The Home Decor Genie!

Staging Your Home to Sell? Make your rooms more gender-neutral!  If you want to appeal to more potential buyers, you don’t want to appear too feminine.  Here are some tips to make your rooms more “man-friendly!”

Rich wood and masculine colors in this corner home office

• Use plain, neutral-colored fabrics.  Minimize patterns and florals that appeal more to women.  Use natural, woodsy, or basic colors.  Cover your furniture with slip covers to save money.
• Get rid of the frills in the room.  No lace or filmy curtains.  Pack up the cute, ruffly or fancy throw pillows.  Take down the wall art that isn’t neutral.
• Create simple lines and more open space.  Don’t crowd furniture into your rooms.  Less is more when it comes to home staging  – or home decorating for that matter!
• Get rid of the clutter and collections.  All that cute, collectible stuff sitting around may mean something to you, but potential buyers will either be distracted by it or they will be overwhelmed by it!

As I always say, “when staging your home, simple is better!”  Start your packing and clear out the rooms.  A little furniture and even less personal stuff in the home is better for getting your home sold!

Want more help with staging your home?  Get my new e-book: Stage Your Home Yourself – Insiders Secrets That Will Get It  SOLD! 

So, why should you stage your home to sell? 

Real estate agents, home stagers and decorators know what sells and what doesn’t so you’ll want to listen and take their advice.

Here are 7 of the top reasons that home staging will pay off for you:

1. First of all, first impressions stick.  Do you know that people make a decision in the first 5 minutes of seeing your home?  That doesn’t give you much time to “WOW” them or explain why you haven’t seeded the lawn.  Or why you haven’t fixed the front door.  Your agent’s goal is to get them inside and show them around your house.  If the outside, or curb appeal isn’t good, they may never even go inside!
   

   A cute little entry scenario with a birdbath and planter of irises

2. Buyers shop online.  Today, approximately 80% of all homebuyers start with the Internet.  They start looking in the privacy of their own homes and their agent may give them access to a search program that lets them narrow down their search by what they see online.  So, you can see where great-looking photos will either make or break your home’s chances of being seen.  Stage your home before you take the photos!  This is your customer’s first look and it has to look good!  If you’ve already put your home on the market, insist that your real estate agent re-take photos after it’s been staged!  Even if you have to pay for these, it will be worth it because a picture really is worth a thousand words!
3. Buyers buy on emotion.  Do you remember when you bought your home?  Most likely you bought your home because you fell in love with it, and if you’re not a “do-it-yourself type of person,” you wanted a home that was ready to go!  Like you, most people have strong visual attractions to certain homes.  If you play up your home’s best points, many people will choose your house because of what it does have and overlook what it doesn’t have!

4. 

   Stage Your Home Yourself

   You’ll get more money for your home.  Don’t you want the most money you can get for your home?  Realtors know that certain features will help you sell your house.  Kitchens are big.  Bathrooms are important.  Lots of space and lots of storage help sell homes.  So, give your home an edge and play up its good points.  So, what if you don’t have large, roomy bathrooms?  Or your kitchen is a little out of date?  Follow the guidelines in my ebook to enhance your space, find more storage and show people why your house is their next home.

5. A well staged home will keep you more sane during the selling and moving process!  Sounds crazy?  Well, we all know that having your home on the market is stressful.  You have to be ready at a moments notice to show it and if you’re at work when the realtor calls and wants to bring someone by, your home may not be in showing condition.  Don’t lose a sale just because you didn’t have your home in top shape.
6. Your home will sell faster than un-staged homes.  If your home is “move-in” ready, it will appeal to more buyers than a home that needs paint, repairs, carpet, yard work and so on.  Unless you want to sell your home for lowest dollar to an investor, home staging will pay off in the long run.
7. And one more point in favor of home staging, you start your packing early! 
   

   Country bedroom with white drapes

   Pare it down to just the basics and your house is easier to clean, easier to find storage, and easier to make ready when it’s show time!  Now doesn’t that sound better just thinking about it?

Whether you use a professional home stager , opt for Virtual Home Staging, or do it yourself, home staging makes a lot of sense when selling your home.  Most people would rather find a home that is “move-in” ready, so give them what they’re looking for!!