When selling a home, a Realtor will often advise a client to “stage it” and offer to bring in a professional stager to help. In a nutshell, staging means creating a neutral scenario so that potential buyers can picture themselves living there without the distraction of your personal items or too much clutter. When a home is staged properly, it generally sells faster and can even sell for a higher price.
Here are several tips to staging your home:
Declutter
Clear out closets, kitchen counters and cabinets, children’s bedrooms, and all other spaces, and clear off all surfaces on countertops and furniture. You’ll be moving soon anyway, so pack these items and store them either offsite or in a garage or neutral space, donate, recyclcle or dispose of them.
Open Up Spaces
Less is more when it comes to furniture; too much furniture can make a room look smaller, and you want to show just how much space the new buyer will get with your home. Your stager may ask you remove items, and could regroup items to create a better flow and more open space.
Depersonalize
Pack up any and all personal items that might distract a potential buyer. This includes family photographs, memorabilia, team- or religious-related items, and items with your name, such as a diploma. Think of how neutral a hotel room is and try to create a similar look.
Create Curb Appeal
If the outside of the home doesn’t look good, people aren’t going to expect much from the inside, and may in fact, pass up your home without ever entering. Powerwash the exterior, perform repairs, touch up the trim and landscaping, and place appealing plants and flowers around the entrance.
Clean
If you have lived in your house for a while you may have become impervious to conditions that may jump out at someone else, like dirty grout around the tub, dusty corners or blinds, or musty odors. A deep cleaning will make your home shine.
Make Repairs
Look around your home from a buyer’s point of view and make all necessary repairs or modifications. Even the littlest items will catch a wary buyer’s eye or an inspector’s checklist. You want to make your home as move-in ready as possible.
Hire a Professional
There is a lot to do to get ready to sell your home, and there are professionals available to help. Ask your Realtor for a recommended stager, and call 123JUNK to help remove items when you’re ready to put your home on the market. Simply pile the items you’d like us to remove, whether they are inside the home, garage, attic or basement or outside in the yard or shed. We’ll take the items away and sort them for donation, recycling and disposal, and provide you with a tax-deductible receipt for your donations.
To schedule your pickup appointment, call 123JUNK today.
