You are getting ready to list your home. Now, you want it to look its best, however, staging can be costly and time consuming. But it doesn’t have to be. You can do it yourself in a short amount of time. Not only will staging your home put it in the best position for a sale but it will also help you get a jump start on packing and getting ready to move. It’s a win win! I’m going to go through an entire house but focus on just doing what is necessary.
Let’s talk decluttering the living room and dining room first. Look around. Are tables, coffee tables and end tables covered with newspapers, magazines, etc? Get rid of them! You should only have a lamp and one other item on an end table. Coffee table should have a decorative piece and and a coffee table book, nothing else. Living room should have clear walking areas and furniture should be set up to have conversation areas.Dining room table should not be a “catch all”. Set the dining room table for a beautiful dinner with a table cloth or place mats, your best plates and silverware and cloth napkins. Now prospective buyers can imagine their own family dining there.
Now that the clutter is out, let’s take a look at the walls in these two rooms. Take a look around. What do you see? When you look at something everyday for years, you may not see what others see. Too many pictures on the walls? The paint isn’t as bright as a few years ago and it looks a bit “dingy”? You need a set of fresh eyes to take a look, either your real estate agent or a friend that will be honest with you. Remove all the pictures, give the walls a fresh coat of neutral paint. Now only put back a few of the pictures, pack away all the rest.
In Part 4 we will tackle the bathrooms, kitchen and bedrooms. We will also focus on the home office, which has become a focal area in a home now.