"Staging" Your Home To Lure Buyers
In today's declining housing market, sellers have to go the extra mile to get top dollar for their homes -- and to sell them at all.
A growing trend is to actually "stage" your house, to make it as attractive as possible, to get the most dollars possible.
On The Early Show Tuesday, home and style designer Stephen Saint-Onge, who's also a Better Homes & Gardens contributing editor, offered simple and affordable "staging" tips to help sellers add thousands to the value of their home without spending to much to do it.
Staging your home, he explained, is about seeing it as an outsider would. First impressions are key. And with so many homes on the market today -- many of which are brand new -- you need to make your home feel like a model home, like one from the pages of magazine.
That means going beyond tidying up. You need to transform your home into a lifestyle set that prospective buyers want to live in.
You may have a very well-styled home, but that, says Saint-Onge, isn't enough in today's market.
You need a staged home.
It's not about creating an illusion, but you are helping give the buyer creative direction to see how they might live well in what could be their dream home!
SAINT-ONGE'S STAGING TIPS
Pay Attention to the First Impression: Don't forget about the outside of your home. When thinking about making the best first impression on realtors and potential buyers, walk outside your house and start from there. For example: What's around your front door? Is it pleasing? Could you add planters, rocking chairs on the porch, etc.? You may even need to de-clutter the yard. The first things you see that are wrong need to be addressed. These will be what potential buyers will remember about your place. And remember, you're guiding them visually toward the positive things about your home.
Showcase Positive Features: Make sure the best features of your house are given the star power they deserve. Go through each room and take note of what it is about that room that's great, and make them the focal points. In a living room, it might be fireplace area or great window seat. For a dining room, it could be great views to the back garden. A family room may have great storage, and the bedrooms may have gorgeous hardwood floors. You want to focus in on the positives in each space and really make the most of them. At the same, taking the focus off what might not be so great about the room. To do this, you could rearrange furniture, remove rugs, take down dark curtains, repurpose things from other rooms, and remove items where needed. Get furniture away from the walls and create inviting seating areas. By shopping your house for furniture and props, you can re-insert them into rooms in a new way. For example, your sofa in the living room might work better in the family room, the bulky end tables in your bedroom might work better in your living room, or maybe that small kitchen table that no one uses becomes a creative home office in the nook of a guest room. Be creative with what you have first! It's no longer about how you're living in the house, but about rethinking the whole design for someone else's lifestyle.
Neutralize & Brighten: Light and airy is inviting. Think fresh and clean. Make sure each room of your home feels that way. Don't hide natural light. Most realtors will take your perspective buyer in the front door, so start from there. Is the foyer or hall bright and airy, or dark and cluttered? If you need to spend money -- paint is inexpensive, and you can do it yourself. Paint can cover up a lot of stuff and can change the room's mood instantly. The other thing to spend money on is basic props such as throw pillows, an oversized mirror to make a small room look bigger, or faux wooden blinds for the bedroom, or simple things such as changing out lighting to make the room brighter. Notice when realtors show a house how they turn on all the lamps and lights? It's all about creating brightness, which feels happier! You want your rooms to come to life. The details, the colors, the lights all add to that transformation.
Clean and De-clutter: Nothing is more important than a clean house. Make the spaces feel as fresh and clean as possible. Remove cluttering stuff and extra bulky furniture. You don't want too much going on in a room -- that makes it feel small and cramped. If need be, sell the items, rent a storage unit, or donate them. Get it down to the basics! Also, make sure you de-personalize your space. Potential buyers want to imagine themselves in the space, not you and your family.
Freshen Up: You want to make sure your home looks modern and inviting. Outdated and over-the-top elements should be removed to neutralize your home, to make it inviting for a variety of prospective buyers. Just because it's your taste or has sentimental value doesn't mean prospective buyers will appreciate it. Examples: Remove outdated window treatments with simple clean shades and or panels. Also, switching old hardware on kitchen and bathroom cabinetry can be an easy and relatively inexpensive update.
Final Touches: To set the stage right, you want potential buyers to be affected by your home with all their senses -- the look, the sense of smell, the sounds, etc. All are part of the selling process, because they could hit home with those coming in. Added, simple touches such as fresh flowers, bowls of fruit, fresh-baked cookies on the counter, coffee brewing, nice music playing all help. These elements all play a part in triggering good feelings about your home, and can make a negative into a positive. For instance, in a house on a busy street -- music playing can hide that a bit, as could having blinds slightly closed so you can't see the neighbor's ugly backyard. Look at how magazines shoot rooms and use their styling ideas for your own kitchen counters, closets, how beds can be made up, how to display your kid's toys in the playroom, etc.