House Selling Tips – How to Stage an Occupied Home For Sale

House Selling Tips 1 - You need to think of your house as a marketable commodity. Your goal is to get others to see it as their potential home, not yours. If you do not consciously make this decision, you can inadvertently create a situation where it takes longer to sell your property. The first step in getting your home ready to sell is to depersonalize it. 

House Selling Tips 2 - When a potential homebuyer sees your family photos hanging on the wall, it puts your own brand on the home and momentarily shatters their illusions about living in the house themselves. Put away family photos, sports trophies, collectible items, knick knacks, and souvenirs. 

House Selling Tips 3 – Clutter collects on shelves, counter tops, drawers, closets, garages, attics, and basements and remove it. You want as much open clear space as possible, so every extra little thing needs to be cleared away. 

House Selling Tips 4 – The kitchen is a good place to start removing clutter, because it is an easy place to start. First, get everything off the counters everything, even the toaster. Put the toaster in a cabinet and take it out when you use it. Find a place where you can store everything in cabinets and drawers. 

House Selling Tips 5 - Designate the room adjoining the kitchen as the Family Room. Emphasize the Kitchen and Family Room, with open flow, bright energetic colors and warm, relaxed textures. Make sure the space can accommodate food prep, eating, playing, relaxing, homework (kids AND adults). 

House Selling Tips 6 – Many people have too much furniture in certain rooms – not too much for your own personal living needs – but too much to give the illusion of space that a homebuyer would like to see. Observe how other builders place furniture in their models so you get some ideas on what to remove and what to leave in your house. 

House Selling Tips 7 – Your lawn should be evenly cut, freshly edged, well watered, and free of brown spots. If there are problems with your lawn, you should probably take care of them before working on the inside of your home. 

House Selling Tips 8 – The back yard should be tidy. If you have a pool or spa, keep it freshly maintained and constantly cleaned. For those that have dogs, be sure to constantly keep the area clear of debris. Your back yard has to appear as spacious as possible, especially in newer homes where the yards are not as large. 

House Selling Tips 9 – When choosing a color, it should not be something garish and unusual, but a color that fits well in your neighborhood. Of course, the color also depends on the style of your house, too. 

House Selling Tips 10 – Deep clean the whole house, every nook and cranny. Paint anything that does not come up clean. Polish every item, especially wood floors, and metallic surfaces, that could gleam, glow and reflect light.