10 Tips for Staging Your House

Do you plan on selling your house this year?  If so, staging it to sell fast is one way to make sure that you don’t have to turn your life upside down for months, having to leave the house at the drop of a hat for potential viewing.  Staging basically means making your house appealing to the masses.  Taking the time up front to update, clean and depersonalize can directly translate into less time your house is on the market. Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Clean, clean, clean.  And then clean some more.  Pay close attention to dingy bathrooms, they really gross people out.  No one wants to think they are inheriting someone else’s filth if they buy the house.  Scrub, scour and make all of the rooms sparkle.
2. Depersonalize.  No matter how classy your home décor and family photos are, they are not necessarily every potential buyer’s style.  Even if they are, they distract from the buyer’s ability to “imagine” themselves living in the house.  Box up and store any personal items.  Minimalism is the key in staging décor.  It will make the house seem bigger anyway.
3. Give rooms a fresh coat of paint.  Neutral paint color can make a room more appealing and make it seem cleaner.  Consider a fresh coat of paint on baseboards too—dirty, dented baseboards remind buyers that the house is “used.”
4. Focus on first impressions.  Entry ways are the first thing potential homebuyers see.  Get a fresh welcome mat, and if the season allows, some potted flowers.  “Welcome” homebuyers into “their new home.”  Give the front door a fresh coat of paint, if needed.
5. If your furniture makes a room feel crowded, consider removing some of it.  Your goal is to make the space look huge.  It may only be functional for your family to have 2 full size couches to watch t.v., but potential homebuyers will just see a crowded room.  Store excess furniture in a storage unit.  It’s an upfront investment that will hopefully pay off with a quick sell.
6. Let as much natural light as possible shine in.  Make sure to open all of the windows, blinds and curtains.  Natural light makes people happy.  Happy people want to buy your house.
7. Make sure bedrooms are gender neutral.  If you have a sweet pepto bismal pink room for your little girl, it’s time to paint it.  You can personalize your next house again.   The same goes for the master bedroom.  If your bedding is all flowers and lace, it might be worth it to buy an inexpensive neutral bedspread until after the sell.
8. Cater to buyer’s senses.  The smell of baked goods makes a place feel more “homey.”  Realtors always suggest either burning an apple pie type candle before a showing, or mulling some cider.  Either way, entice the buyer with the smell of home.
9. Turn on the lights.  It might feel wasteful, but turn on the lights.  Remember, you want your home to feel bright and airy.
10. Make repairs.  Nothing like selling a house to get all of those fix-it items on your list done.  If you have a broken tile, a deck that needs stained and sealed—whatever the repair, now is the time to do it.  You don’t want potential buyers to see your house as a “fixer upper,” it may cost you thousands in a potential offer.  The upfront cost kind of stinks, since you won’t get to enjoy the benefits, but the goal is to sell the place, right?

Do you have any other tried and true ways to stage your house for a fast sell?

~Mavis