If you’re thinking of selling your house, you may know that home staging is an essential part of ensuring your house gets sold, and it involves the preparation of a house with decorations and furniture before showcasing it to potential buyers. However, staging is not always simple, especially if you are doing it while still living there!
Despite the hassles, home staging is definitely worth it. Staging is ranked as one of the best marketing strategies because of its ability to gain a competitive edge in the housing market by attracting more buyers with much better offers. So, how do you manage to effectively stage your home while still dwelling there? Follow these seven simple steps:
1. Closets And Bedroom Decluttering
The experts advise that you should clear-out at least 50% of your closets and bedrooms to seem inviting but not overly lived in before having potential buyers view your home. However, it is not a simple ordeal because it would involve detaching yourself emotionally from your home and views it as a commodity for sale. If you have possessions that you do not use, now is the opportune time to get rid of them while you store the rest.
2. Secure Storage Space and Movers
After you have decluttered, you will need somewhere to store your extra stuff. A storage unit is a perfect solution to this and it should be large enough to accommodate all your stuff. Moving stuff to the storage space is not only a tiresome exercise but could also cause a real headache. Therefore, hiring professional movers is a good decision to maximize your storage space and eliminate the challenges associated with the exercise. They make use of professional packing hacks that improve the process.
3. Stay Organized
If you need to stay in your home during staging, then you need to keep it clean and organized if you want to see it sell-off fast. Increase the number of times you clean up the house in a week so that your house does not look dirty. Make sure everything is put back in its place after use to keep your house looking organized. You may also consider contracting a cleaning company for excellent results.
4. Use Neutral Décor
While staging your home, it is advisable to settle for neutral shades like beige and white since they present a blank background for buyers. It allows them to imagine how their décor, furniture, or style will fit in your home. Home staging is also about exuding an image that is acceptable to most potential buyers. Hence, you should use the color, size, and style that will bring out this distinct yet exciting feeling that will make buyers scrabble for your house. You could use mirrors, which adds an extra-lighting effect and also magnifies the space of your home.
5. Enhance Groupings Of Furniture
Appearances go a long way to influence the decision of potential buyers during home staging. Therefore, arranging your furniture in such a way that it brings out the benefits of each room could be the killer shot for the sale of your humble abode. Matching furniture works wonders for the process.
6. Magnifying Your Small Spaces
How is this even possible? Well, smaller rooms appear larger when large furniture is moved while an expansive room will look more spacious. This enhances movement in your home, and this may attract buyers and culminate to its sale. However, it is wise to leave some furniture that caters to your needs while still living there.
7. Cosmetic Fixes And Makeovers
Home staging needs not be expensive after all. Simple fixes contribute a lot towards improving the appearance of your home. Painting and replacing old fixtures often does the trick to enhance the look of your home. Those areas likely to create the buyers’ first impression, like doors, should have a complete makeover through repainting or replacement.
Staging aims at creating the right impression and influencing the prospective buyers. Even though it may not be as easy as most people believe, it is worth your effort. When preparing your home for staging, it is reasonable to have the buyer in mind. Make it easy to visualize the value of your home and use those common elements that appeal to most buyers in order to raise chances of selling it.
Abby Drexler is a contributing writer and media specialist for Danish Modern L.A. She regularly produces content for home improvement blogs around the challenges of staging your home for the perfect first impression.