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| Staging A Home For Sale |
So your house is up for sale. It's a good house, well-priced for
the neighborhood, and in decent repair. But nobody's buying.
What's wrong?
The fact is, you might be looking right past the problem. You've
lived in your house day in and day out, and you're accustomed to
it being, well, your house. It takes a leap of faith and
imagination to picture another family living within those
familiar rooms. If it's hard for you to imagine someone else
living in your house, then chances are, it's hard for potential
buyers to imagine living there, too.
A new fad sweeping America is called "house staging." This is,
essentially, "de-personalizing" a house. Staging means making
small changes to decor to make it easier for potential buyers to
imagine themselves |
and their possessions in the house. It's a
subtle skill, and it works.
Staging can be a difficult process if you're still living in the
home while you're showing it. But keep in mind that when it
sells, you're going to be moving anyhow. Take advantage of this
opportunity to start packing, and start with the things you use
the least but see the most: Your decorations. It might be a
little uncomfortable at first living in a house with stripped of
photographs and refrigerator magnets, but it's worth the effect
it will have on walk-throughs. When people see a house without
personal effects, it reminds them of a showroom or a model home,
and makes it easier for them to imagine their own belongings in
the rooms. Think about it: Would you, as a buyer, feel more |
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at
home in a living room crowded with photos of someone else's
kids, or a living room with clean walls and a vase of flowers on
the table? The former makes you feel like you're intruding. The
latter makes you feel the room's potential.
Speaking of walls, it's important to take a good look at your
color choices. For staging purposes, soothing neutrals are the
best choices for your walls. Although it's easy for a buyer to
paint the house once they move in, the psychological effect of
seeing paint colors that clash with their furniture or taste
could cost you a sale.
Finally, staging involves one other major step: See your rooms
in a new way. Just because your family has always had the
computer set up in one corner of the bedroom doesn't mean it |
has
to stay there. Do some experimenting and try putting the
computer in an alcove off the front door, or behind a dining
room wall. Create new, practical spaces with your furniture to
show buyers the potential in each room. Try placing a small sofa
or table and chair in the office and making it a sitting room
instead. All houses have plenty of possibilities. The trick is
finding the potential in your house, and displaying it in an
effective way so buyers will be excited about making those rooms
their own.
About the author:
Kirsten Hawkins is a real estate expert from Nashville, TN.
Visit http://www.king-of-real-estate.com/ for more information
on real estate, mortgages, and finding the house of your dream.
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