Exterior

Look at your house from the street, is it picture perfect? Does it look fresh and well kept overall? Would you be happy to hang a photo of the home, as it is now, on your living room wall? If not, here are a few steps you can use to do some self-staging outside:

• Keep your lawn mowed
• Bushes should be trimmed neatly
• All brush and debris should be removed
• Trim any trees that are obscuring the house
• Have enough greenery to make the home seem welcoming
• Make sure the yard edges gracefully up to the home with flower beds, bushes or lawn without bare spots
• Plant some annual flowers if the entrance needs color

Interior

You are accustomed to seeing your house as it is. To effectively stage your home you need to freshen your vision and look at the inside of your home as a stranger would. Inside the three most important things you can do are: Clean, De-Clutter and De-Personalize. For instance:

Clean

• Is your house sparkling clean?
• Are all the cobwebs and “dust-bunnies” out of the corners?
• Have you moved the furniture to clean underneath?
• Have you move all the appliances to clean out underneath?
• Have the carpets been cleaned?
• Has the furniture upholstery been professionally cleaned?
• Has everything been dusted?
• Are the bathrooms sparkling-clean?
• Have you cleaned all the doorways, doorknobs, light-switch plates?

De-Clutter

• Is all the clutter packed up and taken to storage?
• Are all the magnets and junior art projects removed from the refrigerator?
• Are your closets and cabinets well organized?
• Have you removed all items from the kitchen counter tops?
• Have you organized and cleaned out the basement, attic and garage?
• Are the windows clean?
• Are the ceiling fans and light fixtures clean?
• Have you tracked down and eliminated (not merely covered up) any strong pet/smoke/cooking odors?

De-Personalize

• Are all your walls painted a neutral color?
• Have you removed “collections” and family photos?
• Are all toys removed from the living areas?
• Is all evidence of pets minimized or eliminated?

Repair/Improve

• Do you need area rugs to make the floors presentable?
• Have you touched up or repaired any marks or dents on the walls?
• Have you replaced any burned out lightbulbs?
• Do all windows have window treatments?
• Have you changed the air filters?

These are just a few of the items you can do to improve the appearance of your home when it is time to sell. If you would like a more complete list or a personal consultation, contact me for professional home staging services.