As you may have heard in the past, staged homes often sell for more money and quicker than those homes that aren’t staged.

But working with a home stager can get expensive fast. That’s why we wanted to share with you some easy steps that you can take to make your home look like it was professionally staged.

Give Home Buyers The Best Impression With These Staging Tips

First, declutter your home. When people think of staging, they often think of adding various items to the home. But actually, the best stagers know how to do more with less. Make YOUR home feel more spacious by removing oversized furniture (perhaps consider putting them in storage) and cleaning out closets and drawers. This honestly has a two-fold benefit because decluttering now will make your move down the road less complicated. As a general rule, if you haven’t used it in over a year, it’s time to throw it out.

Help buyers feel at home right away in your home. Although technically the home buyer is a guest in your home, you really want to help them envision living there. Thus, you don’t want to make them feel like an intruder by asking them to remove their shoes or such. You also don’t want to linger at the house while they’re showing it because that too will drive home the idea that they’re merely guests in your home, not the future owners of it. You might also consider leaving out a bowl of wrapped candies and other treats at the front door, along with a small note thanking the buyer for coming by.

Set the Right Temperature. You don’t want it to be too cold that buyers feel like they have to wear a sweater to stay warm but you also don’t want it to be so warm that they’re sweating. Instead, try to find a happy medium (usually around 70 to 75) so that the buyers will feel comfortable and will want to linger in your home.

Create the Mood. For instance, you might consider lighting a fire in the fireplace or playing soft music throughout the home. You could also turn on any water fountains you have, which are especially helpful in drowning out traffic noise.

Don’t Overdo it on the Scents. Many people are allergic to various scents and deodorizers, so you might want to avoid using them. You might also want to avoid lighting any candles for the same reason. Instead, you might consider opening the windows to let in fresh air or baking cookies. Those are almost universally loved scents so they will help.

Let The Light In. You will hear it over and over again: More light helps homes feel more inviting, cleaner and more spacious. So open the curtains, turn on all the lights in your house and remove anything in front of windows that might be blocking the nature light. It makes a world of difference.

Appeal to the buyer’s sense of aesthetics. You’ve already done this a little bit with the romantic vignettes and the extra natural light. But you might also try doing so with more tactile approaches as well. This might include draping soft fabrics like velvet or silk over chair arms. It will help make your house feel more like a home.

Appeal to the Buyer’s Stomach. It might seem like a gimmick but it’s a gimmick that works! Buyers love munching on snacks while showing homes. And as an added benefit, it usually encourages them to hang out longer in your home. So set out some freshly baked cookies, soft drinks, water or anything else you think will be enticing for buyers.

Encourage Feedback. This has less to do with home staging and more to do with getting helpful information for you as a buyer. After all, you’ll want to know what buyers are liking about your home and what they’re disliking. Ideally, at least some of the things they dislike can be something you can change before the next buyer comes along. So set out cards with pens at the front door and allow buyers to remain anonymous if they wish.

We’re Your Dedicated Real Estate Experts

Hopefully the above tips will help you enjoy a successful outcome on the local housing market. For more valuable tips on what you can do to get your home sold as soon as possible, be sure to reach out to us. We’d be happy to assist you at every stage of the home selling process.