If you’re thinking of selling your home, or if your home has been on the market for awhile and is not selling you might want to consider staging it. Staging a home is not just about cleaning. It’s arranging furniture and accessories in a way that offers the illusion that your house is larger, cleaner, warmer, and more inviting that it might be. A lot of people think that it isn’t worth their time or effort to stage their home, but trust me, it really is. Recently, a friend of mine moved half-way across the country. Their home was for sale for months with plenty of interest but no offers. It was on the market for so long that my friend’s husband had to move without her and their kids to start his new job. Finally, they had a professional come in to stage their home. The very next person to see the home bought it… within a week they were under contract!
Staging your home can help it sell faster and for a higher price than if it sits on the market for months, causing you to lower the price in order to sell. However, if you’re still not willing to budget for a professional to stage your home, consider these three do-it-yourself tips:
1. Clear it out. Most homes are stuffed to the brim with furniture. Take one larger piece out of each room and rearrange remaining furniture to open up floor space. If you need to rent a storage unit, do it.
2. Pack Up. Box up valuables, personal photos, and extra clutter. Remove all personal objects so that potential buyers can imagine their own things in the space. Remove all small appliances, etc. from kitchen counter tops and box them up. Clean out your cabinets and closets. Leave only what is absolutely necessary to live with and box up all other serving sets, clothes, cleaning products, etc. Take half of the books off of all bookshelves. Remove any personal collections from your walls. You don’t need to clear out completely (after all, you still need to live there!) but clearing out everything that is not absolutely necessary will give the all-important impression of more space. And again, take the boxes to storage.
3. Spruce it up. Paint, replace worn carpeting, etc. If you don’t have time to do these relatively quick, inexpensive things, lower the price to make the imperfections of your home seem less important.
Remember, just because you love your home doesn’t mean everyone will. In order to stage your home well, you need to avoid looking at everything through your own personal lense and use an objective eye.
Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County? Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266.