Want to sell your house quickly? Presentation is key.
No matter where you are in the home selling process, everyone wants the same thing – to get a quick sale for an amazing price. Property styling is the one key tool you need to be able to achieve all the goals you set in regards to selling your home.
You’ve probably heard this saying many times before, but you only have one chance to make a good first impression on potential buyers – so let’s make that impression last.
So what is property styling and why is it so great?
Property styling, also commonly referred to as home staging, is a systematic method of preparing and presenting a property for sale. The end goal of property styling is to show off all of the best aspects and downplay all of the not-so-great features of your house. During all of this, you’re showing the potential next owners, a space to create, as their own, by giving them the idea of how they can form their home lifestyle.
Highlighting the positive aspects
You may want to utilize the expertise of a professional property stylist, who is knowledgeable and experienced in all areas of decoration and styling. They can use their skill to show off the full potential of any home. But equally, you can go it alone. There are some great websites and resources out there but let’s explore your options now.
While some believe that there is no point hiring a professional to style their property, or personally investing your own time and energy into making your home more stylish, this is just not true. They and you can turn an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan, and it doesn’t matter if your home is worth 100k or a million. Not only has property styling become far more mainstream, but it’s the best tool for savvy homeowners to use to gain an edge on the market.
One of the more difficult things that come about when styling a property are the challenging areas in a floor plan. Professional property stylists can turn a small unused corner in your home into a living breathing space and attractive as possible. They know how to turn a wasted space into a quirky home computer area, or a space under the stairs into a small cubby.
Some sellers have lived in their home for so long that they no longer see the potentials, possibilities, and ways to create a liveable space from somewhere that is difficult.
It can also be hard to realise that you have too much clutter, or to be able to see what buyers want to see. Professional stylists or by familiarising yourself with what is needed to style your home, can show you what needs to be changed, and what can be done to hide your lifestyle while creating a vision of a new life for the potential next owners.
Professional property stylists are especially useful for those who are time-poor – they can arrange for tradespeople to come in and conduct repairs and maintenance, a gardener to come and bring life to your dying flowers, a carpet cleaner to steam the wine stains out of your carpet, and anything else you may need doing.
Property styling has become so mainstream that there are now services that allow you to store your furniture and rent out new furniture and accessories that will highlight the true potential of your living space. While your kitchen may be perfectly fine, there may be some issues with your lounge room and the stylist can identify what can be moved around and changed to attract the most optimal outcome.
Most importantly, of all points, hiring a stylist or investing your own time, should be regarded as part of your overall marketing strategy. They will become a part of your team and learn enough about you that they can assist in finding the correct market to target. Equally, if you are investing your own time, checking out blogs by Naomi Findlay will help you make the most of your efforts. Naomi also has great Vlogs training and books which you can purchase.
Styling your home well will also help you maximise your photography campaign. Make sure you contract a photographer who understands design and wants to create a beautiful photo campaign that presents the property to its full potential.
How to be your own property stylist
Here are some simple tips to get you started. For some, hiring a property stylist is out of the question and not in their budget. Not to fear, you can do it yourself too!
Other than cleaning, repairing and maintaining your home, you can utilize new décor and design to modernize your home and seek out your target market.
Let’s make it your best friend. Pinterest gives you the ability to search up any DIY projects and home inspirations and metaphorically ‘pin’ them to your inspiration boards.
Garden and landscaping
To spice up your garden, you can buy a fire pit! Now most fire pits can be a bit on the expensive side, but you can purchase a gorgeous cast iron fire pit shallow free stand for only $400 abailable from some great landscaping centres.
Another great idea for a dying and browning garden is to introduce synthetic grass into your garden. Synthetic grass will only set you back a small amount and is a fantastic way to bring a pop of colour to your home. An even cheaper way to go is to purchase instant turf, which is real grass that has already been grown for you. All that is required from you is that you have to sow your lawn, and then lay the instant turf on top, press down slightly and water it!
If you’re looking for even more color in your garden, consider planting some Australian native flowers. While tropical flowers are obviously gorgeous, the upkeep can be a bit hard to manage for potential buyers who may not be interested in it. Native Australian flowers are much easier and hardier and will be able to withstand our heat and dry earth.
Lounge room and bedrooms
Lounge rooms are just for that – lounging! Choose a theme and stick to it.
You want to create an environment that is as comfortable as possible while still showing off what can be done with the space that you have. You may have been sleeping on your stained couch for the last eight years, and sure it is super comfortable, but this may not necessarily be attractive to potential buyers. You need to give off a vibe of modern and new rather than old and worn out.
The best way to decorate without really committing to anything too expensive are cushions, pillows, and blankets! Depending on your target market, there are many different styles that you can go for. If your home is on farm land, you might want to go for a rustic theme with faded plaid features, and beautiful cream and beige throws. If you live in an urban area, you have a little more leeway; you can go for a minimalist vibe with geometric patterns or even a nautical theme with stripes and paisley prints.
Another emerging trend is candle holders and lanterns. They come in many different styles and can be very easy to DIY. Stained glass tea candle holders, brushed copper lanterns, shiny prism light holders, even geometric glass candle holders.
Bathrooms
Bathrooms are probably one of the harder places to modernize. It’s not easy or cheap to replace sinks, and showers, and toilets. So one thing that will work amazingly well in bathrooms is great accessories! Choose a color, visit a great online home-wares store, and very quickly you can have a fresh modern up to date bathroom.
New handles, a fresh paint, will also bring life to a once boring bathroom. You can even invest in new soap dispensers, or mirrors, or even new taps. As long as you find your theme and run with it, you can create a new living space within your home that will only boost your visibility in the market.
Kitchen areas
The kitchen is on par with bathrooms in regards to difficulty in re-decorating. If you don’t have the money to replace your fridge, countertops, oven, and sink then the next best thing to do is invest in new accessories.
New canisters to hold your kitchen essentials such as sugar, tea, and coffee will show that you know exactly what you’re doing (even if you have no idea what you’re doing). Even just changing the cupboard handles, which is not a costly expense, can instantly change the look.
Spice up space with a gorgeous stainless steel spice rack, or retro style mixing bowls, even a new teak wood knife set can improve the livability of your home.
And finally the front door
Finally, finish off with a front entrance and welcome mat. Spend a few dollars on a gorgeous set of house numbers, fill the garden beds with pots of colour from your Sunday market and buy a great front door mat.
You are now ready to sell. Maximize all these tips to help you get the results you need to make your next move simple, easy and fun.
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