Putting your house on the market can be a long and frustrating process, especially after many showings. Thankfully, you can easily improve your home’s appeal by using a few simple ideas for properly staging your home.
Clean. The first step to staging your house is cleaning up. Its simple common sense that clean homes are much easier to sell than dirty ones. Take a good look around your house and get rid of all the dust, dirt and grime you can find. Even the smallest little bit of extra cleanliness to add a lot of appeal to your home.
De-Clutter. Its no use to clean your house top to bottom if you don’t put away all of your clutter in the process. Remove items which distract from the room, or make it appear less tidy than it should be. An organized and orderly room will help prospective buyers get a better feel for the home.
Make Your Home Clean, Yet “Lived In”. While cleaning and removing the clutter from your home are absolute essentials, it is also a good idea to make your home look like someone actually lives there. Remove clutter by all means, but leave just enough around – yet in an organized fashion – to help prospective buyers envision your house as a home.
De-Personalize. When you stage your home, you want to strike a balance between making it look like someone lives there, and removing any items that add a personal touch. For instance, remove any family photographs or any decorative items that are personalized to you or your family. You want to invite people to imagine themselves as the ones who live in this home.
Use Your Spare Rooms. If you have any spare rooms such as an office or an extra bedroom that you haven’t been using, it is a good idea to stage these areas for their intended purpose. Remove any excess storage and furniture that might be out of place in an office or spare bedroom.
Curb Appeal. Enhancing your curb appeal is a must for properly staging your home. See to your landscaping, fix or put up easily visible house numbers, remove any unsightly overgrowth, trim back your trees, and deal with any dead grass or patches of dirt in your lawn. Remember to keep up with general yard work and landscaping as well to keep everything looking nice and neat.
Repairs. If you have any minor repairs that you’ve put off for years, now is the time to get them done. Sure you won’t reap the benefits of fixing up your leaky faucets, but it may help you get your house sold much quicker.
Tackle Any Major Upgrades. Just like any needed repairs should be completed before you show your home, it may be a good idea to perform any necessary upgrades as well. A home with modern fixtures and appliances is infinitely more appealing that one with any worn or dated ones.
Have a Welcoming Entrance. Get each showing off on the right foot with a warm and welcoming porch or entry way. Keep this area neat and clean, while still giving the same warm lived in feel the rest of your home has. If you can, keep the porch illuminated for night showings or any prospective buyers who may drive by your home in the evening.
Re-arrange Your Furniture. If possible, rearrange your furniture to best show off the aspects of each room. It may not be the way you like it, but it can help make a room bigger, more inviting, and overall more appealing to prospective buyers.