Stage Your Properties and Steal The Show!

What are some tips or suggestion when staging an investment to help maximize the marketing?

Some people can look at a property and see all the potential that it holds. A bad patch on the wall is actually the perfect place for a gorgeous antique mirror. An empty medium sized room is just the beginnings of a family room with pops of blue and silver decor. An overgrown front walk way is an inviting garden of newly mulched gardenias and lamb’s ears welcoming all future guests. 

Not everyone can mentally do this though. Not even my creative assistant possess the ability to see beauty in the rubble of a house. When she sees a small, plain white room with windows, thats exactly what she sees. She can’t take a room and redecorate it in her mind. This is why she relies heavily on the way the house is staged when she is marketing these properties. If I show her a beautifully staged room, then she will market this beautifully staged room with the thought process that it has all the beauty and potential that any homebuyer would want and need.

This is why we have to help others imagine the potential of the houses we are listing and selling. And even though not every seller has a decorators touch, there are a few simple and cheap steps to consider when preparing to list or show your investment properties, easy enough for anyone to do.

Detach yourself from the property

• Pack up family photos
• Put away memorabilia and hide personal keepsakes
• Turn heavily themed rooms into more neutral spaces

Add A Focal Point

• Add a bench and decorative pillows to your porch or any plain area of view
• Make the main entrance and foyer welcoming. Remove key holders, coat racks, shoe racks, etc. Keep everything clean and simple.

Market your Neighborhood

• If you live in an area that has a great restaurant near it, or its only 5 minutes from your nearest gas station and/or grocery store, let people know! Create a little list of all the attractions that you think would draw them to your home. This can be done on a small chalkboard which can be purchased at any craft store or simply on a catchy sheet of paper. 

*CLEAN* 
This is the most important thing to do. If you only have the time or energy to do one thing on this list, pick this task! It will make a huge difference in the way your home is viewed by others.

• Pick up trash, toys, clothes, etc. GET IT OUT OF THE EYE’S VIEW. You would think this is a no brainer but the amount of houses I’ve seen with clothes sitting in piles in rooms and bags of trash in yards is unreal.
• Clean all light fixtures and ceiling fans.
• Kitchen cabinets will be opened and examined. Be sure to organize and clean them and make it as appealing as possible.
• Add fresh flowers, scentsy (personal favorite), and candles to help create a homey feel and destroy any unwanted smells. 
• Pet odors are hard to hide. Try using baking soda and other pet cleaning devices to remove any odd smells from furniture and carpeting.
• Make sure your trash is taken out of the house (and don’t leave the bags sitting on the side of the house or street.) Take all trash to the nearest dumpster where it belongs.

Make the Room Feel Bigger

• Try to pack up each room by 30%. Not only will this make the room feel bigger but it will also give you less to pack when your house sells!
• Consider Renting a storage area for the bigger objects like exercise machines, bikes, extra chairs and furniture. The less random and unnecessary things you have sitting around, the more your home will actually look like a home and not like a hoarders nightmare.
• Remove all non-daily linens, sheets, and accessories from closets. By moving them you will  increase the appearance of storage space.
• Rearrange furniture to create a better flow of the room. Pick a focal point and work around that to make sure the buyer’s are drawn to it.

Other Tips

• Use neutral colors on the walls, but bring color to your property with furniture and decorations. You don’t want the property to be too loud or too weak. The easiest option is to keep walls neutral and add pops of color using pictures, flowers, fruit, etc.
• Brighter bulbs give a better appearance! You want to fill the house with at least 100 watt bulbs to make it look brighter and bigger. Make sure to replace all broken bulbs.
• Remove items from the kitchen counters such as coffee makers, toasters, microwaves, etc. These items take up space and crowd the view.
• Make sure features like the eat-in kitchen have chairs in place to show off all the potential of the new home.
• Set the dinner table and other tables/bars in the house. This helps buyers easily imagine living at the property.

Buyers love to see the many different ways that homes can be staged so we hope that you take just a few of these tips into consideration. If you have any additional staging tips that we didn’t include, let us know!
We are always looking for new ways to spice up our listings and investment properties. 
​
Happy Staging!