Stage your Home When It's Time to Move

You may have heard that it is a good idea to stage your home when you are ready to make a move. Professional real estate agents will tell you that staging your home can help you sell more quickly, and it may even help you get the price you have in mind.

What is Staging?

If you are like most people, you have probably heard the term staging but you may not know exactly what it means. When you are ready to welcome home buyers, you will want to present your home in the best possible light-and that means staging.

Staging is not the same as decorating. Decorating is all about you and your family. When you decorate your home, you make your home more comfortable and attractive for the people who live there. Decorating means giving your home a personal touch using the colors you love, the furniture you enjoy and the decorative items you want to surround you.

Staging is different. When you are getting ready to put your house on the market, you want to make your home attractive to potential homebuyers. Your goal is to present your home in a way that allows buyers to imagine themselves living there. You will want your home to appeal to the majority of lookers who come to see your home.

Staging with Color

Before you begin, look at your home from the point of view of the buyer. When it comes to colors, you want to make sure that your house will appeal to the widest range of homebuyers. You might love that fuchsia accent wall, but it may not appeal to most people. The best recommendation is to use shades of neutral tones like beige, gray, black and white.

Tell a Story

When you stage your home you are telling the story of what it would be like to live there. That means creating little vignettes that show home buyers how they might use the space. Set the dining room table, create conversational seating areas with sofas, chairs and tables, and carve out an entertainment space with a TV console or an entertainment unit.

If you have a spare room, show that it can be used as a home office by including a desk and other home office furniture. Consider a sofa bed so the room can become a guest bedroom when necessary.

Don't Forget the Patio

More and more, people love outdoor living. You may want to replace your outdoor patio furniture if it is worn and dated. In today's world there are plenty of options to choose from, like outdoor sofas with performance material cushions, firepit tables and dining sets.