5 Ways to Pull of a Home Staging
Staging a home isn't just for new construction homes for sale, you can stage your home as well to make it look nicer, help it sell faster and get your selling price. You don't want your house sitting on the market for too long, this means more money out of your pocket to keep it listed, and more expenses to keep up your home while it's on the market. It will be worth the investment to stage your home if it sells quickly.
If you can hire a home staging service, do so, they have access to furniture and other items to make your home look it's best, and can decorate in a way that maybe you aren't able to. If you want to tackle the job yourself, see below for some tips on how to stage a house.
Remove Clutter & Excess
Get rid of as much clutter as possible to give your home a cleaner look. A cluttered house can look like a dirty house, even if it's clean, so it's important to clean up as much paperwork, books, magazines, toys, clothing and other items as possible. Storage items can also be removed. Things like seasonal decor you have stored in your basement can be moved to a storage unit or moved to a friends house for the time being.
Once you have the clutter taken out, it's time to remove excess. Collectibles, photo frames, and excess furniture that make rooms look too small. If you have a small bedroom with a queen size bed that takes up most of the room, plus you have a dresser and two nightstands in the room, take out the queen size bed and replace it with a twin or full bed, and remove one of the nightstands. If possible, put the dresser into the closet, or remove it as well to help the bedroom appear larger.
Add Light
Once you have your house free of clutter and excess, it's time to start staging. Add more light into each and every room to help the house feel cozy, warm and spacious. Add extra lighting in rooms that don't have enough, open up the curtains and pull up the blinds, and add mirrors to help reflect natural lighting.
Spruce Up Bathrooms
In your bathrooms, give them a spa type feel by adding rolled up white towels, baskets and candles - these items you probably already have laying around your home and if not, you can find them cheaply at your local dollar store. Hang up a new shower curtain (if you have a curtain), and make it white to again make the area feel larger and clean.
Make Beds & Arrange Pillows
Be sure to make the beds in every room and add extra pillows for added decor and appeal. In living rooms, add pillows and a few throw blankets as well for a cozy feel.
Set the Table
In furniture stores the tables are always decorated with table settings to help you imagine sitting and eating there. Do the same in your home by adding place settings, plates, napkins and glasses, as well as a nice centerpiece.
To help you stage your home each time it's showed, you can put everything into a large tote so you can get it all out easily when needed. Staging your home can be done yourself, but if you'd rather leave the task to companies like The Designer's Niche, ask your realtor if they can refer a home staging service to you to ensure the job is done properly.