Ten tips for staging your home successfully
Putting your home on the market can be both exciting and stress inducing. The possibilities of what the future holds can be overshadowed by the pressure to get your home ready to show — in other words, immaculate and open to the critique of perfect strangers.
The good news is there are some simple things you can do to stage your home to have a big impact on how it presents. Here’s a look at 10 of them.
CLEAR OUT
The art of decluttering is the subject du jour at the moment, thanks to the likes of Marie Kondo and her successful Netflix special Tidying Up. When it comes to selling your home, this really is the best place to start. Anything that no longer serves you should be removed. Be ruthless about it.
THE RIGHT FIT
It’s easy to get attached to a certain piece of furniture, even if you have no good place to put it. When it comes to staging your home for sale, the advice from professionals is that if you have a piece of furniture that doesn’t fit a space perfectly, it’s best to move it or get rid of it and have nothing in its place.
IMPERSONAL
Clear away personal items like individually framed photos, says interior designer Kendall Ansell. Your home shouldn’t feel sterile or uninhabited, but keeping walls clear of anything but good artwork is a smart idea, and that goes for side tables, coffee tables and the like.
OUT OF THE CLOSET
People often look inside closets during home viewings, so do a ruthless cull of your wardrobe and leave some breathing room. (It’s said we only wear about 15 per cent of what we own anyway.) A rule of thumb is that your closets should be about 20 to 30 per cent empty.
DON’T FORGET PATIOS
Decluttering should also extend to patios, porches and balconies, Ansell says, so any storage boxes or bins containing sporting equipment, picnic gear and the like should be put away or stored because they’re a red flag that the home doesn’t have enough storage.
INSIDE OUTSIDE
If you have patio furniture, make sure it is presented in the best possible way for photography and showings, which means dressed up with cushions. Adding some extra ones in bright, fun colours is a cheap and easy way to make a space look lively and inviting.
GOOD SCENTS
We’ve all heard the advice about baking a loaf of bread or putting the coffee on when showing your home because it creates a warm, inviting and homey environment. We react to what we’re smelling whether we’re conscious of it or not, so store any hockey gear or anything else that doesn’t smell appealing.
FRESH FLOWERS
Speaking of roses, presenting fresh flowers on an entryway table does double duty; they’re both visually pleasing and fragrant.
CLINCHER
Kitchens and bathrooms sell homes, we are told, so these two areas need to be particularly clean and clear of any clutter. In kitchens, small appliances should be stored away, along with anything else that clutters up the counter space (think bottles of vitamins, packs of tea or coffee).
ENTRYWAY
First impressions last, so replacing your entry rug or doormat if they’re looking a little shabby, is a great idea. Small updates like this can have a big impact and set the tone for those viewing the rest of the home.
The hub of the home Laundry rooms are often overlooked when it comes to areas of the home we tend to, but now’s the time to show this space a little love. Start by getting rid of anything you don’t need (halfempty cans of paint, brands of soap you’ve not used in two years, extra tile from the renovation carried out by the home’s previous previous owner.
Present this space as the organizational hub of the home.