Home Staging to Sell
By Sue Meadow
Photo: © Stephen Coburn / Dreamstime
 Staging a home for sale can work wonders to entice interest from buyers. Unlike more traditional interior decorating geared towards a homeowner's tastes, the objective of staging is to appeal to home buyers. It works!
Staging a room involves: cleaning, defining its purpose, arranging furnishings, emphasizing light and space, and adding appeal with color and other eye-catching means.
Clean Thoroughly - To start, clean the room thoroughly, including closets, valances, windows and mirrors. Remove any worn furnishings (except for antiques). Remove as much of the remaining items as possible.
Define a Rooms Main Purpose - Once you have decided on the rooms purpose, e.g., dining, nursery, home office, or storage, remove anything that does not directly relate to that purpose.
Arrange the Furnishings - Dining chairs should be placed around the table, a sofa turned to face armchairs with a coffee table between them, and lamps to the chair sides for reading. |
Beware of furniture that is too large for the space. It can make a room look crowded. Model homes are often furnished with undersize items to encourage a sense of spaciousness.
Emphasize Light - Open curtains and turn on lamps. Use tall furnishings near short and low furniture to avoid visually cutting the room in half.
Use Color - Choose one definite strong color in each room to use in accents, such as bath towels, pillows and rugs. If the other tones in the room are neutral, the color accent will add a friendly appeal.
Designate a Focal Point in the Room - Direct attention to the focal point by using color and furniture grouping. If the room lacks a focal point, such as a window or fireplace, create one by adding a colorful floral arrangement, eye-catching rug or wall hanging.
When all rooms are done, walk through the house, looking for anything overlooked or omitted. Double-check the front door and entryway; these are easy areas to omit. When the staging work is complete the house is ready to appeal to buyers. |
