You likely know the basics of getting your home ready for listing photos or a showing, but beyond cleaning and decluttering, here are a few extra home staging steps that will take your home from ho-hum to sold!
Everybody knows you should eliminate clutter when it comes to staging your home, but what else is cramping the look of your space? Assess your furniture and home decor – are there things you can pack up or put into storage now that won’t negatively impact your ability to live in your home? When in doubt, go with less furniture and less stuff. An overfilled room (or a lot of items on the kitchen counter or bathroom sink) is a red flag to buyers that your home lacks storage.
Make walkways more spacious. Walk through your home as if you were a buyer walking through it for the first time. Is there plenty of space in your entryway for at least three people (two buyers and a real estate agent) to stand and maneuver? If not, your entryway table, shoe rack or bench should go. Is there plenty of room to walk around your kitchen and dining area? If not, consider removing a leaf from your table during showings to make it smaller. Move or eliminate furniture in the living room and family room so walkways in, out, and around those spaces are at least three feet wide. Remove any wall art or furniture from narrow hallways – all it takes is for one person to bump up against a frame as they’re walking to feel like your home is too small for them.
Take your living spaces to the next level with pops of color! Most of us are used to hearing that neutral walls and decor sells houses, but well-placed pops of color add interest to a space, are pleasing on the eye, and can make your home more memorable. The key is not to overdo it! When you look at a room, stagger a pop of color (the same color or complementary colors) in three to five spots using flowers, throw pillows, and decorative accents. Large, brightly painted walls might be hard for buyers to look beyond, but decorative accents are things you’ll be taking with you when you move out, leaving the buyer with a nice, neutral starting point.
Clean out your closets. Buyers love storage and you better believe they’ll be opening your closet doors to see what’s inside! Now is a great time to pack up any seasonal or rarely used items typically stashed away in your closet to free up some space, get organized, and let your closets shine like there’s nothing to hide.
Most real estate agents will tell you to pack up or put away all of your personal belongings, but showing hints of living can make your home feel more comfortable and inviting. A bowl of fruit on the kitchen counter, a small stack of books and some reading glasses on the nightstand, or a big white fluffy robe hanging in the bathroom are all subtle signs that your house is loved and made for living in.
Visit the Homes.com Idea Gallery for all the helpful tips and useful ideas you need to get your home staged to perfection and ready to sell!
Dusty Rogers is the blogger, mother, maker, decorator and drinker of the wine at All Things G&D - a lifestyle blog where home décor, DIY and organization, healthy meals and kid-friendly snacks, party planning and entertaining all happily play together in the sandbox. Dusty lives in Madison, WI with her husband Greg and their daughter Kate, and she spends her days balancing high maintenance tendencies with a desire to keep things simple.
