Staging your home before selling
By Julie Schmale
Have you ever searched “staging your house to sell” ?
You’ll get all these promises to sell in a weekend, 10 days, and even how to stage your home to start a bidding war…. All promises that when you stage your home right, you’ll sell it right away.
I don’t believe any such promises should be made -there are far too many other factors involved when you list your house. But there is something to be said for many of the tips out there, so I have compiled the things I found most helpful when having our house on the market. I’m not promising this will sell your house any faster, but I DO promise it will make your house stand out from the rest AND make life easier for you and your family while it’s on the market (and you have people going through it).
Detach emotionally
Before we begin, this is THE biggest deal for homeowners. I strongly encourage you to try hard to do this…. And when I say strongly encourage, I really mean YOU HAVE TO! De-attach emotionally from your home. Even though you have had lots of great memories there, that’s no longer what it’s about. Consider it no longer your home…. It will make everything from this point on much easier on your heart! This is really just a mental shift -you are now looking at your house as a product you’re selling. You want other people to come into your home and be able to imagine themselves in the space -not be overwhelmed by all your stuff. For some of us, it’s harder to let go of the place where we have lived and spent so much time, had our babies, established ourselves. But sooner or later, we have to separate ourselves from the emotional part of our home….. Make a point to do this when you are listing -even before listing. As you read on you’ll see why this is so important. It’ll make it easier to de-clutter, easier to stage, AND you’ll feel less hurt when people criticize your space (because they will. Let’s be honest, we all do it when we’re house-hunting). So here we go….
Move out in two stages
What do I mean?! Pack up half your stuff BEFORE listing. Store the boxes somewhere other than your house -and other than your garage! Get your kids on board as well, make it fun. It’ll be like Christmas when you unpack all those boxes in your new home. Do I really have to?! you ask. YES!! You absolutely do! Go complete Marie Kondo on your house. De-clutter your cabinets, your closets, everywhere! People WILL open your cupboards and look behind every door in your house. Get rid of anything you don’t need. Store anything you won’t use while your house is on the market. There are many things we don’t need on a regular basis. Seasonal stuff like your Christmas tree, Christmas decorations, kids’ clothes waiting to be passed down, baby items you’ll need for the next baby, extra blankets. This also includes large kid’s toys. Unless you’re running a day care, you really don’t NEED to keep all their big toys out, so put some of them in storage. Your kids will be so excited to have them back after you’ve moved -it’ll be like getting all new toys! Not only will this make your house look and feel more spacious, it will also help you keep your house clean and organized while it’s on the market.
“Get rid of your stuff” is often difficult to hear and do. After all, we love our stuff -that’s why we have it! But remember: you are selling a product. Your home is no longer about you, your stuff, and the memories you have made there. It’s about creating a space that feels un-cluttered and ready for a new family to make their own memories there.
Clean clean clean
Wipe down your cabinets, doors, walls and light fixtures. Move furniture and clean behind them. Get your kids wiping baseboards (baby wipes are great for this btw -you’re welcome!). Fix anything that’s broken and make sure all your light bulbs are working! Touch up paint here and there -or update your colors if you are able. Lots of bold colors can be overwhelming and bring up emotions in people that give them an overall negative “feel” of your house. This is not to offend anyone, but remember, you’re selling a product -it’s not about your love for bright orange, it’s about appealing to as many people as possible. Neutral colors and a clean, calm, and uncluttered space is much more inviting. It allows people to look past what you’ve got going on and imagine how THEY might use the space and the memories THEY might make there. The best colors to stage with are taupes, beiges, whites, and greys.
By now you might be thinking; “What if I do all this stuff, paint half my house, and change the gross carpet in the basement -and then the new owners don’t even like it?! Shouldn’t I just have left it the way it was and let them change things to what THEY want?!!” Ummm, NO! Most people lead busy lives, they want a home they can move into WITHOUT having to redo a whole bunch of stuff -even if they DO change things down the road, they want a space where they don’t HAVE to change anything. We would be the same way if we were the ones house-hunting.
“You have one shot to impress and wow a buyer so make that first impression good... really good! It’s pretty tough to get clients through again after changes have been made. So do it right off the hop.... Less is always better.... I always say if you going to be moving, start packing!”
Good photos have never been more important!
I’m sorry! (Actually, I’m not…) But here i go again: When you take pictures of your home DE-CLUTTER EVEN FURTHER. Make your photos Pinterest-worthy. Remember what I said in the beginning; Detach emotionally! You are not trying to show off all your favorite things in your photos. You are show-casing a home ready for new owners, new memories to be made. Take out whatever you use on a regular basis and leave only the pretty little decorative things. When I was taking pictures of my house, I’d have a pile of junk behind me that I’d removed for the photo, that afterwards went back where they belonged.
These two photos show my living room I was shooting, and what it looked like right behind me…. Two very different scenarios! Remember, you’re not showing off your stuff…. You’re convincing an online shopper that they need to come and see your house in person.
“As a Realtor, I would highly recommend staging your home prior to putting it on the market. Staging improves not only in-person showings with buyers, but also your photos and videos, which are going to be shared online. Aesthetically pleasing photos are so important, as the majority of buyers shop online before ever booking a showing to view a home in person. Staging provides sellers with the opportunity to make a lasting impression and stay competitive with what else is being offered to the buying market.”
You cannot afford to lose people online. Your photos are so important. It’s that first impression that really counts! Get inspired by photos online and try to copy what they do -or hire a professional.
As you can see from my own photos, I am not even showing the whole room -and I really don’t think you need to. All you need are pretty photos that will entice people to come see the rest for themselves. You don’t need to show every nook and cranny. If you have a room that looks dark and dingy -don’t put it up with your listing. Play around with your stuff -if you’re not happy with your photo, move some stuff out of there and try again. Change up the angle to see which is better. Next I’ll show you my entrance and how a quick few changes can make your photo much nicer….. The first one was after moving a pile of stuff but I just wasn’t happy with it…. so I moved some stuff….. The second photo was what ended up going on the listing….
See what a big difference it made to move some jackets, more of the shoes, and the mat?
Finally! To the fun part!
Okay! You have made it this far! Well done! Now, finally to some of the staging tips that will help you showcase the best features of your home. This part will be shorter points (maybe later on a post on its own), because not only has this been a really long post already and if you’re still reading you’re one of the serious sellers! But also because if you Marie Kondo clean your home, if you pack down half of your stuff, and if you got some really nice photos your home already looks better than most of your competition!
So here goes….
Family photos or not? There are conflicting ideas on family photos…. Leave them up versus taking them all down. I took down most of mine. I had a gallery wall in the living room, and because I didn’t want to fix all the holes and repaint in that room, I just put pretty paper or quotes in the frames instead and left them. Taking them all down left the room feeling empty and cold too, which is not what I wanted.
A little tip (from a small-town realtor friend of mine) to those of you who live in small communities, leaving your family photos up DOES steal the show at your showings…. People are now looking at your photos remembering how they know you…. That you went to school together, or how you married so and so, or worked for their uncle -They have now forgotten why they’re even there!!! You DON’T want THAT! You and your family might be the best looking family out there, but that’s not what you’re showing off right then…. You want your showing to be all about the home, not the people who currently live in the home.
Give each room a purpose. For example, we had a very small bedroom in our house, that was just empty. When we listed our house I borrowed some exercise equipment from a friend and set it up in there, just to show what it could be used for, rather than an empty room. Or if you have an awkward area that stands out as a weird empty space, make it into something useful. Set up a little desk and chair -and tada! Homework station! A comfy chair and some books on a shelf -and tada! Reading nook. -You get the idea.
Kitchens - Clean off your fridge! Honestly, I couldn’t believe what a difference it made for ME when I did. The kitchen is the hub of the home, a lot of things go on here, and therefore it’s also one of the hardest places to leave looking clean and uncluttered. If your fridge is full of kids artwork and reminders and fun saying etc. it adds to the cluttered “feel” even if the rest of your kitchen is cleaned up. Take everything off your fridge and now it actually adds a calm to the rest of the space. You can’t afford to turn people off when they are looking at YOUR home. If you have open shelves, leave only pretty things on your shelves. Add a couple of cook books. Again, only if they are pretty. Remember, you are competing for the attention of people who have higher standards thanks to Pinterest and Instagram. SO. Even though I am telling you to not clutter your space, some pretty things arranged nicely are allowed!
Clean off your counters! Yes, I’m talking about the coffee machine (unless it’s really pretty), the kettle, toaster, soda stream and other small appliances. For photos, stash them behind you when you’re shooting. For showings, have a laundry basket ready, put all those things in there, an take them with you before you leave the house.
Bathrooms - Please please close the lids! For both photos and showings. We all know what toilet water looks like -no one needs to be reminded. Just close the lid!
I kept a clean set of towels on hand that only came out when we had showings. I put the ones we actually used in my laundry basket with all my small appliances and hung out the nice new clean ones. I’m talking about BOTH hand and bath towels. Buy new ones. White ones. They give a feel of spa-like luxury. Make sure these are the towels that everyone will see on your photos too. It just doesn’t look great with a variety of green and brown towels hanging there telling the tale of a messy life. We all have those, we all use those, but it’s just not the ones you show-case online.
SO… the idea is…
Make your home feel “homey” WITHOUT making it feel cluttered. Make your home appear lived in, but not dirty and used. Instead, clean, fresh, ready for others to live THEIR lives in it. When you de-clutter and pack away stuff, your house may seem less warm. But you’ll find that without all your stuff, there’s now room to add some fun touches of warmth that will speak to people’s emotions while they’re viewing your home. Some great ways to do this is with throws/pillows/baking/fresh flowers (I opted for fake)/nice smells. Just remember, don’t add clutter!
One thing I was planning to do -but ran out of steam to be honest- was having a few honest friends walk through my house as potential buyers and give feedback on what they found. I really wanted our house to show well, so this just seemed to make sense. I had 3 friends in mind that I knew would be honest and objective. Even though it might be a bit hurtful to hear the truth about a space you love, it’s better that it comes to you via friends BEFORE buyers walk away with those same negative feelings. Remember, when you emotionally detach it becomes easier to be objective, to hear suggestions on what’s not working, and receive the criticism from potential buyers.
Quick Recap: Detach emotionally, move out in two stages by packing up half your stuff, clean like a mad-man (or woman), take GREAT photos for your realtor to use, de-clutter even more for showings, and make sure you’re showing off only pretty things.
Seems like a lot of work to get your home ready to sell? It is! But these things really are all well worth your time, and it will help you keep your sanity while having it listed and show-ready.