The home staging industry is one of the fastest-growing professions in the world of luxury homes, especially in the Rancho Cucamonga real estate market. Every year, more and more people choose to become qualified home stagers and interior decorators committed to presenting the inside and outside of luxury homes in the most visually pleasing manner.
But besides the fact that staged homes sell faster than those which haven’t, it’s entirely possible for homeowners to achieve similar results on their own. Here are a few expert tips for staging your house effectively. Let’s get started!
Be a pro cleaner
The first step to staging your Rancho Cucamonga real estate in a way that will attract the maximum amount of interest, whether via online listing photos or in-person open house tours, is to ensure that the property is perfectly clean. Of course, it’s not possible to sanitize 100% of the house. But you can do your part by hiring professional floor and carpet cleaners, going over every surface with a duster and cleaning solution, and eliminating pet and food odors.
Choose the right paint colors
Next, you’ll want to carefully consider whether it’s worth your time and money to redo the paint schemes on your walls. Ideally, each room’s paint color should reflect the kind of function and activities that occur there. Living rooms, foyers, and entertaining areas are best displayed with warm bright colors that invite sociality and conversation while bedrooms are better left for cool, darker tones. Bathrooms need to reflect light, so bright glossy white paint is best, and the kitchen can be a place for experimentation and a great room in which to try out adventurous and whimsical color palettes.
Declutter and de-personalize
Once you’re sure that the home is as clean as can be, it’s time to simplify the design. The first step is to de-personalize the living spaces by removing personal items, photos, artwork, and toys. Guests to your open house prefer not to see a lot of evidence of the past owners of the home. Instead, clear away as much of your personal life from the walls, tables, and bookshelves so your future buyer can better imagine what their life will be like at home.
Balance open concept with comfort
Today’s high-end real estate buyers and investors no longer put such a high value on owning property that’s exclusively open concept like they did in the early 2000s. Instead, modern buyers prefer that their luxury homes offer them the ability to enjoy the functionality of each room independently. That means you should try to emphasize the comfort factor in the bedroom, sitting rooms, and dens. The home office should be efficient with plenty of space to move around, while the bedroom should remain more comfortable and full of warm, inviting textures.
Complete last-minute repairs
In the last few weeks before you officially list your home for sale, you have the opportunity to complete any last-minute repairs and home improvement projects that you may have neglected to do in the past. Focus on completing smaller-scale repairs that only need a DIY approach rather than large-scale projects that require you to contact a construction team or contractor.
Ask yourself which home improvements will impact potential buyers the most. A dripping faucet, broken gutter, or damaged wall can be easily fixed in a day. Squeaky hinges or scratched doorways are also common must-do DIY projects that don’t take much time.
Don’t forget the front and backyard
Potential buyers are going to first encounter your home from the perspective of the outside. Real estate agents generally order listing photos with the view of the facade of the home first, and in that picture, your buyers will also see the landscaping. Staging the home also includes staging the front and backyard. Pick up any excess tools or lawn furniture before you trim the grass and cut back overgrown tree limbs. Spread fertilizer at least two weeks before taking listing photos to maximize the greenery in your yard and consider planting fresh annuals around the border of the house to better frame the picture.
Accent with pops of color
Heading back inside the house, it’s important to create a sense of balance and contrast with the colors, textures, and furniture in each room. The best way to achieve this visually pleasing effect is by using select accent pieces. These can be large floral arrangements that feature a color that pops against the color of the walls. Place a striking throw rug on the floor to draw the eye to all the open space or vary the textures of your curtains, couches, and chairs to create a sense of rhythm along the windows.
Reorganize furniture
Speaking of furniture, it’s also part of the job of the homestager to creatively arrange the furniture in the house in a visually appealing way. This task doesn’t take long if done effectively, but it is somewhat of an art. Your room layouts can be as eccentric or as conventional as you want as long as you’re consistent.
You can offset the open space of an open-concept ground floor by angling sofas and sectionals along the diagonal. Encourage natural light to strike bright surfaces by moving mirrors or reflective tables to different areas of the room, and consider moving the TV to a more out-of-the-way position.
Reach out to a local real estate agent today
We hope that our guide to home staging will help you better display the features of your house that make it unique to a luxury buyer. If you have any questions about staging your home yourself, or you’d like to learn more about Rancho Cucamonga real estate, get in touch today! Contact Human Element for more information.
