Tips I Learned About Staging a House
As some of you know, we sold our house and are in the process of moving out THIS WEEK (talk about stressful and tiring). We are very very blessed to have accepted an offer within 24 days of the house being on the market and all three people who saw this house made offers which resulted in all of them being very acceptable offers. The timeliness wasn’t a complete surprise as we were told the houses in our neighborhood typically sell pretty quickly because of our location. Our neighborhood is in a very convenient location for most businesses in the area and we have a 3 mile greenway that connects to our neighborhood.
I am no expert in the house buying or selling process but I’ve definitely learned a lot over the last two months. Here are the tips that I have learned from selling our house and house shopping.
1. Minimize!!!! This is a situation where less is more! Remove everything in your house that isn’t necessary to have to live on during the selling process. You want your house to appear to be as large as possible and clutter can close in the space. We removed all off season clothes, extra sit around decoration, any extra furniture not necessary, random things in closet, etc. There were several houses that we looked at that were too cluttered which made it difficult to see past the stuff and appreciate the actual house. Plus once you sell the house you will be moving anyways so this gives you a head start on the moving process!
2. Leave the basics. Opposing #1, houses with furniture and some décor items typically show better. The goal for me was to make my house look like a model home, decorated and staged to best show the space. The house two doors down from us has been on the market for many months and still hasn’t sold and I think part of that is due to the fact that it’s empty and it makes it difficult to see the potential in the house. Most people are visual and it helps them to envision the space being used. Our house alone isn’t anything special but we filled the space well and turned it into a cozy and welcoming home with our furnishings and décor.
3. Consider how most buyers would use the space. Here is a great example based on our house selling experience: My husband had 4 recliners that pieced together like theater seating in our living room, I told you a while back that I moved in the bachelor pad! They are super comfortable and useful but not practical for showing our house. Most people do not own theater seats and they were taking up a lot of space in the living room which make the room appear smaller. We took the couch we had in the “office” room and put it in the living room which opened up the space and also helps the buyers envision their own furniture (which is most likely a couch) a little easier.
4. Boost your curb appeal. Keep your lawn cut and your shrubs trimmed and add a few touches to make your house look welcoming. It’s amazing what a couple pots of flowers can do for your curb appeal! Many people who are serious about finding a house will drive around the neighborhoods they like looking for houses for sale, you want yours to stand out and it be apparent that the house has been well kept.
4. Emphasize your selling point: There were 3 houses on our street for sale and at least 10 in our neighborhood so we had to do something to set ours apart. One thing our house had that the others didn’t was a nice privacy fence with woods behind our fence. This was our differentiator and we knew that would set our house apart. We added flowers and lanterns on the back fence and flowers on the back porch to help emphasize the backyard. Our realtor also highlighted the backyard on the listing and how it was great for entertaining!
5. Take Good Pictures! – Whether you take them or a friend or your realtor, pictures can be the deciding factor on what houses to go see! I cannot even begin to tell you how many houses we saw listed for sale with TERRIBLE pictures. This is one easy way to get people in to see your house. If your pictures are too fuzzy then the buyers can’t see the potential and are not likely to take the time to come see the house. You want to show as much natural light as possible to brighten the space and give that warm and welcoming light.
I know that not all realtors encourage the need to stage your house but our realtor did and I’m so glad she did. These were small things that didn’t cost a lot of money or time that helped get our house ready to sell. I strongly believe that these small things are the main reasons our house sold as quickly as it did and attracted as many offers as it did.
Are you getting ready to sell your house? Here is a short list of things to get your house ready for a small amount of money and time:
- DEEP CLEAN!!!
- Touch up Paint
- De-clutter
- Add plants or flowers
Once again, I’m not expert but I hope someone may find these tips helpful along their journey of selling a house!