Surely, you’ve heard about the concept of “Home Staging”, the real estate marketing technique that is gaining strength. Home Staging literally means staging the house. This technique tries to “think of a house as a product”, as defined by Barb Schwarz, the pioneer of this technique born in the United States back in the 70s.
Just like when we put a car on sale we do a set-up, why do not we prepare the house so that it is sold as quickly as possible and at the best price?
The Home Staging tries to show the potential buyer the full potential of the house, placing it in a cozy space where it is much easier to imagine living in it. The better the house is presented, the more potential customers we will get to visit it and therefore more possibilities to sell it.
Broadly speaking, this technique uses decoration, lighting, styling and photography to attractively present the home improvement projects to potential clients. We tell you some details that you should keep in mind to apply these techniques:
Prepare the house so that it looks
The Home Staging consists of taking care of all the details to get a good impression. Decoration and old furniture, shabby curtains, chips and dampness in walls, tiles that dance, etc. We must take care of any detail that may captivate or scare away buyers.
There is no single recipe, but a good part depends on the experience and style of a real estate professional, taking into account the characteristics of the home and the profile of possible buyer according to the area and the price of the house.
Some golden rules are:
- Depersonalize the stays
- Sort and clear the space
- Clean and paint
- Repair defects
- Harmonize the environments of the house
Furniture and basic decoration
If the house is unoccupied or with old and ugly furniture, we must assess the possibility of placing new furniture, even temporarily to receive visitors. In the same way that in the promotions of new work, “pilot” houses were fully furnished and new so that the prospective buyer can get an idea of what the housing and the available space would look like.
In the case of luxury homes, these furniture and decoration should be at the height of the house and in line with the purchasing power of the prospective buyer. To sell this type of housing, we may need to resort to a professional decorator.
If we cannot invest much in furniture and decoration, textiles can be a great ally to change the look of a house. Simply changing the curtains, cushions, bed linens or bath towels will get a substantial change in the house at an economical price.
House cleaning
Although it seems obvious, the first step is to do a good thorough cleaning. Everything must be spotless and clean when an interested visitor is received in the house.
This includes any element that we could imagine:
- switches,
- taps,
- attics,
- windows,
- lamps,
- cabinets/ shelves,
- appliances,
- balconies/ terraces,
- gardens/ hallways etc.
Everything must be neat and clean to ensure that the visit leaves with a good feeling. Before receiving the potential buyer of the house, we must make a final revision: empty the bins, turn off the television, give a quick review of the cleaning, lower the lid of the toilet, leave some lights on, or pick up any object such as bags or jackets.
Repair flaws in the home
Before receiving the first interested visitors in the house, we must check that there is no damage, such as a door that does not close properly, a tap that does not drip, a moisture in the wall, etc.
Making basic improvements in housing will add value and can help you get a sale for a more attractive price. It is very probable that the investment compensates this small reform.
Depersonalize housing
Neutral decoration helps sell a house. A possible buyer of the house wants to visualize living in it, not knowing the life of the owners. All personal photos, wedding and communion portraits, fridge magnets, travel souvenirs, personal belongings and many decorative objects should be removed. This depersonalization should be taken care of especially in the living room, kitchen and bathroom.
The first impression is what counts
According to the experts in Home Staging, the first opinion that a potential buyer makes about a house is formed in the first 15 seconds of a visit. Therefore, it is essential to take care of this first visit and give an attractive image that does not scare the buyer. You have to create a love at first sight.
More than 70% of home buyers start looking for their home on the Internet, so it is important to have good photos taken by a professional photographer. There is nothing more horrible than seeing a defocused, poorly framed photo in a real estate portal, or the typical photo of the bedroom with the reflection of the photographer in the mirror.
Sort and clear stays
Before we talked about housing with a minimum furniture as neutral as possible. The objective is for the buyer to make an image of how the house with furniture looks, but that he can imagine with his own decorative ideas.
Simplifying is fundamental. We must remove all those objects that remain, ensuring there is enough space for you to make the visit without stress. Of course, we should not have clothes all over the house, a bathroom full of cleaning supplies or a room with children’s books.
Neutral colors and decoration
Depersonalize the house helps sell it before. When we have the house for sale, we should make it as attractive as possible to the largest number of potential customers. Therefore, we should avoid personal tastes, especially strident colors. It is best to paint the house white or light colors, with furniture and decoration of straight lines that stand out rather little.
We can give a natural touch with small details such as a basket with fresh fruit in the kitchen or a plant in the hall, always trying to show the most livable space.
Illumination and smells
The natural lighting will give the apartment a nice and bright appearance, so we must make the most of natural light. We must check that all the bulbs of the house work correctly.
On the other hand, you have to deal with any bad smell that the house could have. From the smell of snuff or domestic animals, to smells of drains, kitchen or garbage that has not been removed. If necessary we can resort to a mild fragrance freshener.