Home staging is a relatively new concept in the real estate market, but it’s an important development. Some companies estimate that their staged homes sales rates improve by over fifty percent. Staged homes usually not only sell faster but also sell for more money.
This actually makes intuitive sense. When people walk into an empty house very few of them can accurately envision where furniture will fit or what the rooms will look like when furnished. Empty houses lack that homey feeling and prospective buyers fail to feel emotionally connected to them.
Staging your house is easier than it sounds, though. You can hire a professional or you can try staging it yourself with these easy tips:
1) Put away 50-75% of your stuff. You may like all your books, tchotchkes, family photos, and clothes but prospective buyers won’t. In fact, what looks homey to you will look like clutter to them. Box up most of your stuff and store it in the garage or a storage unit. Not only will it help with aesthetics but it will help keep it clean for showings, too.
2) Keep in mind the idea of homeownership. Remember that when people are looking at a house they are essentially engaging in daydreaming about their future. When they walk into your house they want to be able to envision themselves eating a healthy family meal around a kitchen table or entertaining friends in front of the fireplace. Hide the diaper pail and laundry pile in your nursery and put a lovely baby blanket over the side of the crib. It’s not practical but it will help people imagine themselves there.
3) Think about flow. Flow works in two ways in your home. The first is traffic flow. Think about how people move through your house and move anything that impedes that. Make your house easy to get around. Flow is also about how each room or space in the house blends in to the next. Make sure that your rooms work together to create a cohesive space.
4) Remember size. Your house should feel bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside. Many times this means moving furniture out of rooms. Keep only what’s absolutely necessary.
5) Cheap upgrades make a difference. When staging your home it is definitely worth repainting walls to neutral, trendy color and changing out light fixtures for a more popular style.
6) Clean, clean, clean! A clean home is worth way more than a dirty one. Put in the time to dust your light fixtures, clean your carpet, clean your windows, and shine your cabinets. Hire professionals if you want, but get it clean.
What tips and tricks do you have to make a home sell faster?
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