Home staging comes with a lot of benefits when you are trying to sell a house. Studies show that staged homes sell faster and for more money than their unstaged counterparts. However, the degree to how quickly and for how much more you will sell the home depends on the quality of the job done. It’s important to know what to do as well as what not to do when staging a home to sell. In this article we are going to go over some of the common mistakes that people make when staging a home and how you can avoid those mistakes if you are doing this yourself or hiring someone else to do it:
Giving all rooms equal attention
All rooms in the home are not of equal importance. You need to keep in mind what the most important rooms for staging a home are, these are the living room, kitchen, and bedrooms. The rooms where people will be spending the most amount of time. Studies show that these rooms have the biggest influence on buyers, and this is where you want to focus your attention.
Having personal items in the home
Part of the staging job is to help buyers envision themselves living in the home. This is hard to do when other people’s personal belongings are in the home, especially if they conflict with the ideology or preferences of the buyer. For example, think of religious items, if you have a tenant that is one religion and a buyer who is looking at the home that is another religion, seeing those items causes cognitive dissonance.
Having an empty house
Having people come to view empty homes/units is not a good idea. Some people may think that having a relatively empty home is a great way to show the space of the home, but it does more harm than good. Without staging furniture and an existing setup, it’s very difficult for buyers to envision the full potential of the home, when staging a home, you want to paint a positive picture for your buyers not leave the home empty.
Picking the wrong season to sell
Depending on the features of the home it will be highlighted more during certain seasons. You need to understand the best seasons for selling a home, which will vary from home to home. Just take some time to understand if the house you are trying to sell is more suited for the summer, winter, spring, etc, and use those seasons to highlight the features of the home and get more buyers.
Not thinking about how your home will be photographed
The first interaction buyers will have with your home is typically through pictures online and you want to make a good first impression. First impressions are very important and very difficult to change. Photographers will typically look for a window or fireplace as a focal point for the picture and you should make sure that you stage your furniture around that so that the picture will look as good as possible and attract buyers that will want to come and see the home in person.
Not thinking about who the buyer is
The last tip on this list is to think about who your buyer is. You should tailor your staging to the person that is coming to see the home. Is this person single, do they have children, do they have senior citizens, do they like being outdoors, etc. If you’re staging a home for a single business owner, then you may want to stage a room as a work from a home office. If you are staging a home for someone with a child, consider staging one of the rooms as a nursery or a kid’s room. These small details can make a big difference in helping people to envision this home meeting their specific needs.
Get started home staging your home
If you’re thinking about hiring a stager for a property you’re looking to sell, book a home staging consultation with us. Also, if you like this blog and want to read others like this you can subscribe to our newsletter down below.