Home Staging, When Interested Buyers Become Future Owners
One of the most nerve-racking experiences you can expect in life is the sale of your home, not only are you leaving behind a place and a home you are familiar with and love, but whatever you have planned for the future will most likely come to nothing if selling your home turns out bad. The stress of a show day can be relieved with a few clever home staging tips.
Home staging is the process of arranging your home in a way that will make it more appealing to prospective buyers. For that to happen you need to start looking at your home through a client’s eyes.
The first place to start is obviously out in the street. Does the pavement need to be swept, trees trimmed, fence painted? Can you see the number of your house from where you’re standing? The inside of your yard should also be in good shape, so don’t overlook any trees or bushes that may adorn it, or the lawn that needs to be trimmed, or any kids’ toys or garden equipment that definitely need to be out of sight. Windows, windowsills and corners should be clean and free of cobwebs and outdoor light fittings clean and working. If you want to make your house look more appealing, then place some potted yellow flowers where they can be seen by visiting buyers.
Once inside, take a tour through every single room and make sure that:
There is no speck of dust on your light fittings and they are all working;
Holes in the walls that need to be patched and painted;
Your house doesn’t look like a bad painting job done by a crazy artist, so an overall neutral color would be best;
Clutter and pieces of furniture that give the place a suffocating air and that should be removed;
There is not a spot, stain or a speck of dust left anywhere, even in corners you don’t get to when cleaning;
Steam clean carpets and rugs
The floors that need to be polished
While in the kitchen you need to inspect all cupboards and cabinets and see that they are neat and tidy, because clients are sure to look into them. Remove all contents from your bookcases and all appliances from your kitchen counter. Don’t leave any personal photos in sight as they will most likely take your clients’ attention from the house.
When you’ve made sure that the whole place is in apple-pie order you can start the make-up process. You are creating an illusion, making your home look bigger, brighter and more welcoming. You don’t want prospective buyers to see your collection of matching napkins, because aside from taking their attention away from the house you run the risk of really making them lose their patience.
In general, soft fabrics such as wool, silk and satin give a welcoming feel to a house. Also, you can add more color with some potted plants and trinkets arranged strategically around the room. But remember to put them together in uneven numbers.
If you want to attract attention to a specific feature, such as granite countertops in the kitchen, put a bowl of bright, shiny fruit or some colorful cookbooks on the counter. A basket of rolled hand towels, wrapped with pretty ribbon, in a basket with scented candles and soaps adds a touch of ’spa’ to your bathroom. Make sure the towels are clean and fluffy too.
You may not like doing this but it is better if no pets are present in or around the house the day of the showing. Since there are people who are not particularly fond of pets, there should be no sign of them inside or outside the house.
Some cinnamon sticks placed on a baking tray in the oven will give your house a pleasant and alluring odor. Then warm them up a bit and let the oven door open for a while so that their scent is carried around throughout the entire house. Freshly ground coffee and baked bread are great smells in a kitchen too.
Home staging is like putting on a show, and you may feel like you are trying to trick people into buying your home. However, much the same as stores arrange their shelves and merchandise in a particular way to entice shoppers to buy their goods, home staging is the real estate equivalent. If you want to sell your house as quick as possible, you need to make it inviting for a wide range of people and in order to do that it is better that you give it a neutral rather than a more personal appearance. Home staging can make the difference between interested and buying.
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