Staging your home to sell is one way you are actively involved in increasing the perceived value of your home and the chances of your house selling quickly. Here’s your guide to staging your house for sale.
🏡 What Does it Mean to Stage a House for Sale?
Staging a house for sale is the act of preparing the home for showings. Preparing your house for potential buyers to view is similar in concept to dressing yourself for a date or a job interview. Your goal is to make a powerful first impression that draws an audience to your offerings. To stage a home means to present a project-free, move-in ready environment that is attractive and appealing to buyers.
🙋 Who is Responsible for Staging a House for Sale?
Your agent will advise you on the elements of staging your property, inside and out, so that your house can woo and romance potential buyers from curb appeal to interior design. However, you are responsible for taking staging from concept to action.
You can stage the house entirely yourself, you can outsource the entire project, or you can do pieces and parts.
⚠ The Phases of Staging
Staging happens in the order of decluttering, depersonalizing, cleaning, repairing and replacing, design, and landscaping.
Decluttering
When you declutter, you sort through each room of your house, one room at a time, and remove any items you can live without until your move. Some items you’ll pack and store away for your next house. Other items may still be in use and need to stay out until moving day. There will be some things you forgot you had that you’ll no longer use, so you can donate some things or sell others at a yard sale. It’s easiest if you have a photo box for pictures and keepsakes, an accordion-style file box for important documents and papers, a trash bag, and then bins or boxes labeled: pack, sell, donate.
Don’t overlook the furniture. You’ll need things like your beds and dressers, but any extra furniture that can be stored away for your room should be moved as soon as possible. Removing extra furniture from a space can make the room appear larger and more open.
Depersonalizing & Neutralizing
One of the best parts of settling into your nest was adding your personal touches. Now is the time to take those personal touches away and erase the signs of your personal style, beliefs, and decor. You may not realize how easy it is to alienate a potential buyer by displaying your religions or political belongings, or by presenting an environment that feels more like they’re a guest in your home than a buyer considering a house to purchase.
Depersonalizing also extends to decor. Not everyone is a fan of bold colors, patterns, or fabrics. Use soft, warm, neutral colors throughout the house.
Cleaning
Cleanliness sells. This may be truer in real estate than any other industry, and is particularly important in kitchens and bathrooms. Deep cleaning involves bleaching sinks and bathtubs, washing baseboards and walls, dusting ceiling fans and vents, and making sure everything is fresh and sanitary.
Repair and Replace
Once things are cleaned, you can see what items still appear dingy. You may need to paint walls or replace carpets. Fix anything that is broken and replace anything you can’t repair. Any faulty systems, appliances, or other areas will be revealed in a home inspection and appraisal and could significantly reduce the value of your home or even nullify an offer. You’re better off grabbing that bull by the horns and taking care of faulty items in advance so buyers aren’t turned off by potential projects.
Design
Using smart design concepts to enhance a house could lead to an expedited sale and higher-priced offers. For example, using white linens in bathrooms adds a spa-like feel. Fresh fruit and live plants and flowers add an element of nurturing to an environment, giving the sensation that life flourishes in that space. The use of light, mirrors, color, texture, and the arrangement of furnishings and accessories can all embellish a room to make the room look larger, brighter, and more inviting.
Curb appeal is last on this list but may be first in importance. Curb appeal is a buyer’s first impression of your property in the physical reality. How they feel when they set eyes on your home for the first time carries through the tour with that person, influencing their entire experience. Mow the lawn. Trim the hedges. Plant flowers. Make sure the outside of the house is as inviting as the inside.
Your real estate agent is the best source of information about the local community and real estate topics. Give Brett Dunne a call today at 909-575-8812 to learn more about local areas, discuss selling a house, or tour available homes for sale.