We all want to make as much as we possibly can from the sale of our home. But, to do that, we need to present it in its very best light. For some people, this just means having the smell of some fresh coffee or maybe some baking bread in the air, for others, it means going much further and refurbishing completely.
But there is a middle ground that can help to clinch that much-desired sale at a fraction of the cost of a complete refurbishment. This is called Home Staging and the principle is a simple one.
Go for neutral style
It’s a concept that originated on the West Coast in the 1970s and it involves de-personalizing your home and turning it into a neutral, but still attractive, place. The idea is that a potential buyer will be able to visualize themselves living in your home and won’t be overwhelmed by seeing somewhere which has obviously been decorated and furnished to someone else’s taste.
Of course, just doing a good job and maximizing your sale price may not be enough on its own if you’re wanting to move up the property ladder. You’ll also need to get the best possible deal on your next mortgage and one of the best ways of doing this will be to get appropriate mortgage advice from an expert like Trussle. This is a site in the UK that can get you quotes from many major lenders with monthly repayments that could bring many more properties into your price range than you ever imagined might be possible. For some, this may be the added push they need to move to a more desirable location in England.
But first, to make your current home as sellable as you can, there are a few steps to take, each of which has an important role to play.
Tidy works best
The first of these is, unsurprisingly, to have a thorough tidy-up whenever a potential buyer is due to visit. In particular, things like family photographs should probably be taken down or put away. Nothing says that this is very much someone else’s house quite as much as having their pictures everywhere.
Similarly, very distinctive pieces of furniture should probably either be moved to somewhere they are less obtrusive, if not removed altogether. Alternatively, if they are in very bright or unusual colors then maybe cover them with a throw that is altogether more neutral.
“Living Room” (CC BY 2.0) by Jeremy Levine Design
Accessories like cushions, rugs, and ornaments can also be added to give a more homely feel. But these also need to be fairly neutral unless you want buyers to feel that it’s just “not their kind of place”. Another principle of home staging is that you’re selling space, not the home itself, so anything that you can do to de-clutter is always going to help.
Ask for a second opinion
While you can hire a professional to help you perfect your home, this is going to cost money which will cut into the amount you’re going to have to spend on your next home. So it’s easier, and cheaper, to ask friends and relatives to imagine that they’re potential buyers and give their opinion on what your home is like. This can give you an objective viewpoint and help you to see what needs to be done.
You only have to look at the stats around home staging to see what a difference it can make to both the time it takes to sell and the increase in the amount buyers might be willing to pay.
And it all could be as simple as making some very minor, and cheap, changes to your home.
