8 Key Components to Successful Home Staging For a Quick Sale

First impressions matter, especially when it comes to what buyers think of a home they’re visiting. If you’re planning to put your home on the market soon, staging is a crucial part of the selling process.

Buyers will be more willing to spend the big bucks on things that they are attracted to, and effective home staging can help give your home that extra something to help buyers develop an emotional connection to it.

The following are some of the key components to a successfully staged home that’s ready to draw in the offers.

1. Boost Curb Appeal

Before your first prospective buyer even steps foot in your home, they’ll be greeted by its exterior. Considering this fact, it’s imperative that the outside of your home is welcoming and attractive enough to encourage them to step through the front door. If you can impress the buyer with the exterior of your home, you’ll set the stage for the rest of their visit.

People often confine their home staging tactics to the interior, but the exterior is just as important. Spending some time improving the curb appeal of your home is time well spent. If your landscaping, driveway, front door, or mailbox need some TLC, give it to them. Boosting curb appeal will go a long way at attracting buyers and closing a sale.

2. De-Clutter

Your idea of a clean and tidy home might be a bit different than that of buyers looking in your area. But how you live and how your home should be presented to buyers might be two different things. That said, it’s important that you include de-cluttering as one of your first steps in staging your home for the market.

Getting rid of any unnecessary clutter is a key component to drawing in buyers and selling your home in a reasonable amount of time. Buyers don’t usually appreciate walking into a home that looks disheveled, so be sure to put everything in its place and remove any unnecessary items from sight. If necessary, consider tossing or packing up items before you list your home on the market to help make de-cluttering simpler.

3. De-Personalize

The goal of home staging is to sell a lifestyle to buyers and to help them visualize calling the place home. But they’ll have a harder time doing that if you’ve got a myriad of family photos and your kids’ drawing plastered about. It might be emotionally tough to do, but it would be best to take down such personal items to help buyers picture themselves living there and get them closer to putting in an offer.

4. Make Necessary Repairs and Upgrades

If your home is in need of minor repairs and updates, consider making them. Tackling small repair and updating tasks can go a long way at attracting prospective buyers. Things such as loose handrails, leaky faucets, and burned out light bulbs should be addressed.

And as far as updating goes, you don’t necessarily have to invest a lot of money if you choose the right projects that make a big difference without the huge cost. Refacing your kitchen cabinet doors, replacing handles and knobs on drawers and doors, and updating light fixtures can make a big difference in your space and even potentially add a little extra value into your home.

5. Paint Your Home in a Neutral Color

You might love lime green or psychedelic purple, many buyers probably won’t have the same tastes. If you want to attract the masses of buyers looking for a home in your neighborhood, your best bet is to neutralize the color scheme in your home. And painting the walls in a neutral hue is the easiest, fastest, most affordable, and most effective way to do that.

In fact, a new paint job can bring in the highest ROI out of any other home improvement project. A fresh coat of paint can brighten up a space and make it feel new again, all while completely changing up the color scheme and appealing to the tastes of buyers. Neutral tones such as off-white, gray, and blue work quite well for today’s sophisticated buyers.

6. Make Good Use of Lighting

A light and bright space can make a home’s interior feel more inviting and comfortable, It can also help to visually enlarge a space, which is particularly useful if your home is short on square footage. Good lighting can also help you put a spotlight on the positive features of your home while minimizing any potential flaws that it may have.

7. Define Your Spaces

Take the guesswork out of the equation for buyers and help them make heads or tails about what each room in your home is supposed to be used for. This can easily be done with appropriately placed and arranged furniture.

When buyers visit a home, they expect that the furniture will be placed in the intended room it was designed for. Clearly defining every room’s purpose is a key part of effective home staging and can help you create selling points for your home.

8. Establish Focal Points

Solidifying a focal point in a room can work wonders, especially if the room does not have much architectural charm or detail. Items such as wall art, a detailed chair, and a fireplace can create a focal point, which can help to anchor a room. Without one, a room can seem off-balance.

The Bottom Line

When done right, home staging can help a home sell faster and for more money. It’s a proven tactic and should never be ignored throughout the selling process. If getting your home off your hands sooner rather than later and attracting higher offers sounds good to you, be sure to take the time to have your home effectively staged for the market.