Staging Secrets to Sell Your Home

Even wonder why some homes draw in tons of buyers, while other homes just sit on the market for months, even years? There are several factors that will sell a home in today's difficult market, the price of your home needs to be competitve, your home's location, and your home's appearance (the inside and the outside).

In order to make all your rooms appear large and inviting, all additional furniture and clutter must be removed from every room before you place your home on the market.  A potential buyer will even look in your master bedroom closet, bathroom vanity, and kitchen pantry. Everything needs to be organized and anything you have not used in years should be thrown away.

Any dark window drapes or shades need to be removed before you take any pictures to be placed online to try and sell your home.  You blinds need to be cleaned and all your windows need to be washed.  A dirty window will prevent light from entering the rooms and the rooms can appear dark and uninviting. 

You outside landscape needs to be kept up even during the winter months.  If it snows, all walkways needs to cleared off immediately and all outside lights should be replaced with the highest wattage that is permitted so your home shines at night.  In the Spring and Fall, new mulch should always be applied to any beds to make then pop.  Also, when you place your home on the market for sale, always leave a light during the night hours to make sure any potential buyers can see your house number.

The wall colors need to flow from room to room and should compliment each other.  When you are selling a home, it is best to stick with more neutral colors (e.g. sage green, light yellow) to appeal to a larger buyer audience.

All your room accessories need to be larger to show up nicely online. One rule most home stagers use when preparing a home for a real estate open house, is not to use any accessories that are smaller than a cantelope.  I agree with this rule and apply it as well when staging homes for sale.

All of the above steps need to be done before any digital pictures are taken.  Today, over 85% of potential home buyers are searching for a new home on the Internet.  Your home's online MLS presence needs to show how great your home really is.  Make sure all your pictures are bright and taken from correct angles.  If you need help with this ask your Realtor or local home stager. Homes that have 20 or more pictures online tend to generate the most traffic, this is another important fact to consider.

Good luck with your home sale and remember to prepare your home before you take any digital pictures.

-Kate, your local home stager, www,kateshomestaging.com