Tips for Staging Your House Before a Sale

A well-staged home can be the difference between a quick sale or several months of sitting on the market. Fortunately, home staging is relatively easy to do and most tasks can be completed for only a few dollars or in some cases, for free. Here are a few basic tips and tricks on how to stage a home to make the house more appealing to potential buyers.

Personal Items

Personal items, like photos of loved ones, should be put away when staging a home. By leaving these items out, the buyer is thinking of your family and friends and what's gone on in the home, rather than picturing their own family and friends gathering in the home. Don't forget to remove photos and other personal items from your refrigerator as well.

Paint Colors

If you're like me, then your home is covered in bright, cheery blues, warm, sunny yellows and a plethora of other outrageous colors. Unfortunately, your color palette may not appeal to every buyer. Therefore, it's important to repaint any over-the-top rooms with neutral colors. Neutral colors tend to be more appealing to many buyers and it helps the potential buyer to visualize their own decor rather than being overwhelmed by the current homeowner's choices.

Declutter

If you're moving out of the house because you've outgrown it, don't let your buyers see this. When a buyer comes in and sees clutter everywhere, they stop to question if there is enough space in the home. Consider packing up all of the items you won't need for a few weeks and putting them into a rented storage unit or at a relative's house until you move and have space for them again.

Exterior

We've all heard that a buyer makes a decision on a home before they've even gone inside, and whether or not that's true is up for debate; but good curb appeal is important when staging a home. So, spend an afternoon mowing the lawn, picking up leaves, weeding the garden, trimming the hedges or whatever else needs to be done outside. If the house itself is looking dingy or dated, consider repainting the front door or renting a pressure washer and cleaning your driveway.

Wall Art

There are several companies available today that rent out decor items, including wall art. If you've got taste-specific wall art, consider swapping it out with neutral wall art like landscapes or other nature scenes. This will help the buyer to focus on the home, rather than on your wall decor.

Organize

While cleaning up the house, be sure to organize everything-and keep it that way. Simple things like never leaving dishes out to be seen by a potential buyer or alphabetizing your spices; can help a buyer think that if you care that much about the little details, that your house must have been well taken care of.