Help your house sell faster? 11 staging tips
Now that buyer demand has cooled, it’s back to basics. Home staging is no longer optional.
Home staging—or decorating and arranging your home to prepare it to sell—is usually recommended by real estate agents. While it’s not required, it has a purpose: to help buyers picture themselves living in your house.
The most recent Profile of Home Staging from the National Association of REALTORS® confirms this:* “Eighty-two percent of buyers’ agents said staging a home made it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as a future home.”
Staging might even help command a higher asking price. According to the report, home staging helped increase the offer value on 23 percent of homes by 1 to 5 percent.* A recent Home Staging Institute Survey also shows that 85 percent of real estate agents believe that a staged home is likely to sell faster. For many sellers hoping to decrease their days on the market, staging is worth the consideration.
11 home staging tips to grab buyers’ attention
You can use these tips, with the help of your real estate agent and/or a professional stager, to help make a strong impression when you list:
1. Depersonalize everything.
Remember, buyers want to imagine themselves living in your house. So, clean, declutter, and depersonalize as much as possible. Remove photos and knickknacks and take care to clear out closets and drawers, which curious buyers are bound to open.
2. Remove some furniture.
Along with over-accessorizing, over-crowding is a common problem many sellers face. It can help to remove at least one piece of furniture from each room, especially in living and dining areas. Extra side tables and armchairs can be sold or put into storage. Freeing up space can help these rooms appear larger.
3. Check your curb appeal.
House hunters are going to judge a home by its cover. Paying attention to curb appeal (by using our tips) can help you wow buyers from the moment they walk in the door. Cleaning windows can also work wonders. Buyers might be turned off by having to peer through streaks and grime when looking through the window of a house.
4. Hide cords and wires.
Use cord covers to hide cords that run along the wall and make sure that all wires are hidden in entertainment centers or cabinets. Remove cables that run along the floor or cover them in cable protectors (as this can also present a safety hazard).
5. Remove pets and accessories.
There’s no telling if a prospective buyer loves or loathes animals. To stay on the safe side, it’s best to conceal all evidence of pets, as well as their smell. Clean carpet stains, remove litter boxes, pick up waste from the yard, and store food and water bowls and pet carriers out of sight.
💡 If you want to smooth your transition from home seller to homebuyer, it’s a good idea to connect with your local Academy Loan Officer before listing your house.
Why? Your Academy Loan Officer can help you get pre-approved* for your next home purchase. Early pre-approval* lets you know how much house you can afford, and it also helps get your loan moving once you put in an offer. Get in touch now.
6. Clean carpets.
Whether you hire professionals or rent your own rug cleaner, freshly cleaned carpets are something buyers take note of. Carpet cleaning can also rid your home of pesky smells you might have grown accustomed to. Severely stained or torn carpet may need to be replaced, particularly in pet areas.
7. Make minor repairs.
In addition to home staging essentials like cleaning, decluttering, and removing pet items, nearly 70 percent of real estate agents also suggest making minor repairs before you list.* Seemingly small issues like broken drawers, sticky doors, missing fence posts, and leaky faucets can be deal-breakers for many homebuyers.
8. Lighten and brighten.
You can’t go wrong with white—whether it’s eggshell, cream, vanilla, or pearl—if you want to present your home as immaculate. Whites and neutrals can be used for paint, curtains, décor, and furniture slipcovers, with colors and patterns reserved for throw pillows, art, and backsplash.
9. Add statement kitchen accessories.
Along with the living room and master bedroom, a well-staged kitchen is considered to be “very important” to prospective buyers.* A kitchen should be decluttered and decorated with a few standout accessories, like hanging copper pots or a brightly colored kettle or mixer. Another option is to put out a bowl of fresh lemons.
10. Fill space with plants.
What happens if you find yourself with too much space in the common rooms of your house? Fill it with stylish potted plants. Using plants to fill out a room can be especially helpful if you’re selling an empty home and need to bring some furniture back in for the purpose of staging.
11. Enlarge and set the dining table.
To put on the finishing touches, add the leaf to your dining table, if you have one, and set it for dinner. Then open the curtains (preferably in neutral colors) and let in natural light. Since the pandemic, buyers are relying on property photos and virtual tours more than ever.* Attention to detail may help your listing get noticed.
Are you ready to sell?
Your local Academy Loan Officer can help you take the first step.
*Pre-approval is not a commitment to lend. This is for informational and educational purposes only and not intended as an advertisement as defined by Regulation Z. Please consult a trusted professional as personal circumstances may vary. No specific results are guaranteed. MAC2411-2180077.