The location of your home can’t be changed and the market determines the price. This means you’re left wondering, “What can I do to make my home more attractive to potential buyers?”
The answer is simple: staging!
Staging your home makes a positive first impression and impacts the way potential buyers view a home — making it easier to imagine themselves living in a property. Capturing the attention of prospective buyers involves highlighting your home’s strengths and downplaying its weaknesses.
A 2017 survey done by the National Association of Realtors found that sixty percent of agents agreed that staging decreased the amount of time a home sat on the market.
So what tips should you consider when you’re staging your home to sell? Here are 12 effective home staging tips to help your home sell faster.
1. Declutter
Before listing your home, go through all of your belongings and keep only the most valuable. Less clutter will make your home appear more spacious and expansive, which is definitely more appealing to potential buyers.
If needed, rent a storage space for other items until you hire movers or sell your home. Remove enough stuff so that closets and storage spaces are half empty.
2.Make sure your rooms are well lit
Open the shades, blinds, or curtains to flood each room with natural light. Use lamps in rooms with limited natural light.
3.Go one step further with your home cleaning
There’s a good chance potential buyers will notice any areas you might have missed while cleaning. Go one step further with your usual home cleaning and pay special attention to the places that you might overlook. Consider hiring a cleaning service to help you stay on top of it while your home is on the market.
In addition to cleaning, consider opening windows (if the weather allows) and displaying fresh flowers or a bowl of fresh fruit before home showings.
4.Choose neutral colors
Consider updating the paint of any rooms painted in loud colors. Neutral colors may seem boring, but they present the setting as a blank canvas for potential buyers. To provide some personality to the room, add small pops of color to keep the place from looking sterile.
5.Show your home’s assets
Highlight the features that make your home special. Cheryl Eisen, founder and CEO of Interior Marketing Group, recommends avoiding the use of furniture that might obstruct a beautiful view from a window. Remove rugs to highlight nice flooring and clear off counters to display any stone, granite, or quartz.
6.Make minor repairs
Leaky faucets, burnt out light bulbs, loose door knobs, broken tiles, and squeaky hinges are minor issues, but they can easily distract potential buyers. If your home is in need of major renovation such as a kitchen update or roof repair, be sure to discuss it with your agent to see if making those improvements will pay off.
7.Give your entryway a makeover
Your home only gets one chance at a first impression and that begins with the entrance of your home. Consider replacing your front door if it is outdated or needs repair. Otherwise have it professionally painted to give it a fresh, updated look. Think about the details around your front door as well such as replacing worn out flooring with new tile.
8.Create traffic flow through your home
Use pieces to help navigate visitors through your home and place seating into conversational groups. You’ll want to avoid pointing the back of furniture towards the door. Furniture arranged so that it faces the entry of the room makes a room appear more inviting and accessible.
9.Remove your pets
It can be difficult to keep your pets away during a home showing. Nothing interrupts a showing faster than an unwelcome pet. Take your pet for a walk or send them to a friend’s for uninterrupted showings.
10.Make your bed everyday
Remember when your mother used to tell you to make your bed each morning? Well, your agent might recommend the same. You never know when a showing might occur, so make it a habit to make your bed each morning.
11.Maintain your yard
Your home’s curb appeal can easily be diminished by an unkempt yard. Keep your yard free of weeds, mowed, and your windows clean. Parking your car in the garage and out of the driveway is also a good idea.
12.Remove your personal items
Family and friends enjoy seeing your photos on the wall and your children’s artwork on the refrigerator. However, during home showings hide all photos, refrigerator art, calendars, valuables, prescription drugs, bathroom toiletries, and grooming products. This helps your home appear less cluttered, and also ensures your security.
Summary
Staging your home to capture the attention of prospective home buyers doesn’t have to be difficult. Don’t overlook these 12 tips to make your home more attractive and more competitive on the market.
What staging tips would you add to this list?
