is more than just redecorating
and furniture placement. Home staging is showing the buyer that your home is well maintained and a good investment for them. Doors are as much a part of that as anything else.
In my own house one of the things I think when cleaning my house is, ‘guests may not notice that it’s clean, but they will sure notice if it’s dirty’. Keep that in mind when staging your home. A buyer may not notice that the door handles match or the doors open and close easily but you can bet they will notice if the door handles don’t match, the doors squeak or the doors are dirty.
What can you do to stage a door? Well, I’ll tell you..
Paint
- Every interior and exterior door should look fresh and clean. If there are nicks or scratches in your door, fix them and repaint them.
Door Handles
- All interior doors should have matching door handles. If your door handles match throughout the house the home will show as being owned by someone who cares about the home. The buyer may not leave saying they liked how all the door handles match but if they don’t match, the buyer will certainly notice. Show the buyers you cared enough to pay attention to the little things. They will know that if you took care of the little things you took care of the big things.
Hinges
- Never, ever paint over a door hinge. If you need to paint the door jams, remove the door so you don’t get any paint on the hinges. If you have door hinges that have been painted, replace them.
- Ensure your hinge color match your door handle color. If your door handle is silver and your hinge is gold it will not look good and will get noticed.
- No squeaky door hinges. Get out the WD-40 and make sure the door opens and closes quietly. If you don’t have any WE-40 a touch of vegetable oil works just as well.
Locks
- Doors that should lock, do. If you are replacing door handles you don’t need a handle that locks on closets or pantries but bedroom and bathroom doors must lock and the locks need to work properly.
Clean
- Part of your cleaning ritual should always include wiping down the doors. Doors get dusty just like everything else and a quick wipe down will keep them looking fresh.
- Anyone with children knows that finger prints and muck are a part of life in your house. Always clean the door handles to make sure there’s no goo on them and wipe away any finger prints or smudge marks on the door.
Weather Stripping
- If you have weather stripping on your doors, this is good. It shows the buyer this is an energy efficient house. If the stripping is old, torn or looks bad, replace it.
Caulk
- Remove and replace any old, dirty, or cracked caulking around your doors. It is amazing how fresh caulk can make a door look new!
Stay tuned to JenJen’s Blog for more Home Staging tips!
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