Staging Your Home
There’s a reason that home staging has become big business — it works! If you can afford it, you really can’t go wrong with professional staging services. But if you’ve got the time you can save some money, and increase the saleability of your home, by doing it yourself. Here’s our ten step guide to Staging for Success.
1. Check Your Curb Appeal
We hear it so much that’s it’s almost cliché, but curb appeal really is king. How your home looks on the outside is 50% of the buyer’s first impression. Take time to clean gutters, install fresh mulch, mow and trim the lawn, clean the gutters and remove any trash or debris. If the buyer walks up to the front door and sees gutters weighed down by leaves and other debris it triggers thoughts of deferred maintenance and future home structure problems. If you have patio or outdoor entertaining areas make sure they look their best!
2. Clean, Clean, Clean & then Clean More!
Because we live in our houses day-in and day-out there’s often dirt and grime in places that we just don’t notice…but buyers will! Unless you are one of those “super-clean” or “neat-freak” types we generally recommend a professional cleaning. We have a contractor who can handle this for you at very reasonable prices. If you do it yourself, pay special attention to light switch and outlet covers, ceiling fans, plumbing fixtures, baseboards and moldings, and windows.
3. Check your bulbs twice.
Home lighting is quite possibly the most effective way to sell your home. When a buyer looks through your home for the first time it’s an exploration and as such they are trying to see every detail during their first trip (and impression) of your home. If a buyer spots a burned out bulb or is unable to see all the space in a closet because the lights don’t work then they deduct the perceived loss of square footage and needed maintenance from your asking price. Also we love energy efficient bulbs, but many take time before they are fully bright. Replace them with standard bulbs and take your energy efficient bulbs with you!
4. Clear the counter space & make your kitchen look bigger.
For many buyers the kitchen is the heart of the home, so make yours look as large and inviting as possible by removing non-essential countertop appliances and other items that are taking up space. Don’t forget that buyers will be looking in your drawers and cabinets, so make sure they are clean and orderly as well. You may need to pack up some little-used dishes, silverware, or storage containers. All drawers, cabinets, and pantries should be no more than ¾ full.
5. Clear the clutter
We all like our “stuff.” Seriously…you should see our houses…we’re both packrats. But when your home is going on the market the stuff has to go. As a general rule we don’t like to see more than 3 items on any horizontal surface including coffee and end tables, mantels, shelves, and other places where we sit our stuff. Box it up and move it out!
6. Clean out your closets.
There was a time when closets didn’t matter so much. That time is gone. Demonstrate to prospective buyers that you have plenty of storage space by removing all non-essential items from the closets in your home. This is particularly true for clothes closets in bedrooms, which should be no more than 2/3 full.
7. Get the carpets cleaned professionally.
Carpets are beautiful and make for great floor surfaces but if you haven’t had them cleaned since you moved in then you should have it done before putting your home on the market. Dogs, kids and the elements of nature all make their mark on carpeting over the years and the last thing buyers want to do when buying a home is take on a large project like carpet replacement after they move in.
8. Paint high traffic spaces.
High traffic spaces are the best places to find dings and marks on the walls which look like deferred maintenance but are in reality the consequence of daily wear and tear. Patch and paint the walls in high traffic spaces.
9. Define your rooms!
Don’t let its position in the list fool you …this one is important! Buyers have imaginations but not when they are looking at homes. When selling your home the dining room can no longer be the home office and the living room cannot be the catch-all play area and living space. Clearly interpret what your home has to offer to buyers so they don’t deduct points (and dollars) when writing an offer for your home.
10. Clean out your Garage.
This is a big one too. If you’ve gone through this list then by now you’ve probably got a good amount of stuff in your garage. And if you’re like most folks you already had a good deal of stuff there to begin with. Ideally you want to have enough space to park cars in the garage, which may mean you need to pack up and store most of the stuff that you’ve got there. Buyers want to feel like they’ve got plenty of space!
