How can you dramatically improve your chances of receiving your asking price when you’re selling your home? Focus on the presentation with home staging!
Staging a house can make quite an impression on potential buyers and help sell your property quickly. According to a recent study, 58% of buyers’ agents reported that home staging influenced buyers’ perspectives of the home.
However, knowing the best strategies for how to stage a house for sale can make all the difference in a buyer’s reactions and feelings about your home. This guide will provide you with helpful, practical tips to help you learn how to leave a memorable, positive impression on potential buyers and increase their interest in your property.
What do you mean by staging a house?
To win over a potential buyer, you’ll need to “stage” it, which means preparing and presenting your home in the best possible manner to attract potential buyers.
Your home likely reflects your personality and style preferences. However, when it’s time to sell your house, your beloved bold-colored couch, your treasured collection of travel mementos, and the cat climber tree in the corner often act as a deterrent for closing a sale.
Potential buyers need to visualize their new life in your house to feel motivated to bid on your home. Unfortunately, most, if not all, buyers won’t have your exact tastes.
Staging a home for sale, at its core, requires strategically arranging furniture, decor, and accessories to enhance the overall appearance, provide a welcoming atmosphere, and, most importantly, create a blank canvas for buyers.
Top tips for staging your house to sell
Real estate staging can be a DIY project. Or you can hire a professional home stager to prepare your house with furniture for staging. While house staging services may seem costly, they’re often offset by the seller receiving what they desire or more for their home.
Whether you plan to prepare your house for sale on your own or with the help of an expert, you may wonder, what is the home staging process? The following tips for staging your home will walk you through the necessary steps to help you get ready to put your home on the market.
Get rid of clutter
A disorganized home brimming with knick-knacks and random piles makes it virtually impossible for buyers to see the potential in your home. Go through each room, removing unnecessary items and neatly storing personal belongings.
Do a deep and thorough cleaning of your home
Buyers appreciate and gravitate toward a clean and fresh home. Before showing your house, scrub floors, dust surfaces, and clean windows, making every room spotless, even in areas rarely seen, like behind appliances. Consider hiring professional cleaners if your budget allows.
Make home repairs, including patching holes
Nothing turns off potential buyers more than broken tiles, leaky faucets, and damaged walls. A buyer may feel motivated to subtract the expense of these repairs from your asking price. Also, consider cosmetic fixes such as pinholes, scratches, and knicks that may dampen the impression of your home.
Paint your walls and your home’s exterior neutral colors
Beige, gray, or off-white can make your home appear more spacious and appealing to nearly everyone approaching and walking through your front door. Neutral tones allow buyers to project their personal style onto the house.
Create plenty of walkable space
Remove unnecessary furniture and bulky items from each room to create a spacious atmosphere so potential buyers can see where they’d put their belongings in the space. Arrange the remaining furniture to allow for plenty of walkable space to make your rooms feel bigger, open, and more inviting.
Focus on high-interest rooms
If you don’t have the resources or time to overhaul your entire home, following this interior home staging secret can still result in a successful sale. Funnel your efforts into the living room, kitchen, and master bedroom, which often impact buyers most and leave a lasting impression.
Give each room a purpose
Appeal to potential buyers by helping them imagine how they’ll use a room as they walk through your house. If you have an empty room, consider staging it as an office, guest bedroom, or workout space to add extra value to your home.
Add curb appeal and a welcoming entrance
Buyers start judging your home when they first pull up in front of it. So, don’t neglect the exterior, including the lawn, bushes, and flower beds. Place a doormat, set out potted flowers, and apply fresh paint to the front door.
Create a welcoming environment
Open curtains, raise blinds, and trim overgrown vegetation to allow as much natural light as possible into your home. Also, adding a few well-placed flowers or plants on the dining table or in the living room can add color and life to the space.
By following the above tips, you’ll likely sell your house faster and for your desired price.