When you first move in to your home you want to make it yours. You paint it the colours you like, you add personal photographs and your furniture is positioned to suit your lifestyle. But when it comes time to sell your home, you need to think about presenting your home’s best features and assets and to make it appealing to as many potential purchasers as possible.

Here are the top tip to make your home looks its best before your first open house:

1. Clean up!

Make sure the house is clean. Bathrooms, the kitchen and floors. It might seem like a lot of work but if you want top dollar for your home you cannot afford to “turn off” the guests at your open house. It is also really important to deodorize  your house especially if you have pets!

2. De-clutter!

Throughout our daily life we all accumulate clutter – the pile of bills, our bottles of vitamins on the bathroom countertop, small appliances on the kitchen countertop and stacks of papers and files in our home office, but it is so important to remove all of this clutter. Clutter makes any space feel much smaller and seeing as purchasers are likely looking for a larger space or at least a space that appears larger, you want to make sure your home feels spacious.

3. Repair!

It is important to fix any repairs in the home. A cracked tile or a leaky faucet can tarnish the image of your home. Remember you want to present your home at its absolute best! A buyer will pay top dollar for a property that has done the ‘leg’ work on getting the home in tip-top shape.  Small repairs send a message to the buyers (and their agent) that there could be bigger issues beneath the surface and it will impact their offer (if they make one).

4. Colour!

It is not necessary for everyone to re-paint their home before your realtor takes photos for the listing but you might want to consider painting if…your house has not been painted in about 10 years, if your home is currently painted in really bright or intense coulours such as deep reds or bright lime green, or if your walls are in bad shape. A fresh coat of paint can make a home feel clean and if you select the right tone, larger. Tones to look at should have a LRV (light reflective value) of 50 or higher. Stick with neutrals – a home stager can help you pick the right colour of paint.  Yo want one that will lighten and brighten but also one that will work with the light and the existing finishes in the home.

5. Furniture!

You want to make sure your furniture is clean so remove or cover stains and get rid of the pet hair – it just looks so much better. The positioning of the furniture is also very important and this is where you might want to get the help and advice from a professional. Just re-positioning or re-purposing your furniture pieces can make a huge impact. The way we place our furniture pieces can make a room look large or small and remember when it comes to selling your home, bigger is better!

6. De-personalize!

This can be the toughest tip to follow especially if it is your family home you are leaving. When people come to tour through your home at the open house, it is important that they can see themselves living in your home and that can be hard with your family photos and memories all over the home. Just think of this part as pre-packing for your move and you’ll see your photos again soon in your new home.

How do I get in touch with a home stager? Some real estate teams have stagers on staff, such as the Bennett Property Shop, offer the services of a stager to their clients. They will even have the stager prep your home for the professional photographer so your listing photos look their absolute best!

The process of staging can seem like a lot of work but it is worth it. Staged homes sell faster and for more money!