Staging
your home is an integral part of getting it sold. It’s no secret; homes that
show well, sell faster. When a buyer walks into your home they’re not thinking
about all of the time and effort you have put into your home to decorate it how
you wanted it, paint the walls the color you wanted, or how stressful your life
must be because you have toys and clutter everywhere. When a buyer walks into
your home they’re thinking about how they are going to change your home, how
they wish it was cleaner than what it is, what paint colors they would rather
see on the wall, how they wish the carpet was cleaner and how they will have to
replace it. Quite frankly, why shouldn’t they? You know that you did the exact
same thing when you bought your home, and you will do the exact same thing when
you purchase your next home.
There are
several key elements that go in to staging a home properly. The first thing a
homeowner should do before putting their home on the market is to de-clutter.
If you’re not using it, or you haven’t used it in the last two years, stick it
in a box and put it away. You obviously aren’t going to need it any time soon.
But how much do I de-clutter? Some may ask… As much as possible! Think about
when going into a model home. There aren’t any toys on display, there isn’t a
shelf in the kids rooms jammed packed with stuffed animals, and there aren’t a
million pairs of shoes located by the front door. De-clutter, de-clutter,
de-clutter! It’s a tough job but if you want to get your home ready to sell, it
has to be done!
Once a home
is properly de-cluttered, and I emphasize properly, the next thing to focus on is
deep cleaning. When I talk about deep cleaning, I’m talking about cleaning every
square inch of your home. You will need to clean the floors, clean the walls,
clean the baseboards, clean the windows (inside & out), vacuum, mop, and clean
out all of the appliances in your kitchen. If you have a patio, spray it down
with a pressure washer. Clean off your patio furniture too. If you have a pet,
cleaning your home is that much harder. We have a little dog in our house and
it’s a chore to keep up with the little hairs that shed off of her. We are
constantly vacuuming and moping the floors, vacuuming the couches, etc. If you
have a larger dog, this is even more difficult, but it has to be done. Nothing
will turn off a buyer faster than to walk into a dirty house. Buyers can be
very picky people. Why shouldn’t they
be? Purchasing a home is a big deal so they want the best that their money can
buy. If it comes down between your home and another home down the street, a
buyer is going to pick the home that has less work.
The next
step really coincides with the first step, which is to de-personalize your
home. While having a beautiful picture of you and your family over the
fireplace has a lot of sentimental value, to a buyer it’s just distracting.
Here’s why: when a buyer walks into a space, they are trying to imagine themselves
in the space. They might think, ‘how would my couch look over there?’ or ‘I bet
my TV would look good on that wall’. The
point of getting your home properly staged is to allow buyers to come into your
home and envision themselves in the space, which makes them want to buy it! So,
while it is difficult, your home needs to be de-personalized. Which means that
you need to take down all of your family portraits, family pictures, pictures
of your kids, etc. The fact is, when you decide to sell your home and put it on
the market, it really isn’t your home any more. It’s a product to be sold.
Staging
your home can be a very difficult task. That’s why it’s very important to have
the expertise of a Realtor to help you. An agent can walk you through your home
and give you unbiased advice on how to best prepare your home to sell. Leaning
on the advice of a trained professional, like a Realtor, can help you
exponentially in the sale of your home.
That’s all for today. Until next time, I’ll keep “Turning Your
Dreams Into An Address”.
No comments:
Post a Comment