Once you make the decision to sell your home, you’ll likely be ready to find your next dream home as soon as possible. But first, there’s the work of preparing your former home for sale and finding a buyer. Staging your home will give you an advantage by showing interested clients your home’s true potential — helping you get to a closing date much sooner. Here are some tips for staging your Colorado home:
Strike a Balance
Part of the appeal of staging a home is showing potential buyers what it might look like to live in your space, but you don’t want to scare them away with cluttered countertops and stuffed drawers. Clear away the clutter to reveal your home’s best assets — even if it means getting hyper-organized or putting some of your possessions in storage — but incorporate a few finishing touches like a tasteful fruit bowl or some fresh-cut flowers to give the house that lived-in feel. You want to make sure that it feels “homey,” but you don’t want it to necessarily feel like your home. Take pictures of your family down and replace them with paintings, etc.
Highlight the Dining Room
There’s nothing more boring than a bland, empty dining room table, but having a separate dining space is a huge place for many potential buyers. Draw attention to the formal dining space with a stylish centerpiece. To take it one step further, consider putting out place settings to show your home’s potential for entertaining. Be careful not to go overboard, though, as an overly lavish dining room setup might make the room feel too formal.
Give the Outdoors Some Love
For a potential buyer, deciding whether a house is the right fit is often just as much about the outside as the inside. Make sure to clean up any branches, leaves and dead foliage to make your front and backyard as tidy as possible. If weather allows, stage your outdoor area with an elegant patio table or seating area complete with cute outdoor place settings. On the front porch, consider a flower box or some potted plants to give the exterior of your home some life.
Keep it Neutral
Though cosmetic elements like a bright paint color or decorative molding can be an easy fix for a new homeowner, bold design choices can make potential buyers hesitant about a space. Because who can really imagine themselves in a bright purple bedroom or a bathroom lined with black tile? But painting everything stark white can also leave a room feeling bland and sterile. Go for neutral tones like mocha or beige, especially in rooms like the master bedroom, bathroom and kitchen.
Freshen up the Floors
The first step to making your floors look great is a good deep cleaning. Having the carpets steam cleaned and the wood floors polished will make your home feel clean, current and put-together. If your wood floors have seen better days, you may want to refinish the floors, or use area rugs to draw attention away from problem areas. Your home may even be in need of some new flooring in bedrooms, bathrooms or common areas, which will be a bigger investment but will also add value to the property.
Rearrange the Furniture
While you may love having your bed positioned against the wall, pushing furniture to the outer edge of the room doesn’t always show off your space. Practice a little bit of feng shui by putting your furniture into symmetrical arrangements, pulling furniture away from the walls and creating inviting conversation areas to get the most out of your spaces during the selling process. Look at your favorite home and garden magazine for layout inspiration, or move your pieces around until you find what works.
Invite Your Buyers to Explore
There may be one or two rooms in your home that really bring the wow factor, like a newly renovated kitchen or a dazzling master bathroom. But you don’t want interested clients to get stuck in those areas. Draw them into other parts of the house using eye-catching accent pieces that will make your potential buyers excited to see more. A perfectly placed light fixture at the top of the stairs or a carefully selected art piece in the half bathroom will help to highlight areas of interest and keep the flow moving nicely through your home.
The idea of staging a home can be daunting, especially considering all of the other tasks that come with selling a home. Using these staging tips will help make your home feel elegant and inviting to potential buyers — getting you to that closing date ahead of schedule.
