WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER STAGING YOUR HOME WHEN SELLING IT

If you’re planning to sell your home, you’ll need to present it in its best possible form. Your home needs to be spotless and stylish so potential buyers will see space at its maximum level. The goal is for them to see themselves living in the home.

Related: 6 tips for staging your condo to make it look luxe

Cleaning your home from floor to ceiling may not be enough; sometimes, a bare home doesn’t have that oomph factor either. You’ll need some cosmetic touches to make the house look more attractive to prospects, which is where home staging comes in.

Staging your home means decorating your house to make it more attractive and appealing to interested buyers and can quickly increase the number of offers. Home staging is an excellent marketing strategy for any home on the market, and hiring a professional allows you to animate spaces without a complete redesign.

Seeking help from a professional home stager or property stylist offers a new perspective on how to style and maximize the spaces of your home. That said, here are some advantages to home staging.

Stand out in the real estate market

Staging your home is about adding the correct elements to beautify it and draw attention. More buyers become interested in an attractive home, and you enjoy a shorter turnaround time in the real estate market.

Apart from minor revamps and the right decor, home staging also involves removing certain belongings that could turn off buyers from the house. These could include personal things like photographs and religious items that may distract prospects from envisioning themselves living in the home.

Home staging: Give your house a face-lift

Maximize the potential of your home by styling the central spaces like the living room and dining room. Do mini renovations like a fresh coat of paint on the wall or the ceiling. Check for any quick fixes to cracks in walls or water damage and have it repaired quickly and indeed so it doesn’t affect the value of your home.

A professional stylist or home stager can even rent out fixtures and furniture to add warmth and style to a particular place – whether it’s new lighting or a borrowed dining set. But also, you can take matters into your own hands and purchase small things that can make a huge impact, such as new beddings, bath towels, and even ornaments to accentuate nooks and corners.

“We always suggest going neutral in terms of decoration and style. Most buyers will be looking for a blank canvas and be imagining themselves living in the property,” comments Ruban Selvanayagam of Cardiff-based property auctioneers Property Solvers.

How to cut home staging costs

If you’re unsure how to go about home staging to sell your home, it’s best to ask your real estate agent for advice. Your real estate agent can determine if you even need home staging or could benefit from some DIY tips apart from staging. But no matter what, it’s imperative to make your home look and feel ready to be moved in to stand out in the local real estate market.

Focus on the main areas

Staging a whole house, especially with more rooms, can get pricey. An initial consultation starts anywhere from $300 to $600, while each staged room can cost up to $500 to $600 per month.

Save money on staging your entire house and choose only the main areas where you typically spend most of your time. These include communal spaces like the living and dining room, kitchen, and main bedroom. A spare bedroom can also be staged as an office, which according to Realtor Darren Robertson is a huge selling point for many work-from-home prospective buyers.

Home staging: Stick with the initial consultation

If you’re working within a budget and want to stage your house yourself, getting a headstart is essential. Opt for a consultation instead of availing a home stager’s complete professional services. You can limit yourself to a walk-through of your house with the home stager as an initial consultation which will cost far less than staging your house.

The home stager will go through the home and list several changes that the homeowner must act upon to create the most impact. This list can vary from decluttering to making small changes in the decor. A walk-through with the homeowner would generally cost around $150 to $250.

Try soft staging

Soft staging is staging the home with knick-knacks like ornaments, artwork, cutlery, kitchenware, and the like, minus the furniture. This way, you save on renting or purchasing large furniture pieces but can exude some warmth to the home you are trying to sell.

Of course, this works best on vacant homes. Adding a few accessories gives life to a bare space and lets prospective buyers imagine themselves living there.

You can always rent accessories or borrow from your circles, rather than spending money purchasing all these items. Consider renting accessories as an investment rather than an added cost to help you sell your property.

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