As you prepare to sell your home, one of the many things you want to discuss with your broker is staging. In order to present the house in its best light, you will certainly want to stage your home. A properly staged home will bring more money for your home in less time. But first, what does it mean to stage your home?
If you are still living in the house, at a minimum, you should:
• Declutter – Your broker will help you decide which personal items and furniture to remove. Whether you pack items up and store them or actually get rid of items, look at the decluttering process as an opportunity to make the packing and moving easier. Perhaps have a garage sale or donate any unwanted items to your local thrift shop. Less is more when it comes to showing your home! Too much clutter “shrinks” a home very quickly.
• Clean your home exceptionally well – a deep cleaning is best. Consider hiring a professional to clean the home along with carpet cleaning or grout cleaning.
• Make any needed minor repairs – Again, your broker will help you decide what repairs are needed. Likely, the needed repairs will be ones that have been deferred or issues that have been tolerated such non-functional lights, needed touch up paint, or minor dry rot at door frames or decks. Cosmetic repairs are important to show the home is well cared for overall.
• Additionally, you may want to repaint entire rooms, remove wall paper or re-carpet the home, as necessary. Perhaps change light fixtures, cabinet knobs or counter tops. Before making any major changes, talk with your broker or a professional stager to get the most out of the money you are spending.
If the house is vacant, do all of the above plus one of the following:
• Professional staging – This is where furniture and home décor is brought in. This gives the home a lived-in, yet very clean and appealing look to give the buyer an idea of how the room can be set up and how it could be decorated. Of the choices, this option is the most successful. Per the National Association of REALTORS®, a staged home will sell for 17% more than a non-staged home, on average. Additionally, 95% of staged homes sell in 11 days or less. That is statistically 87% faster than non-staged homes.
• Leave the home empty – Remember that a buyer will see only the house, so you will want the condition to be the best it can be. Make sure you really do all the recommended upgrades to maximize your sales price.
• Virtual staging – This is done by adding images of furniture to the photos of the home. Thus, when looking online, a buyer can imagine how the room could be set up. The concern with virtual staging is that it can potentially be deceptive. How long is the couch or is it really a love seat? How big is the bed?
Staging turns the home into something that will appeal to the greatest common denominator of buyers so it will sell quickly. This involves ‘neutralizing’ and portraying a lifestyle that buyers want to have. Your Town & Country Realty Broker is here to help you decide how to best get your home ready for market! Call Town & Country Realty today at 541-757-1781 in Corvallis and 541-924-5616 in Albany to have a broker help you stage and sell your home! You will be glad you did!