Staging helps a buyer to imagine living in your home

You’ve cleaned up the clutter, repaired the broken window pane, and given the exterior a fresh coat of paint. What’s left before putting your home on the market? 

Staging. Whether you’re selling a studio condo or a high-end residence, every home benefits from staging. Here’s why. 

Not every buyer shares your taste in furnishings, art, and décor. The photos of your family vacation will not endear a potential buyer. On the contrary, personal photos can leave a buyer feeling like she’s intruding. She might enjoy the photos but she won’t connect with your home. 

Staging neutralizes your home and creates living spaces that a prospective buyer can imagine herself living in. According to the National Association of Realtors, staging helps your home sell faster and command a higher price.

So, how do you depersonalize a home? Start with these simple guidelines:

• Remove furnishings with a distinctive style; replace with furniture that doesn’t demand attention.

• Remove personal photos; your kids are beautiful but they won’t help your house sell.

• Remove knickknacks, travel memorabilia and personal effects.

• Avoid trying to sell an empty home; empty homes seem smaller, making it difficult to gauge the use of space.

• Stage an open floor plan or unique layout to show buyers how the space can be used.

• Not every room needs to be staged; focus on the main living spaces and the master suite.

Ready to consider staging?

Before putting your home on the market, let’s talk. At the least, we’ll help you explore options. Susan is an interior designer and staging is one of the professional services provided by The Bradley Group. We can work with the furniture you already own or bring in furnishings. Sometimes staging is simply a matter of replacing a few pieces of outdated furniture with something more contemporary. Staging doesn’t have to be a big production, and the returns are worth it.