Getting Ready to Sell – Home Staging
Home staging is an effective way to showcase your home’s positive features and thus make it more appealing to home buyers. It can both reduce the time your home is actively on the market and can result in a higher sales price.
Many people think that staging is just selecting the right furniture and accessories, but it encompasses much more than that.
The first step in staging a home for sale is decluttering. We can’t stress the importance of this step enough. At the end of the day, people are buying space. Clutter not only is distracting, but it also uses up visual and physical space in a room. Removing clutter also means editing furniture pieces you don’t use and putting them in storage or selling them in a garage sale. Remove everything from tabletops and counter tops that isn’t necessary to the function of the space. Clean your closets of clothing you don’t wear often. This will show buyers there is plenty of room for their items – and then some.
We also like to remind homeowners that family photos and other personal items should be carefully stowed away for use in the next home. Buyers want to picture their family in the home; not your family. This is a difficult and emotional chore for some people but a necessary one.
When the home isn’t crowded with stuff, it is easier to clean and easier to find things that are in need of repair. Tend to both of these tasks as both will improve your chance of making a good impression on buyers and agents.
Home owners use their spaces in ways that suit their lifestyle. Sellers should take into account what buyers might be looking for. Are they looking for home office space, room for 4 children, entertaining space or a workshop? Target what will appeal to the most buyers.
Getting your home staged and ready to sell before you chat with a real estate agent will not only help you get your home on the market more quickly, but will also create a favorable impression with agents you might want to interview to list your home.
Feel free to give us a call if you need more tips on staging your home for sale. In Part II, we’ll touch on the steps to prepare the outside of your home for sale.