The goal of staging is to present your home in the best possible way to appeal to buyers by making your home more inviting and appealing.
Clean & Neutral
Why does a spotlessly clean home, void of clutter, with a neutral but not sterile decor usually bring a higher price and faster sale? Because buyers are sensitive to color and decor as they are trying to imagine their life in the home. The best way to help a buyer visualize what it would be like to live in your home is to have a clean palette for them to work with.
Despite the HGTV advice you might hear, a few friendly family photos will not turn off a buyer of your home. Although most advisors tell sellers to neutralize a home to sell it, if you make your home too sterile it will feel more like a hospital than a home. A few well placed family photos, as long as you don’t have scary goth looking teenager photos, won’t get in the way of a sale,
Flexibility Helps
Rooms should have a purpose and not just be used for general storage or a hodge podge collection of leftover furniture. Multi-purpose rooms can be a plus, if they are staged to show a room can serve several uses and open the possibilities for the buyer. It is better to have a room empty than to have it filled up like a storage barn.
Only 3 Objects per Flat Surface
Decor should be limited to three objects per area, coordinating with the room colors. Collections, knick knacks, and piles of books or papers should be packed away and stored somewhere else.
Space to Live
Creating living spaces that welcome buyers and pulls them in emotionally can help tip the scales in favor of a home. Here are a few examples:
Pots of flowers to add seasonal color, along with park benches, fountains, and bird baths are a great way to add exterior curb appeal and a friendly first impression of your home. Of course, make sure all the bushes and plants are neat and trim and mulch or pine straw is fresh.
An outdoor fireplace or chiminea with adirondack chairs in the back yard helps a buyer imagine cozy fireside gatherings.
A kitchen or dining table with beautiful place settings and an attractive center floral arrangement invokes feelings of warm conversation while dining with family and friends. A cookbook displayed on an easel or fresh fruit or flowers are nice touches.
A bedroom with a spa like feel promotes a relaxing retreat. Coordinating towels, soaps, flowers, and soft music is soothing. Of course, it should be spotlessly clean, just like a hotel.
Fun spaces like game rooms should be staged with cards displaying a royal flush on a game table or a family movie playing on the home theater.
A pool area with music playing and lounge chairs staged with colorful beach towels and a fountain going in the pool plus a pitcher of lemonade on a patio table makes a buyer imagine the wonderful poolside gatherings they could enjoy.
Just use your imagination to help create a fun and memorable experience for the buyer so your home stands out among the others.
