Whew! That was easy, now for the hard part :)
I've heard it said a buyer makes the decision to purchase a home (or not) within the first 30 seconds. That means you need to impress them immediately! Try using a technique we like to call "shake it off." Step outside your front door, close it, take a deep breath and imagine you are a buyer walking in for the first time. What do you notice right away? If you see clutter, too much empty space or hand prints on the walls you've got some work to do.
When we stage a home, we like to create that "wow factor" as soon as the front door is open. We want buyers to be drawn into the house with smiles on their faces. Since every house is different, it would be impossible for me to tell you exactly how you are going to do this, but a few guidelines will help.
First, clean, clean, clean. The floors, the walls, the furniture, the light fixtures, the blinds, the....I think you get the picture. If it can't be cleaned, paint it, replace it, or remove it.
Next, pare down the "stuff". This is the hardest thing for most people. Everybody has stuff and everybody loves their stuff. The problem is, potential buyers will often focus on your stuff - family photo walls, doll collections, etc and forget to look at your house. They will leave talking about all the trophies you won in college or your elephant collection and not even realize those items were sitting on a beautiful mantle above a gorgeous stone fireplace.
Most people lack creativity when it comes to furniture arrangement and placement of artwork and accessories. This is where a professional home stager comes in handy. An experienced stager should be able to help you make the most of your exisiting possesions and if you just don't have much, they can bring in a few items to augment what you do have.
If you choose to "stage-it-yourself" try rearranging the furniture to showcase the room's greatest asset. It could be a fireplace, a large window, a beautiful view, an achitectural element or the size of the room. You may need to remove unnecessary furniture or bring a piece or two in from another room. We once consulted with a client who had about 8 small side tables (no joke) and 4 or 5 chairs in a very small living room. They never even noticed this fact until we pointed it out. A lot of times less is more. And please, please, please, replace those flat, dingy, outdated pillows on your sofa. You can purchase a few inexpensive throw pillows which is a great way to bring in color and make a room feel fresh (this goes for bedrooms as well).
Now start adding artwork. Keep it simple and cohesive. Too many small pieces give a cluttered look, don't be afraid to use one large piece instead. Framed mirrors are usally safe and can help a small room seem bigger. Try to create a "theme". Look around the rest of the house for inspiration. If you have a few paintings, large photos or other images of similar things - mountains or palm trees, birds or the ocean - use them to build your theme around. If you have more modern art, take inspiration from the colors and shapes. Add a large plant to an empty corner, a lamp or two for ambiance, and a few well-selected table accent pieces.
Viola! You've done it.
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