INTERIORS
WHAT IS HOME STAGING? Discover more about the art of home staging to help you prepare your home for sale.
Have you watched TV programs such as ‘Phil Spencer: Secret agent’, or the original ‘House Doctor’, Ann Maurice and wondered if that would work for your home? TV shows are primarily there for entertainment, often featuring the more extreme homes or personalities. But home staging can make a huge difference even if you are not a serial hoarder and don’t have unusual taste in decor. Home staging is the art (or science?) of actively preparing a home for sale to appeal to the maximum number of buyers in the target market. Any work required needs to be carried out with minimal financial outlay and should be completed in the shortest time possible. When we decide to sell or rent a property, it’s often hard to appreciate that our home, which we may have lived in happily for many years is now a ‘product’. We may still be living in it, but as soon as those pictures go onto the property portal, or in the estate agent’s window, or this very magazine your home is being evaluated, compared against others in 30 the area and yes, judged!
Your potential buyers want to look at a property and imagine living there happily, They want to feel welcomed, relaxed and to experience that elusive ‘feeling’ that tells them they want to make a serious offer.
competing against. If you genuinely want to move on and sell for the best price, professional home staging can be a great investment and a way of taking control of the one aspect of the sale that you can control, the presentation.
They don’t want to see dirt, dated décor, disorder, DIY disasters or too many personal ‘knick-knacks’. Even if they can see past these drawbacks, it gives them an excuse to haggle on price and see if you’ll accept a ‘cheeky offer’.
The key benefit of hiring a professional is that they can evaluate your home and really see it through the eyes of your potential buyers. A home stager will prioritise the work required, whilst spending the least time and money. Rarely will a Home Stager suggest you replace the kitchen, but they will advise that a few tweaks, updates and finishing off those ‘little jobs’ can make a big difference to that first impression.
The classic analogy for home staging is that you wouldn’t sell your car without cleaning it inside and out, fixing up dents or knocks, or dealing with the suspect smoke coming from the engine. Your house is your biggest asset and if you don’t do a little work upfront you could be throwing away tens of thousands of pounds or wasting weeks or months on the market unnecessarily. Remember, there may be a beautifullydesigned, brand new show home at the same price nearby, which your home is
Home staging can make a huge impact on both the price you sell for and how quickly you get a buyer. Even a small outlay can offer a potentially large return on investment.
Helen Winter Creative Director | Coral Interiors Ltd
They don’t want to see dirt, dated décor, disorder, DIY disasters or too many personal knick-knacks.