Home Staging Is NOT Like Cleaning Your House For Company!

Festive dining room ready for entertaining!

Does that surprise you?  You say, “I clean my house pretty well when preparing for company!  What’s wrong with that?”  Well, for starters, home staging isn’t about making your house just look pretty, it’s about showing it to sell!

It also depends on how you clean for company.  If you’re like me and it’s the kids coming home for a short stay, I just do the basics – you know – vaccuum, dust (a little), make the beds, make sure the spider webs are down (our daughter just can’t handle spiders), and of course do the dishes, straighten up and a few things like that.  Or if it’s someone I don’t see often and I want to impress them, I may do a lot more to make sure the bathrooms look like we never use them, actually clean the laundry room, pick up the piles of magazines and books from all over and put fresh flowers in the guest room.

But, that’s not what we’re talking about when we talk about home staging.  When we stage a house to sell, we want to make sure to address all those areas that people will actually be buying.  So, here are my top recommendations for showing off your house to get it sold!

Home Staging is:

  1. Cleaning out the closets so buyers can see how much room we have for storage
  2. Cleaning the basement so it looks like you can actually use it for activities (or if it’s unfinished, so it looks like a great place to build a rec room, home theater, play area, etc)
  3. Fixing things we haven’t gotten around to like, dripping faucets, chipped sinks, doors that don’t close properly, replacing mirrors that stay, and any holes or marks on the walls
  4. Re-painting!  Sorry, but if you’ve lived in your house for even a couple of years, the walls probably show signs of wear, scuff marks and bumps or bruises.  So, as a professional home stager, I definitely recommend fixing these. And don’t forget the baseboards and moulding!
  5. Taking down all the treasured photos of the kids, our wedding, personal items and collections that we don’t want to lose, basic home staging 101.  (plus, people will get side-tracked if you have too much personal stuff)
  6. Making sure that each room has a focal point and not too much furniture.  When we live in a house, we may want more furniture to have room for everyone, but when we stage a house to sell, we want to show-off space!
  7. Tone down any areas that are too “me” and make them more neutral.  Love bold, red walls?  Not everyone does, so consider painting it a more soothing color.
  8. Pay attention to the approach to the house – this is what buyers will see first, so make it good!

What home staging is not:

  1. Showing off your personality or your decorating skills.  We want to show the house, not the decorating.  So, make it appeal to a broad range of people
  2. Time to start new projects.  If you haven’t gotten around to finishing the basement, this isn’t the best time – unless you can finish it quickly and do a great job!
  3. A good time to let down your guard and not keep up the regular cleaning.  (But once you’ve staged your house and de-cluttered and packed-up most of the stuff, it’ll be much easier to clean!)
  4. The time to cook your favorite garlic, curry, or fishy recipes.  Smells stay around a long time and you don’t want your house to have an odor.
  5. To let the pets have run of the house.  Keep them and their belongings where you can easily move them for showings so they’re not in the way.

If you want more info on the most effective tips and ideas for home staging, check out Home Decor Genie.com or get my free home staging tips.