5 ways to stage your home to sell FASTER and for more $$$!!!
Is staging your house before you put it on the market worth your time? One hundred percent YES! Staged homes sell on average 73% faster and for up to 17% more than non-staged homes.
Have you ever walked into a really nice house and didn’t even notice its beautiful features, because you were so distracted by too much furniture, clutter on the counters, etc.? You’re not alone! It’s really tough for most buyers to see past all the “stuff”. Vacant homes are challenging too. Why is that? There’s nothing there to distract a buyer, but most buyers have a tough time envisioning what a room could look like and how it could best be used, if it’s empty. Having the imagination to see past clutter and “see” how you would set up a room isn’t a common trait of most people in general. Help them see how the home could look and feel so they can better decide if it’s right for them. This is precisely why Model homes typically are staged to the hilt, including furniture, accessories, etc.I’ve even seen fake food in model homes on occasion and I recall one model home was sporting a fake life-sized stuffed animal dog…scared the heck out of me because it was behind a closed door! After the scare, it was good for a laugh and I still remember that model home to this day!
You don’t need to go crazy when staging but here are some TIPS you can use to get your home more ready for sale:
Remove most if not all items from counters and the tops of furniture pieces. If you have a lot of furniture and it’s making a room look cluttered or small, remove any furniture pieces you can and store them elsewhere (garage is fine).
Freshen up your rooms by adding neutral curtains (shower curtains too), and neutral bedding. If you are able to put a fresh coat of neutral paint on the walls, choose a lighter paint color that is popular currently (if you need paint color ideas, you can ask your paint store professional which colors are being used a lot by builders…trust me, they know!).
Depersonalize your home by removing photos of the family and hanging neutral pieces of art. Seeing someone else’s family photos in a home makes it a lot tougher for a buyer to see themselves living there.
Clean and declutter…if you can, remove half of the contents of your closets and cabinets and pack them up for the move. If you’re a minimalist, you can skip this step!
Tidy up the yard and put down fresh mulch if possible. Add some flower pots and flowers in a vase on your dining room table. Try to make it feel and look more like a Vacation Rental.
Other than painting, curtains and bedding (which are all options), all the above suggestions are free, your labor and time is all you need! Give your buyer a reason to choose your home over the competition so they make YOU a great offer you can’t refuse!