7 Tips for Staging Your Home to Sell

Selling your home is no easy feat. So we partnered with home stager Tori Toth, author of ‘FEEL AT HOME: Home Staging Secrets for a Quick and Easy Sell‘, to share a few tricks of the trade on our lifestyle blog today! This way, wether you or a friend is ready to sell, you can do so painlessly. And even if you aren’t looking to sell, Tori will inspire you to refresh your home and do some spring cleaning. Here are her 7 tips for staging your home to sell:

The Exterior

Photo via Proven Winners

1) Play up the front entry. Welcome home buyers to your front door by power washing the walkway and entry for a fresh, clean look. Add colorful seasonal flowers or potted plants near the front door to create a focal point on a dreary day. Don’t forget to replace the welcome mat too, if you’ve had it out all winter long.

Photo via Pompeli

2) Front door allure. Repaint or stain the front door to freshen up it’s finish after old man winter’s fury. Heavy storms, salt and soggy weather can make paint chip and stain fade. Choose a color that will stand out among other entry’s on your block and place a spring wreath on the door, by using a section cup or command hook, as a finishing touch to create a warm and welcoming feel.

3) Spruce up hardware. Winter weather can wear on metal materials like house numbers, mailboxes, light fixtures, even fences and door knobs. So, assess your home’s exterior hardware if it looks worn consider spray painting the items (all in one finish) or replace the item.

Photo via Ballard Designs

4) Have a seat. In the winter, outdoor seating areas are shrink-wrapped or stored away. Bring these areas back to life by restoring these conversation areas, clean them thoroughly and replace what didn’t weather the season. Make sure to dress these areas up with pillows, throws, seasonal flowers and open up the umbrella to show how buyers could entertain in this living area.

Photo via A Beautiful Mess

The Interior

Photo via King Living

1) Buyers love to see light and bright spaces. Sellers can easily accomplish this by choosing light paint colors, removing old blinds and heavy curtains, and washing the windows. Also, during an open house always make sure all the lights are on in each room, if there isn’t ample light.

Photo via The Sill

2) Spring clean. Time to air out the house to remove stale smells, dust and germs. Make sure to clean all surfaces from the ceiling to the floor, get behind furniture and open up windows to let the fresh air in after winter’s slumber. We spend so much time in our home’s during the winter months that we can get used to smells, clutter and even dirt which can be a deal breaker when selling.

Photo via The Front Steps

Photo via Consort Design

3) Replace seasonal decor. Many times homeowners forget to change their décor for each season. Be mindful when on the market use a few accessories and colors to embrace the spring season.  Also make sure they’ve taken down Christmas lights and holiday décor, you’d be surprised how many people leave them on display.