The House Dressing Company

It seems like all the rage to “hire a stager” to assist you with preparing your home for sale, perhaps even a bit of a “fad”.  But the honest truth is that it really works.  What I know for sure having been in the design field for 25 years is that many people can not visualize.  What I mean by this is that they can’t imagine a space any other way except for what is right before their eyes.  If your home is over furnished, cluttered or not shown in it’s most pleasing manner a buyer will often overlook it’s potential.  This becomes your missed opportunity.

When you decide to sell your home, since you want it to sell quickly and for the highest price possible, the best way to sell anything is to make your product stand out above all others in your market.

“Coldwell Banker Realty tracked 2,772 properties, ranging in price from $229,000 (U.S.) to $4.8 million, in eight major U.S. cities. It found that while the average home was on the market for nearly 31 days, the typical staged home sold in just under 14 days. And while the average home sold for a mere 1.6% over the seller’s asking price, the staged homes went for a hefty 6.3% more.”

If you are looking to get started try these 5 tips to begin the staging process of your home.

1. First Impressions are key.

You have a very small window of opportunity to impress your buyer.  Making your home look cared for with extra detail will make it memorable.  Consider your front door area outside and inside.  Firstly, clear any clutter outside such as dead planters or recycle bins etc and replace with a fresh new flowering pot or two.  This will instantly score you points with a manicured look.  Secondly, a good sweep or hosing down the stairs or porch (power washing if you have the means) will freshen up the surfaces immensely.  Be sure to cut the grass, trim the hedges and rake those leaves.  If your front door or the surfaces in this area need a paint touch up this is the place to spend some time as it will really be noticed here.  On the inside of the door, wisk away any everyday clutter and place either a fresh healthy plant inside the door or a simple bouquet of fresh or silk flowers on a small entry table.  If you haven’t a table, a larger sized plant can rest on the floor,  brightening a corner while welcoming your potential buyers.  If you have a blank wall a piece of art or a nice print would be perfect here.  Your first impression will now be maximized.

2. De-Cluttering is mandatory!

This not only makes your home appear larger but it allows the buyer to see the actual space.  I have been in some homes that are so filled with stuff you can’t see the walls or find the doorways! I felt rather trapped.  And get this, they were trying to sell it furnished!! I can’t impress this enough. Removing as much as you can from each and every single room is the leading factor in presenting your home for sale successfully.  This can be an overwhelming task, so much so, that some people just can’t be bothered to move houses for all the stuff they have accumulated.  What I suggest is starting room by room with a garbage bag and tossing anything that you can that is broken, trash, old magazines, or not useful.  Then pass thru with another bag for the thrift store and toss anything that you don’t use, don’t love, or that doesn’t fit with your style or your needs.  Your plan B here is to place it in a bag for either consignment or ebay.  Once this is done pass thru with a moving box and pack what you won’t use for now, leaving the bare essentials and a few decorative items.   Aaaaaah….. now the space should be looking pretty good.

3. De-personalizing a must!

This allows the buyer to better imagine themselves living in the home without seeing photos of you looking back at them implying that this is someone elses home vs potentially theirs.  This means that now you need to remove all your family photos and those items that make the home looked too lived in.   This includes personal achievement trophies & plaques, posters, personal products in bathrooms, clothing kept to a minimum in closets, and your kitchen counter favourites like vinegar & oils and spices that clutter the counter.  This may seem a little impersonal for a home everyday but imagine arriving to your hotel room to check in and finding photos of the last guests in picture frames around the room- it wouldn’t feel like your very own room for the night.

4. Re-think Furniture placement

Each room in your home should be purposed accordingly.  What I mean by this is that if you have a 2 bedroom home but use one for a craft room I would recommend setting up the 2nd room to be a bedroom as you will reflect a much greater value and a higher asking price with a 2 bedroom vs a 1 bedroom.  If you leave the 2nd room as a craft room buyers will only remember seeing 1 bedroom and most likely write you off as a contender. This is also true when you are short a room like an eating area.  Some homes only have a counter bar & a distant formal dining area-this can be a draw back for young families who want to sit at a table for dinner everyday.  You can create an area to house even the smallest table and a couple of chairs by eliminating another piece of furniture (say you had a love seat and a sofa- you could switch to a love seat and a side chair). This re-purposes the area and will better suit the needs of a family.  Also be sure to review the amount and the placement of furnishings in each room.  Over crowded rooms make them seem smaller, and misplaced furniture can interfere with traffic flow thru the space.  An example is where you have the main flow cut thru a conversation area.  If you can create a traffic flow that goes around the grouping this would feel much better especially if you were the one trying to relax in this area.  If you are unsure, always get a 2nd opinion and walk thru the space as though you were seeing it for the 1st time to see how it feels.  Finally be sure to highlight key features in each room, and make sure they are not obscured by plants or furnishings such as your fireplace- some people put an array of plants in front of the opening seasonally-fine for your decorative purposes but again the buyer could be looking for a fireplace in a home and it can be easily missed if hidden vs highlighted.

5. Clean, Clean, Clean!

Make sure your home is spic and span!  A properly staged home should be immaculate!  Get to the nitty gritty even with Q-Tips, getting dead flies out of your windowsill and scrubbing in places you might not do every cleaning like baseboards.  Making it presentable is a top priority but even more importantly this gives the buyer a better sense that the home is sound and is in top condition all around without hidden problems (of course one should never camouflage any major  problems which of course must be repaired, not masked) . Fresh air can also be overlooked so be sure that your home is pleasant smelling vs carrying odours from your last meal or your 3 cats and the litter box!  This can be a real turn off.  Air out all the rooms while allowing some windows to provide constant fresh air.  On the other hand don’t use offensive scented plug-in products or sprays- go as natural as possible.

Now if all this has you flying into a tizzy don’t panic!  Our trained expert Helen McIntyre is at your disposal and would be happy to visit your home and assist you with further ideas and suggestions for this daunting process making it a little easier and making your staging project a success.  Our fees are reasonable and well worth what you will gain in the final purchase price of your home.

If you are going to tackle this yourself just remember that anything is possible if you set your intention clearly ie “get the most for my home by making it irresistible” or “sell my home in record time by doing everything that it takes to make it desirable”.  Then make a list of everything that will make your home more appealing and get to work on the list.

My motto is “If there’s a will, there’s a way”!  Take a peek at this video segment I did for Shaw TV here in Victoria for some inspiration.

Happy staging!