Home Staging Tips for Home Sellers: "Get Ready To Move -- Start Packing"
Try looking at your house "THROUGH THE BUYER'S EYES" as though you've never seen it or been there before. Any time or money invested on the following will bring back more money in return, and hopefully a faster sale.
Have a Realtor or professional Stager through your home to guide you step by step. These are some things you will be expected to do...listen to their advice, remember this is "their" business.
INSIDE:
1. Clear all unnecessary objects from furniture throughout the house. Keep decorative objects on the furniture restricted to groups of 1, 3, or 5 items.
2. Clear all unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. Clear refrigerator fronts of messages, pictures, etc. (A sparse kitchen helps the buyer mentally move their own things into your kitchen.)
3. In the bathroom, remove any unnecessary items from countertops, tubs, shower stalls and commode tops. Keep only your most needed cosmetics, brushes, perfumes etc., in one small group on the counter. Coordinate towels to one or two colors only.
4. Rearrange or remove some of the furniture if necessary. As owners, many times we have too much furniture in a room. This is wonderful for our own personal enjoyment, but when it comes to selling we need to thin out as much as possible to make rooms appear larger.
5. Take down or rearrange certain pictures or objects on walls. Patch and paint if necessary.
6. Review the inside of the house room by room, and:
Paint any room needing paint. (remember to get advice from your Realtor or Stager before choosing colours)
Clean carpets or drapes that need it.
Clean windows.
7. If you need room to store extra possessions use the garage or rent a storage unit. If using the garage make sure boxes are stored in an organised fashion your garage must look good too)
8. Leave on certain lights during the day. During "showings" turn on all lights and lamps make sure all lights provide a soft natural light do not use fluorescent light unless its in a workshop or garage!
9. Have stereo FM on during the day for all viewings with "easy listening" music on low.
OUTSIDE: 1. Go around the perimeter of the house and move and neatly organize garbage cans, discarded wood scraps, extra building materials, etc., into the garage and take any junk to the dump.
2. Clean out your gutters.
3. Look at all plants... prune bushes and trees. Keep plants from blocking windows. "YOU CAN'T SELL A HOUSE IF YOU CAN'T SEE IT." Plants are like children -- they grow so fast!!
4. Weed and then mulch all planting areas. Keep lawn freshly cut and fertilized. Remove dead plants or shrubs.
5. Clear patios or decks of items such as recycling bins, garden hoses, and children's toys etc. (Store neatly in the garage.)
6. Arrange patio furniture into a comfortable seating area. Your deck should look like another room so buyers can imagine backyard relaxing or entertaining
7. Check paint condition of the house -- especially the front door and trim. "CURB APPEAL REALLY WORKS!" Again remember to ask advice on paint colours before painting.
Once your house has all the recommended painting, repairs, and the de-cluttering, allow your Realtor/Stager to assist and take care of all the finishing touches then remember to keep it all in place til the sold sign is on the lawn.
It is also important for everyone in the family to follow these 7 simple tips.
- Make all beds everyday
- Keep all toilet seats down
- Make sure towels are hung properly
- Make sure all crumbs are cleaned from counter tops after meals
- Turn all lights on when showing and have FM radio with light music on during showings
- Don't leave dirty clothes on the floor and put all your belongings away
- Keep all counter top items put away
