Staging is a way for your home to stand out from the competition. It's a way for a buyer to see the true potential of your home. Many real estate agents work with professional stagers. But if you don't have the money to spend for professional help, then consider these five tips to stage your own home.
- Curb Appeal: A first impression happens only once! Prun overgrown plants and remove unnecessary clutter from your yard. For a finishing touch, consider painting your front door an attention grabbing color like dark blue, red or green.
- Remove Clutter: Knickknacks, doodads and bric-a-brac must go. When you put your home on the market, a showing could be scheduled at any point. So, for now, take a box and go from room to room collecting the extra 'stuff.' These unnecessary items distract homebuyers from seeing the actual room and space.
- Edit: It is not just clutter that needs removal from counters and shelves. Editing is a way of making your rooms look bigger. In staging you only have the bare essentials of furniture. Remove heavy pieces that make rooms look smaller. If you can, put these items into storage. As a very last resort, you can put them in the garage and cover them with a tarp.
- Main functions: This means that a dining room should be staged as a dining room, not as a sewing room or office. A patio is a place to relax with nature, not a catch-all for outdoor items, toys and grills.
- Amiance: You want to create an atmosphere that is welcoming and makes the buyer feel at home. This is the ultimate goal of staging. This means the home should smell celan, be light and airy and be a comfortable temperature. To accomplish these tasks, you can bake cookies prior to a showing to fill the air with yummy goodness. If you are a smoker or have pets, you may need to take more drastic measures such as repainting walls or celaning carpets and furniture. To bring your home to light, replace old and burnt out light bulbs and have heavy curtains opened or removed. If you are shoing during the winter months, be sure to leave the heat set to a comfortable temperature. The same goes for the air conditioning during the heat of summer.
Use these simple tips to get your home shipshape for your sale. More ideas can be found on HGTV. Use your imagination, ask friends for candid advice, listen to your feedback from showings. All of these will aid you in putting your home in the best possible light for potential buyers. And, of course, we at Julie Pogue Properties are always ready, willing and able to assist you in all of your residentail real estate needs.
Hope you all have a terrific week!
