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Home Staging Tips for Quick Sell

Reblogger
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Jo Adams Properties Investment Property Specialist & Real Estate Services, LLC PB00051801

Take note of these Staging Tips...

Lights, Camera, Action!

Original content by Becky Bywater, ASP

With the current economy and glut of homes on the market, it is not the best of times to be selling your home.  However, if you must due to foreclosure or a pending move, there are things that you can do to make your home more marketable and give you a seller's edge.  With today's environment a seller cannot afford to have a home that does not show its best features.    Reality is, if the buyer does not see what they like, they can go down the street and find many more to choose from. 

How you decorate to live in your home and how you decorate to sell are very different.  Whatever degree of staging you do can make a significant difference in how quickly and for how much your home sells.

 Listed below are ten tips on staging your home to sell.

1)       Curb Appeal - Flower beds and scrubs should be manicured.  Shrubs should not be covering windows and walkways.  Invest in a few colorful plants to grab attention.  Look around at your neighbors and find a most attractive landscape and make sure yours looks a good.  Buyers will perceive a well kept yard is also how you keep your home. 

 2)      Declutter - This is the golden rule.  In staging, less is more.  You want the potential buyer to be looking at the home and not your stuff.  If bookcases and countertops are cluttered and closets are messy, the buyer will perceive that is how you have kept the overall structure of your home.

 3)      Depersonalize - You want the buyers to be able to walk in and see a home that they could enjoy and move into immediately.  Remove all those personal photos, trophies and all those vacation souvenirs.   You want the buyers to perceive the home as their home and not your home.

 4)      Think Spacious - Buyers are buying space and a dream.  Make sure your pathways are open and all floor clutter is removed.  Scale down and store extra furniture or any oversized furniture. 

 5)      Destroy Odors - If you can smell it, you can't sell it!  Light odors can be handled with neutralizer odor product.  If the odor is very offensive, find the source and remove the problem.  The worst odors may require painting the walls and cleaning the carpets.

 6)       Light Up Your Home - If you can't see it, you can't sell it!  If your home is dark due to lack of windows, compensate by adding lighting wherever possible.  You should have three kinds of light, overhead for general, task for reading/crafts and accent for setting the stage.  When showing make sure you open all the window treatments and let the natural light in.

 7)      Take Care of Needed Repairs - Most buyers want to move in and start enjoying their home, not face repair work.  A smart move would be to hire a Home Inspector and let the professional tell you what needs to be done.

 8)      Kitchens & Baths Sell Homes - Heard this one before!  These are important areas and should be given extra attention.  In the kitchen brighten up countertops with a bowl of colorful lemons and plates or cookbooks on stands.  Add a colorful biscotti jar.  Bathrooms should display colorful towels and where room permits, silk plant, bowls of potpourri and/or candles.

 9)      Cleanliness is a Must - Who wants to look at someone else's dirt, much less move into it.  Give your home a thorough cleaning and if necessary, hire a cleaning service.  Make sure your windows are clean inside and outside.

 10)  It's Show Time - Lights, Music, Action.  When showing your home turn on all the lights and add some soft music.  Buyers tend to stay longer when they are listening to a great tune.  Remove all toiletry items, toilet brushes and garbage cans. 

 You have 30 seconds to make that first impression! 

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