Thursday, August 19, 2021 / by Sushma Khinvasara
Staging an Empty House: How to Sell Fast
Photo by Max Vakhtbovych from Pexels
Are you in the market to sell your house? If so then home staging is the next big step you need to make. You would want your potential buyers to feel at home and imagine themselves living in the property. That will be a challenge if you are to show an empty house that gives a cold and dull look to the buyers. If they can't see themselves living there, they're not likely to purchase the home. Staging an empty house can cost you a lot of money, but will careful preparation, you can strike the balance between not leaving the house completely empty and not having it fully furnished either.
How to stage an empty house?
1. First, do an inventory
Make a list of home items you currently have and pieces that are missing. It could be a mirror, lamps, throw pillows, or area rugs. Once you find out what you still need to get, you can purchase these items and display it for the staging. To save money, buy furniture or items that you would eventually use in your new home.
2. Second, use a furniture rental company
Filling large empty rooms with heavy furnishings can be challenging. This is an important step to let your potential buyers see how each corner of the room could be used. You might have to get the services of a furniture rental company or if not, ask help from family or friends in case they have unused furnishings you can loan such as an extra loveseat or antique table perhaps?
3. Third, use area rugs to define space
Let's say there are rooms in the house where you think it's not necessary or possible to fill with furniture, using area rugs can be an alternative. A room that's left empty can look smaller than it truly is, so putting rugs in place can help define space and show where furniture could possibly go in the future.
4. Fourth, focus staging on money rooms
There are rooms in your house where you should selectively focus more of your staging efforts for the reason that these are the rooms that buyers care the most. This includes the master bedroom, the living room and the kitchen. Place just enough furniture and accessories for each of these rooms to showcase the possibilities one can make with that space.
5. Fifth, add some accessories to the kitchen and the bathroom
Kitchen and bathroom are one of the easiest to stage since it does not require a lot of furniture. For kitchen, nothing can beat plenty of counter spaces so try to leave most of the surface bare. You can add just a touch of simple decorative touches like a vase with fresh flowers, small succulents, or maybe decorative bowls. For the bathroom, you can make it looking fresh by hanging clean towels, placing a small houseplant and adding decorative soaps.
Staging an empty house will help your buyers imagine themselves living in the property, and this can mean a big difference whether your house stays in the market for long or not. It will cost you money to stage your house, but it can yield a high return of investment in the end. To help buyers see your home’s full potential and spark their imagination and emotion, don't skip on the important process of staging your home.
If you have any questions or need help selling your home, I can help. You contact me at 647-834-9928 or send an email to sukhinvasara@gmail.com