Staging Your Home To Sell

What is staging? "Staging" is a term in the real estate industry which basically means that you "prep" your house to sell. Similarly to studying in order to prep yourself before taking a test to get the best results, you may find that "staging" will also give you the results you are looking for when you sell your home. In the real estate market today, buyers are fortunate enough to have a large selection of homes to choose from. When you have a buyer interested in your home, you want them to also be able to envision themselves and their family living there. As a seller, you want to be able to see your home through a buyer's eyes, as if you are seeing your home for the very first time. Below are some staging tips from Barb Schwarz, an accredited staging professional. INSIDE: 1. Clear all unnecessary objects from furniture throughout the house. Keep decorative objects on the furniture restricted to groups of 1, 3, or 5 items. 2. Clear all unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. If it hasn't been used for three months... put it away! Clear refrigerator fronts of messages, pictures, etc. (A sparse kitchen helps the buyer mentally move their own things into your kitchen.) 3. In the bathroom, remove any unnecessary items from countertops, tubs, shower stalls and commode tops. Keep only your most needed cosmetics, brushes, perfumes etc., in one small group on the counter. Coordinate towels to one or two colors only. 4. Rearrange or remove some of the furniture if necessary. As owners, many times we have too much furniture in a room. This is wonderful for our own personal enjoyment, but when it comes to selling we need to thin out as much as possible to make rooms appear larger. 5. Take down or rearrange certain pictures or objects on walls. Patch and paint if necessary. 6. Review the inside of the house room by room, and:

Paint any room needing paint.

Clean carpets or drapes that need it.

Clean windows. 7. If you need room to store extra possessions use the garage or rent a storage unit. 8. Leave on certain lights during the day. During "showings" turn on all lights and lamps. 9. Have stereo FM on during the day for all viewings. OUTSIDE: 1. Go around the perimeter of the house and move all garbage cans, discarded wood scraps, extra building materials, etc., into the garage. 2. Check gutters for roof moss and dry rot. Make sure they are swept and cleaned. 3. Look at all plants... prune bushes and trees. Keep plants from blocking windows. "YOU CAN'T SELL A HOUSE IF YOU CAN'T SEE IT." Plants are like children -- they grow so fast!! 4. Weed and then mulch all planting areas. Keep lawn freshly cut and fertilized. Remove and dead plants or shrubs. 5. Clear patios or decks of all small items. such as small planters, flower pots, charcoal, barbecues, toys. etc. (Put them in the garage or a storage unit.) 6. Check paint condition of the house -- especially the front door and trim. "CURB APPEAL REALLY WORKS!"