Unless you’re a qualified interior decorator, or a layman with a real knack for design, if you’re planning to sell your home, hiring a professional to stage it for viewing is a relatively small outlay which could reap substantial financial rewards. We all think we have exceptional taste in home décor, but one person’s tacky kitsch is another another’s design nirvana, and there are good reasons why people pay for the expertise of a qualified interior designer.
Creating an Emotional Connection
A home is not simply a box which shelters us from the weather, it needs to be a haven from the outside world. A house purchase will also be the most expensive outlay in a person’s life, so it is vital that your home makes prospective buyers feel something. They need to be able to picture themselves living in every room, so it’s important that each one is staged just right: warm and inviting, but neutral enough for prospective owners to feel like they could make it their own.
On that note, the majority of people don’t have as much imagination as we give them credit for! This is why it can be problematic to sell a house when it’s empty, as it’s so difficult for the average buyer to see themselves living in it. Where will their dining table go? How many items does the pantry take? Will the three-piece sofa fit inside the TV room?
Home staging goes beyond mere cosmetic adjustments. Every part of your house should elicit a positive emotion in your prospective buyer, from the gorgeous well-stocked pantry to the luxurious bathroom, the sun-drenched patio or the stylish dining area, you want them to visualise themselves in these spaces, going about their day to day lives.
Attractive, well-placed furniture will make your home infinitely more appealing, it answers questions before they’ve been asked, and nobody needs to know that it was placed there by your home staging team!
Maximising Space and Hiding Flaws
A good home stager will emphasise the good and disguise the bad. A well-placed mirror to reflect light and increase space can work wonders in a too-small room for instance, and although this sleight of hand is a trick as old as time, it really does work! A beautiful rug will not only soften a room, it can also disguise any flaws in your floor or carpet, and the same thing goes with judiciously-placed art on your walls.
Your home staging team will also remove clutter and any unappealing furniture, which is far easier to do when there are no emotions involved. You might feel quite strongly that your great-grandmother’s collection of ceramic figurines should be the first thing people see as they walk in the door. We know that you’ll be better served by a stylish rug and a funky sideboard from Nood.
While personal things such as family photos will be kept to a minimum, it is also important that your house looks like a home, not a stark white set of boxes linked together by a hallway. It’s always a juggling act between a house looking cosy and inviting or it being too cluttered and lived-in for anyone else to imagine residing there, and that’s where a professional home stager is worth their weight in gold.
With an ever-revolving collection of furniture items on hand, your home stager will always be able to work in with your existing colour scheme – although they may encourage you to consider painting over a particularly niche feature wall! Neutral walls go with everything and will also allow for pops of colour and texture, giving us more leeway with our collection of soft furnishings and fixtures. Until recently it was thought that an all-white interior was the best way to attract buyers, but these days a much wider range of neutrals are having their time in the sun, and we’re all for it. Think soft dove greys, warm creamy tones, or elegant shades of taupe.
Nowadays, tiles and wallpaper designs are so incredibly stylish and appealing that it is common to walk into a bathroom and be met with a riotous jungle print, and we’re okay with that, as long as it’s done properly. Touches like this actually give your home a bit of personality, just don’t pair your colourful walls with reams of mismatched furniture and knick knacks, as the effect will be jarring.
Making a Great First Impression
The main thing to be aware of when you’re putting your house on the market, is that first impressions are everything, and you only have a few seconds to make the right one. The majority of people will see your home online before they get anywhere near the front door, so staging should take place prior to the photographer coming in, and remember, you’re competing with hundreds of other vendors, so your photos need to really pop.
Remember, your professional home stager has been through this process hundreds of times. We really can take an enormous amount of stress out of home selling, to the point where some of our clients have started to second-guess themselves. As one of our happy customers once remarked, “When I saw the bedrooms, I said I could move back in!”
Call Jayne and the team at The Finishing Touches on 021 882 379 today for a price quote and property assessment, and find out how home staging can get your house moving faster in a sluggish market. You’ll wonder why you didn’t call us earlier!