Home staging is preparing your home for sale on the real estate market. It's more than tidying up your home. It's highlighting the best features of your home. And, it's helping prospective buyers visualize themselves living in your home. Much of what you need to do to stage a home costs little or no money. It can, though, have a major impact on how fast you sell your home and the price that you get for it. So, if you are about to put your home on the market, read these top ten home staging tips.
1. Start with the Front Door
The first thing to do when staging a home is to think about the curb appeal. Curb appeal is the appeal of the house as prospective buyers pull up outside your home. Start by tidying up the yard and cleaning the front door and porch. Cut back shrubbery and mow the lawn. Make the front of your home looks as fresh, bright and attractive as possible.
“Buyers make presumptions about a house based on the exterior. Great curb appeal is one of the best marketing efforts you can make. It can attract drive-by interest and entice buyers to want to see more,” says Roy Dekel, CEO of SetSchedule, a Technology Innovator of SAAS products for real estate professionals. “A home that lacks maintenance will have the opposite effect, and may deter buyers from even entertaining the open to view the interior.“
2. Concentrate Your Efforts on the Most Important Rooms
Not all rooms are equal when it comes to home staging. Some rooms will influence a buyer's decision more than others. The rooms that buyers place the most importance on are the kitchen, the living room, and the main bedroom. These are the rooms that you should put more effort into when you are staging your home.
3. Declutter Your Home
People want to live in roomy, spacious homes. They also want to have plenty of storage space. Too much clutter in the home will make both the rooms and the closets look smaller. Clean out cupboards and closets of all non-essential items. Out of season clothes and things you never use, for example. Remove unnecessary furniture from rooms as well. Make the rooms easy to walk around. The less cluttered your home looks, the more appealing it will be to buyers.
4. Depersonalize
You want to make buyers feel that they are looking at their new home, not visiting yours. You can do that by removing personal items. Things like family photos, hobby collections, and other personal items. In the bathroom, put items like toothbrushes and personal hygiene products away. It's also a good idea to take down any religious ornaments or pictures you have in your home. Depersonalizing your home may feel a little weird. It won't feel like your home anymore. But remember, that's exactly what you are trying to achieve.
5. Think Neutral
Wherever you can, make your home as neutral as possible. If you have any walls painted with very bright colors, repaint them with a neutral color. If you have any very bold pictures or wall hangings, take them down. You want to make your home look like a blank canvas. Something that buyers can personalize for themselves.
6. Create Space
Create as much space in rooms as possible by rearranging the furniture. Make sure that is easy to walk around the rooms. If you need to, move unwanted furniture into storage. If you have any furniture that doesn't fit very well with the décor of a room, think about putting it into storage as well. You are going for a minimalist look.
A look that will allow buyers to think about where they will place their own furniture. You are also trying to make your home look as spacious as possible. So, arrange your furniture so that there is plenty of empty floor space visible.
7. Light Up Every Room
When you have buyers coming to look at your home, open all the blinds to let the daylight in. A light room looks larger than a dark one, and it looks a lot much more inviting. It's also a good idea to turn all the lights on for when buyers view your home as well, including wall lights and table lamps. If you have any dark corners in your home, place table and a lamp in the corner. Dark corners are another thing that will make your home look smaller.
8. Clean Everything
Give the whole house a deep clean. Clean carpets, floors, drapes, paintwork; everything! You want everything, from the floor up to the ceiling, to be sparkling clean. A clean and tidy house shows buyers that your home has been cared for. It will make them feel comfortable that are no hidden horrors waiting for them if they move in.
9. Complete Minor Repairs
Check around the home for any minor repairs that need doing. Clean off any marks on the walls and touch up the paintwork where it needs it. Finish the home improvement jobs that you didn't quite get around to completing. Staging a home is as much about showing that the property has been cared for as it is about making the house look perfect. Even small imperfections could start buyers wondering what else might need repairing.
10. Freshen Up
Before buyers arrive to view your home, open the windows and let in some fresh air. A few well-placed vases of cut flowers will also add freshness to your home. It's the last-minute little touches that can make all the difference.
Conclusion
You don't need to spend a fortune to stage a home. It's often the little things that make the biggest impression. Picture yourself in the shoes of the buyer. You would want a home that you can move into straight away. No fuss, and no unexpected expense. You would also want to be able to picture you, and your belongings, in that home. That's what staging a home is all about.
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