You've heard the saying "You never get a second chance to make a great first impression"?  If you are selling your home, or will be shortly, you need to take that little saying to heart. Let me share with you my top staging mistakes to avoid in hopes that you'll apply what you've read today and be on your way to a successful sale!

Staging Mistake #1:  BAD MLS Photos

Did you know that over 85% of buyers are looking on the Internet first to find a home? First Impressions start here folks! How do your photos look?  I am amazed when working with sellers that have had their home on the market with another Realtor®  that they hadn’t even bothered to take a look at their pictures online, or that their Realtor®  didn’t even show them! I think it didn't even occur to them that this is a critical marketing tool that pulls those buyers in.

I see poor photos all the time. Blurry. Tilted. Dark. Cluttered. Busy. Boring. The worst is only seeing a small portion of the room. Buyer’s don’t care what the sellers BED looks like...what about the room? They want to see everything in the room in one shot.

GREAT PHOTOS are a must! Professional Photography makes all the difference in capturing buyers attention and getting them in the door. Great photos capture ALL of the room, have good color and clarity and show interesting angles of each room. Make sure YOU have at least 15 photos advertising YOUR home on the Internet/MLS.  Buyer's really want to see as much of the home as possible.

Staging Mistake #2:  Disappointing Curb Appeal

When selling your home, don't disappoint your buyer!  When they pull up to the front of your home, they carry with them their hopes and dreams that this home could be the one!  Shouldn't you do whatever you can to impress these buyers so they will want to come in for a closer look?

It's amazing how a freshly cut green lawn, trimmed trees, new mulch, shiny new fixtures, seasonal potted plants, and a fresh paint job on the front door can sing "Welcome Home" to your potential buyers. Doing these basics make all the difference! And don't forget a new “Welcome” mat and doorbell too. Believe it or not, these items get overlooked all the time.

 

Staging Mistake #3:  A Dirty, Cluttered House

 “The way you live in your home and the way you sell your home are two completely different things.”  Sellers can throw up their hands and say, "But I have to still live here!"  so remember...you're house is not YOUR home anymore.  

When you put your home on the market, it became a PRODUCT. In order to sell a product, it has to be packaged beautifully so it sells! Buyers expect to see an immaculate home with no visible signs of dirt, dust or hair.

It's no different when you go on vacation and you've decided to stay at a very nice hotel. You expect that when you walk into your room that the bed is made to perfection, everything is sparkling clean and they've even left you a little something that says "Welcome", right?  What if you walked into the bathroom and you spotted hair in the sink and you couldn't tell if the towels were used or not?  We’d be calling the front desk and demanding a new room!  

Buyers are really no different. Dazzle them with a sparkling clean and clutter free home to buy!  Clear away all your clutter so that the selling features in each room are highlighted and your home becomes the STAR, not the people that currently live there.

Staging Mistake #4:  Making Your Buyers Feel Like A Guest

When we walk into someone else's home and look around, we see their family photos and decor, and it is apparent that this is "their" home. Their personality is in every room and even if you squeezed your eyes shut and tried really hard to imagine living there, you just couldn't do it.  Trying to imagine your stuff over all their stuff is just impossible to do. This is how potential buyers feel when they walk into a home that is full of family photos and taste specfic decor. They immediately feel like a GUEST in your home and this is one mistake you don't want to make!

That’s why it is so important to pack away your family photos and neutralize each room to appeal to a broad range of buyers. This also includes collections, religious items, personal awards and trophies, your family calendar and those fifty million magnets, invitations and "TO DO" lists from the refrigerator.

Don't forget your taste specfic decor as well. You may LOVE your kitchen bright yellow because it goes so well with your sunflower collection but it has got to be neutralized so buyers can SEE your kitchen with its 42" cabinets and corian countertops. They need to be able to visualize themselves cooking and entertaining in there!  

Staging Mistake #5:  Decor That Fails To Connect With Buyers

A homeowner has lived in their home for the past 15 years and the last time it was decorated was when they first moved in 1994. Outdated furniture and dried flower arrangements. Dated decor, empty rooms and random furniture pieces scattered throughout can make any house, no matter how nice the selling features, feel TIRED, DATED and OLD.

It’s amazing what a few key decorative items can do for a room too. You want buyers to have that same reaction...their eyes lighting up as they view the room… becoming more impressed as they tour the home.

One of the biggest misconceptions about staging is that you need tons of new furniture and decorative items to make your house look like a model home.  You can relax now when I tell you that it isn't true.

If you are living in your home while it is on the market, work with what you have, plus maybe a few new items with a minimum investment. That’s all you need. 

Consider working with a Professional Stager. They are experts at working with what you have using their creativity to re-purpose it and sometimes blending it with a few newer items. This gives older furniture and decor a fresh new look and feel. A few key accessories can make all the difference in highlighting a selling feature and breathing new life into a room!   Slipcovers, new pillows that pop color, updated lamps, a rug or some inexpensive window panels might be all that is needed to turn unimpressive decor into a fabulous new room that your buyers will love and connect to!

If your house is vacant or you have empty rooms because you never got around to buying that dining or living room set, you will want to consider options like renting furniture. Most Professional Stagers carry beautiful furnishings you can rent and will work within your budget.

Stage For A Successful Sale
Selling your home and getting it ready can be a pretty overwhelming task. That is stressful in and of itself. Did you know that working with a Professional Home Stager can take that stress away and let you focus on the other important things about your move like finding YOUR dream home?  They can create a staging plan for you that is unique to your property. You can have complete confidence in knowing that you will not be making any major staging mistakes with a Stager on your team while you sell your home!

If you would like a recommendation for staging your home,

please feel free to contact me: rhonda@rhondasrealestate.com.