Interior Staging Tips

Staging a home while it is for sale can lead to more potential home buyers, a higher sale price, and fewer days on the market. These staging tips can help anyone trying to sell a home.  

Living Room

The living room is where a family spends a lot of time together relaxing, so the ultimate goal of staging a living room is to present a relaxing atmosphere. Furniture placement in the living room is essential. All too often home owners load the living room up with too much furniture. Allowing for more open space creates the relaxing atmosphere that buyers are looking for. Families traditionally have painted living rooms in neutral colors. This does not mean that home owners cannot get creative in the living room, however. Some staging experts suggest that owners hang wall art at differing heights and locations. Do not forget the accent pieces. The living room is a great place to display flowers from the garden, connecting the interior of the home to the exterior.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms can sometimes provide the greatest challenges in staging a house for sale, but they also provide the greatest amount of options. Just like the living room, bedrooms should look relaxing. Unlike the living room, dark paint can be used in a bedroom, but only if done so correctly. One reason why most real estate agents and professional stagers tend to stay away from darker colors is because they can make a room appear smaller than it actually is. This is not as problematic in a bedroom where these dark colors can increase the perception of intimacy and coziness. Using a darker color on an accent wall works great as well, but sellers should pick the colors carefully. All bedrooms need to look inviting. It is suggested that soft colors be used for linens, and they should match the walls.

Bathrooms

The key to bathroom staging is cleanliness. Make sure that everything is as clean as possible, including the grout. There should never, ever be cracked tiles either. Some home owners have even retiled the entire bathroom, though reglazing existing tiles can have a great effect at a much cheaper price. Great bathroom accent pieces include towels, baskets, and candles.

Kitchen

Cleanliness is the critical word in staging a kitchen as well. Buyers are looking for kitchens that are neat and organized. More than any other room, an updated kitchen can have a serious impact on the sale of a home. Sellers do not need to pay lots of money to completely renovate the kitchen though. It is much cheaper to replace cabinet doors, drawers, drawer fronts, and hardware than to install brand new cabinets. New countertops add a lot to the kitchen. Some buyers have bought, or decided not to buy, a property based in part on the addition of granite countertops in the home.  New appliances are also a great addition. Studies show that home owners earn their money back and then some when they buy new appliances for the kitchen. One important thing to remember about stainless steel is to keep it clean!

Next week we will look at exterior staging tips. As always, if you have any question related to real estate, feel free to contact Realtor Ryan Guilmartin at 617-852-0040 or ryan.guilmartin@gmail.com