Home staging is a big part of the home selling process. It prepares a home for sale in the real estate marketplace. Home staging enhances your home’s best features and makes your home look attractive, functional, and welcoming. Staging your home will ensure that it will appeal to the highest number of potential homebuyers.
Most real estate agents agree that staging a home affects a buyer's perception of the property. Proper home staging will help prospective homebuyers to imagine how they would live in the home they are viewing. Home staging is a successful way to make your home stand out against other listings in your area, especially in competitive markets.
Here's how to make your home look its best before you put it on the market:
Boost the Curb Appeal of Your Home
Curb appeal is vital to attracting buyers. The exterior of your home will be the first impression buyers get of your property and will influence their interest in viewing the interior of your home. Your front yard should have neatly trimmed bushes, hedges and trees, mulched beds, and a weeded and properly maintained lawn. Make your front porch or entryway more inviting by adding some comfortable outdoor furniture. For the spring, summer, and fall seasons you can plant some attractive annuals or perennials in flowerbeds. During the winter season add large pots of hardy winter plants on your front porch or entry way or an attractive seasonal wreath on your front door.
Depersonalize, Clean, and De-Clutter your Home
Depersonalizing your home is one of the most essential steps in the home staging process as it makes it easier for buyers to visualize themselves living in the home they are viewing. Remove any objects that convey strong political or religious beliefs. Keep your home décor neutral: remove all sentimental items such as trophies and souvenirs, family heirlooms, certificates, and exotic art pieces. De-clutter and clean your entire home both inside and outside. Focus on the kitchen, bathrooms, and floor.
Update Your Home
Update your home and make any needed repairs. Buyers want to feel that the home they are viewing has been well maintained. Complete any repairs required to windows, siding, fences, roof, garage doors, or the driveway. Repaint or stain the front porch or deck flooring as needed. Replace your roof shingles if they are starting to curl up or coming loose. Repair and fix as needed: Nicks and cracks in walls, and plumbing leaks. Re-stain or refinish your kitchen cabinets if they are still in good condition and do not need replacing. Replace or refinish the bathtub, shower, toilet, and sink in your bathrooms if they are in need of repair or outdated. Update your home flooring if needed. Hardwood floors and tiles are a good choice for adding value and appeal to your home. Today’s buyer will generally prefer a home that is carpet free.
Choose the Right Color Scheme
Consider repainting your home with warm, neutral colors to make it appealing to the highest number of potential homebuyers. Select three colors or less when repainting your home. Repaint the walls, moldings, baseboards and trims if necessary. Add bold colors to your property with accessories (pillows, wall art). Remove any outdated wallpaper, and never paint over wallpaper.
Arrange Your Furniture Symmetrically
Each room in your home should look inviting and spacious. Rearrange your living room furniture in a symmetrical arrangement to create an inviting seating area. Symmetrical arrangements will open a space and make it seem more roomy. Furniture should be floating away from walls. Remove any extra furniture that makes a space look small and cluttered. Remove pieces of furniture that block walkways. Create clean lines and arrange furniture in each room around a central focal point (e.g. fireplace in the living room). Decorate the coffee table with magazines, books, a vase of fresh flowers, or a few tiny candles to create a relaxing atmosphere. Add a throw blanket to a couch for a relaxed, lived-in feel. Set the dining room table with attractive linens and dishes.
Select Proper Home Lighting
Proper lighting can change the look of your home and make it look more inviting and appealing to buyers. Turn on all the lights in your home and use as much natural light as possible by opening drapes, curtains, blinds, and shades before a showing. Make sure your home lighting is functional and properly balanced with ambient, task, and accent lighting. Add table lamps and floor lamps to brighten up dark rooms or corners.
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to stage your home for sale. Your real estate agent should be able to help you make specific changes that will add value to your home. Despite the perception that a nice home in a good location will sell itself, statistics show that staged homes sell in half the time of non-staged homes. Staging a home can help it sell faster and for a higher price.
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