Home Staging

MAKE YOUR HOME MORE BEAUTIFUL

♦ REDUCE ON SALE TIME        
♦ MAXIMISE VALUE



12 OF THE BEST HOME STAGING TIPS

Home Staging is becoming increasingly popular as a cost-effective means to redesign a property in order to realize its full potential.

The concept of home staging is an important sales tool in a slow property market. Agents and homeowners alike are now practicing home staging as a means to sell fast by making a property outshine all the others in its league. A property with the essential "wow" factor that others lack has far greater potential than the rest for that all important quick sale.

It is a psychological fact that 90% of viewers do not want to use their imagination to envisage living in a property and they often don't have the time, patience or money for home improvements. This 90% wants to imagine simply moving in with a minimum of work to do and invariably choose the perfect, well presented, staged home in preference to the un-staged version of the same property, even if it means paying more.

As little as 500 Euros can add as much as 1,500 Euros to your selling price and, of course, offer the best potential for the quick sale you dream of.

1. STAGE WHERE IT COUNTS

Not all rooms are considered equal when it comes to home staging. You want to focus your efforts on the rooms that have the biggest potential to influence buyers’ decisions and spend less time on the rooms that won’t make much of a difference. The rooms that hold the most importance for buyers are the living room, master bedroom, and kitchen. These are the rooms that you want to focus on the most when you’re staging a home. Don’t worry as much about the rooms that have less influence, such as guest bedrooms, children’s bedrooms and bathrooms.

2. DE-PERSONALIZE THE SPACE

One of the primary objectives of home staging is to help prospective buyers visualize the space as their own. The fastest way to accomplish this is to set as much of a blank canvas as you can. You want the home to have style and charm, but it should be devoid of personal touches that suggest this home belongs to the seller, not the buyer.

Start by removing any personal photos, making sure to take down both framed photos on walls and surfaces and anything that’s hanging on your fridge door. Keep clothes stored away and out of sight and clear bathroom counters of personal items, like toothbrushes and contact solution. Remove anything overtly religious as well. While it’s true that de-personalizing your home makes it feel a little weird to live in, it is extremely useful for helping buyers to better connect with the property.

3. GET RID OF CLUTTER

Clutter takes up space and space is what sells. Make your home look bigger and more desirable by editing down to just the basics. You don’t have to get rid of things forever, but you should certainly be packing them up and getting them out of the property. This includes any un-seasonal clothes (no need to crowd your hall closet with winter coats in the summer), most of your décor and ornaments, papers, games, and pretty much anything else that you don’t need on a day to day basis. Opt for a few large ornaments and pack away small ornaments (which make a room look cluttered and smaller). Buyers will be opening your closets to look at their storage potential, so take your time there removing as many miscellaneous and non-crucial items as you can. The less clutter you’ve got in the space, the bigger it will look and the more appealing it will be to buyers.

4. CLEAN LIKE YOU’VE NEVER CLEANED BEFORE

Spring cleaning has nothing on the cleaning you should do when you’re putting your home on the market. You want every square inch to shine, from the floors to the corners of your ceilings and everywhere in between. A squeaky clean home suggests to buyers that the current tenants have taken good care of the property. If you’ve neglected certain tasks, like cleaning the inside of your refrigerator or regularly dusting your window blinds, now is the time to tackle them.

The cleaning you’ll do for staging purposes has similar steps to the deep clean you do when you move into a new home, so start with those and add on as you need to.

5. PATCH AND REPAIR

Home staging is a good time to tackle the tiny nicks, scratches, holes and other impurities that signal neglect to buyers. Start with a melamine foam eraser pad and go from room to room removing any scuffs from walls. Keep an eye out for any areas that could use a little TLC, then patch up as necessary. You may need to do some paint touch ups too, if you notice areas where previously applied paint has chipped. Just like with cleaning, the purpose is as much about showing potential buyers that you’ve put effort into maintaining the property as it is about making the place look nice.

6. GO NEUTRAL

This staging tip is a bit more time and cost intensive, but it can make a major difference when it comes to your sale price and time on the market. Bright colours on walls help people express their personality in their homes but they can be a major turn-off for buyers. When you’re staging your home to sell, one of the very best things you can do is paint over any garish colors with neutrals, like grey, white and taupe. Bold colours can distract from a room’s assets and, like photos and clothes, are bold signifiers not of the home’s future, but of its past. Buyers might want bright colours themselves, but a neutral home gives them the option to do that – or not.

7. MAKE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION

The first thing a buyer is going to see when they walk up to your property is the front entrance, so you want it to make a strong positive impression. Remove any sort of seasonal decorations, which can date a property in both photos and during viewings. Make sure that your front door and the area leading up to it is clean and tidy. Then add a touch of homeliness with a simple doormat and perhaps a potted plant or two, provided they are in perfect condition (a dead or dying plant will do you no favours). Keep the space simple but welcoming to start buyers off on the right foot and suggest that there are good things to see once inside the property.

8. FOCUS ON FRESH

While too many extraneous items in a home can detract from its perceived value, a few healthy, well-placed plants and flowers can add life and freshness into the space. Space them out so as not to clutter any one particular area and try to have a couple of fresh items in areas that matter. For example, place a vase full of big, bright flowers in the centre of your kitchen table, a small potted plant or some succulents in the living room and perhaps a larger potted plant in the corner of the living room as well. Don’t have the time to maintain fresh plants? Fake plants are readily available and will set the same atmosphere with less work.

Another aspect of freshness is making sure that there are no odours. A deep clean should take care of any lingering smells, but also be sure to always clear out your rubbish bin before vieiwngs so buyers aren’t hit with any offensive scents. Try using a small scented plug-in in a couple of rooms (or just one may be okay, depending on the size and layout of your home). If you do that, keep it on a low setting – you want the smell to be pleasant but subtle.

9. LET THERE BE LIGHT

Dark rooms are sad rooms. Brighten everything up by letting as much light shine in the property as possible. Open the curtains and blinds on all of the windows, which in addition to letting in more light will also make rooms seem bigger. Turn on all the lights for viewings, including lamps and closet lights. This will help make your home more welcoming and also saves buyers from having to stumble around figuring out which switches turn on which lights.

10. REARRANGE YOUR FURNITURE

You want there to be as much open, walkable space as possible. This helps buyers navigate the space and also helps them better visualize their own furniture in each room. Put extraneous furniture in storage to get it out of the way, focusing on getting rid of any oversized pieces, damaged pieces and those that that don’t match the rest of the room. With the furniture that’s left, rearrange it to make the room look and feel as spacious as possible.

11. CREATE APPEALING OUTDOOR SPACE

Outdoors spaces are often the first place that buyers will want to see when they visit your property, so they should be staged with the same care and attention to detail as any interior space. Keep a small terrace simple, uncluttered and open, in order to optimize the perceived size and use. Large spaces should be furnished proportionally and make sure to prevent too much clutter from ruining your exterior space. Remember, the goal is to facilitate enjoyment of the outdoors and not to overwhelm the area with personal stuff.

Be sure to address your interior staging design to show off the terrace and any scenic views. Leave the traffic flow to the terrace open and inviting for potential buyers to discover the outdoor space for themselves. Having a lovely view is a huge windfall, so make sure to leave it unobstructed for maximum impact. If you have a less than idyllic view, there are still things you can do to improve the actual terrace aesthetics. Privacy screens and potted plants can help camouflage less pristine views and also add colour and a natural element to the space.

Staging a home to sell doesn’t require spending a lot of money – just making smart decisions. We can help you make specific changes that will add value to your home and entice the buyers who come for viewings. Once you know you’ve done everything you can to show your home in the best light possible, you can sit back and wait for the right buyer to come along.

12. ADD SOME ART

Art is one of the most important finishing touches in decorating and staging a home. For a personal residence, it is all about choosing something that personally speaks to you. However, when it comes to art for staging homes, it’s more about creating an atmosphere that will inspire buyers and capture the essence of the home. The best art for home staging should be subtle but attractive to the eye. Home staging art should enhance each space and help bring out the best features of the home. The wrong art can create a dissonance that will make everything feel a little off, while the right art for homes can make everything come alive and feel truly complete.

When choosing art for home staging, you should look for the following things:

CONTACT US to find out more about our home staging and interior design services.

CLICK HERE to see our fantastic range of artwork for the home.



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