Staging Your Home to Get the Most Money

When staging your home for sale the goal is to remove enough of your style and personal effects to allow the possible buyers to visualize their own decor and style in the home.

Take a walk through your home and check for paint blemishes, stained carpet, blown light bulbs, dirty floors or counters and anything else that may need repaired, replaced or cleaned. Make a list of items that needs done.

Painting is the best place to start. If you have unusual colors or chips out of your paint you will need to repaint or repair the walls. Choose neutral colors when repainting.

Make sure that all of your light bulbs are working and that every room is well lit. You can add some lamps to enhance the look of a room and make it appear larger.

Remove all personal pictures from your walls and stands and replace them with art. You don’t want the would-be buyer to get wrapped up in your personal life or envision your children running around the house instead of their own.

Clean your bathroom from ceiling to floor. Make sure that your personal items aren’t in sight when you show the house. Clean or replace shower curtains, scrub the shower doors and bathtub. Put out some nice new towels and decorative soaps or candles. Check to see if your tile needs grouted or replaced. Replace any flooring that is to dirty to clean or dated.

Remove the coffee pot, toaster and other clutter form the kitchen counters that may make your would-be buyer feel as though the kitchen is smaller than it really is. Polish the wood cabinets, scrub the sink and clean out the refrigerator and dishwasher. Some buyers will look in your refrigerator or cabinets, as some buyers will actually open them to check them out. 

Put extra furniture, stained furniture, plastic plants, DVDs and unusual items in storage. Buy a few fresh, colorful pillows for the couch and some new rugs to brighten up spaces. Put some fresh flowers on the table and light a few candles. Turn on lamps for ambient lighting and pop some cookies in the oven a half hour before the showing so you can put them out for your potential buyers and make the kitchen smell inviting. If you have a home theatre you can put in a movie to show off the surround sound or pop popcorn and place in the room. Be sure to accent anything that is unique or special about your home and make it stand out to attract as much attention as you possibly can.