Home staging is a concept; it sounds expensive. It evokes images of buying (or renting) brand new furniture and paying interior designers thousands of dollars to redesign your home — maybe repainting and doing repairs while you’re at it. Don’t worry! Staging your home doesn’t have to be expensive to be effective! There are simple, inexpensive ways to make your home look great and make your home as attractive to buyers as possible.
Depersonalize and Declutter
Taking a step back and disconnecting from your “stuff” isn’t easy. It may be the hardest thing you’ll do when selling your home. Depersonalizing and decluttering by packing up your personal items (photos, tchotchkes, family heirlooms, etc.) has a few benefits. First, packing these items early gives you a head-start on the moving process. Second, removing personal items from a house that will be on show for buyer tours ensures that your possessions are safe and sound. Third, and equally importantly, it keeps potential buyers’ eyes focused on the prize: your home.
Leaving personal items in the home can be distracting. Many times, buyers will focus on your great “stuff” rather than the home that’s for sale. Decluttering will allow them to see the home and envision themselves living there.
Bonus: Since you’ve just cleared so much space in the home through decluttering, buyers are now able to see the abundance of storage in your home. “There is too much storage” said no buyer, ever.
Colors are Key
The color of your walls (or ceilings) is an important part of staging. Paint colors enhance a home and play to the architectural strengths of a room. Pale colors, along with whites and creams, can make rooms appear larger, while deeper tones will make large, voluminous rooms seem more intimate. Soft, muted tones are great for creating calm, inviting spaces and are perfect for a bathroom, master suite, or other personal spaces.
Sampling your colors on multiple walls will allow you to see the colors in different lights and angles so don’t be shy about the sample size!. You may come away with a different perspective.
Let the Sunshine In
Lighting provides the cornerstone to creating appeal when it comes to staging. Setting the right mood with lighting (whether supplemental or natural) can help your buyers feel at home in your home. A bright room can feel more open, warm and inviting, so, if you’re lucky enough to have a showing or open house on a nice day, make sure your windows are clean, open up those curtains, and blinds and let in the sunshine!
While natural lighting is best, supplemental lighting is an essential element of your staging design. Be sure to use the right light bulbs when staging. Energy-efficient halogen or incandescent light bulbs are a great choice for resilient, long-lasting bulbs (that won’t flake out on you mid-showing)! Higher wattage bulbs are great for everyday living spaces while softer lighting is best for smaller, calmer spaces (like bathrooms) and wall sconces.
BONUS: When swapping out light bulbs, make sure to keep your bulb tone and intensity consistent in each room. Mismatched bulbs tend to make a room seem chaotic and can be unattractive and unappealing to the eye!
Make a First Impression with Awesome Landscaping
Your landscaping is the first thing your buyer sees when they drive up to your home. It’s their first impression of your home and, sometimes, it’s the moment they fall in love. Be sure to keep your home’s landscaping looking fresh and clean, especially before a showing or open house.
Keep the lawn mowed, the driveway clear, and the leaves raked. For a flowerbed that’s (nearly) maintenance-free, opt for native plants. Native plants require less maintenance as they have adapted to their surroundings and learned to thrive in their native environment. This means less watering and fertilizer and more beautiful flowers that will surely make a great first impression!
Happy Staging!
