How to Prepare Your Home for Staging

To get the best possible price for your home it’s a good idea to hire a professional home stager. However, there are still many things you can do by yourself to prepare your house for the market. Tackling the minor projects on your own before the staging professional even arrives will make their job easier and save you time and money.

Here are some home staging basics you can easily DIY:

De-Clutter Furniture

While the general idea of cleaning and de-cluttering your home for staging might seem obvious, it might be less obvious to carry that concept through to your furniture. Unless you already have a very minimalist design style it’s likely you have at least one furniture piece in each room that you can remove to create more space. Things like end tables, shelf units and sometimes even seating can be removed and stored to make your rooms feel bigger instantly. Make sure you keep enough of the basics to be comfortable but not crowded.

Organize Closets

Closet space is a huge selling point of your home. No matter how much clothing storage you actually have, it’s crucial to make it look like you have more. The easiest way to do so is to organize and partially empty your closets. Don’t take out all of your clothes, but leave some empty spaces to highlight the amount of usable space. Many staging professionals recommend removing half of everything in your closet and putting it into storage. If your closet still looks full, repeat the process until you have more room. Another great tip is to replace plastic hangers with more elegant wooden or metal hangers for the clothes you keep in the closet.

Add White Bathroom Linens

One of the easiest ways you can dress up your bathroom for staging is to add white linens. Stow away your personal towels and washcloths and replace with plain white. They don’t have to be expensive, but the idea is to brighten the space and create the same feeling as walking into the bathroom in a fancy hotel. White towels and other bathroom dressings create a sense of luxury and refinement while also creating a blank slate for potential buyers to imagine their own belongings in the bathroom.

Remove Personal Items

The key thing to remember when staging your home is that you’re trying to get buyers to imagine themselves living there. The easiest way to do this is to hide away personal items and decoration. Family photos, trophies and awards, sports or media memorabilia and anything else that’s personally identifying should be put away to avoid causing distraction or conflicts of taste. In doing this you might simultaneously accomplish a lot of necessary de-cluttering, but if you need to replace these removed items, opt for more bland and neutral decor like nature photography or artwork. Match the overall aesthetic and color scheme of the room but don’t detract from it. Remember that you’re trying to sell the home, not the decorations.

With these basics taken care of, you’re well on your way to having a market-ready home. A professional home stager can help you with any finishing touches or issues you might have missed, but these tips will give you an excellent foundation for getting the best price for your home.