During the seller’s market, many sellers thought they could sell their house no matter what shape it is in. But even in a hot market, it’s difficult to sell a broken, rundown, messy house and it doesn’t take much to make your house look presentable.
You often hear that it’s better to sell an occupied house than an empty one, but that depends. If you’re going to try to sell your house while it’s occupied, you need to “stage” it. This means you decorate and present your house as if it was a model home. That means clearing out the clutter, getting rid of furniture that doesn’t make the most of each room, and cleaning it from top to bottom, including underneath the sinks and the shower stall.
So if all repairs have been made and you’ve hired a professional cleaner, what then? Is your house ready to show? Probably not. If you haven’t put away your personal items that tell the potential buyer that this house belongs to somebody else, then you should move out of it. An empty house is more attractive than a house that looks like it’s lived in. Potential buyers want to imagine their furniture and their belongings in the house.
Here are some tips that professional designers use when decorating a model home:
- Check the curb appeal. The potential buyer may not even get out of the car if the yard and front of the house don’t look appealing. Get rid of the lawn chair on the front porch.
- Display fewer pieces of furniture than you normally would use to live in. Less furniture makes the rooms look larger. Never mind that there’s no TV in the living room. Add mirrors and display knick knacks and pictures in groups of one, three, or five.
- Put away those countertop appliances. The counters should be free of everything but an attractive basket with fruit, a bottle of wine with wine glasses, or kitchen décor such as an artificial plant.
- Replace your king-sized bed with a queen-sized or double-bed if the room is small. You can pack up the king-sized bed and put the guest bed in the master bedroom. Decorate the guest bedroom as an office. Each room should have an obvious purpose.
- Get rid of that back cushion in the bath tub. There’s nothing worse than seeing evidence that somebody before you has ever used the tub that you plan to soak in. And put the toilet lid down. If a potential buyer wants to inspect the toilet, they can lift it up themselves. In the meantime, the bathroom looks much more attractive and welcoming.
- Add spa accessories to the bathroom. Towels tied with ribbons, scented soaps, lotions and other decorative jars and/or candle add to the bathroom spa-like experience.
- Don’t forget the backyard. Add potted plants and/or flowers to the patio or set the picnic table with festive-looking settings.
Lighting and scents are also important. Decorate as if you were setting a stage. A potential buyer will be drawn to your house and will be soon dreaming of buying your house and living there.