8 Smart Styling Tips to Help You Sell Your Home Quickly
Follow this expert advice to help make your home irresistible to potential buyers
If you want to make a swift sale of your home — and at the right price — it pays to show it off to its maximum potential. The goal is not only to prompt an offer, but also to ensure that house hunters don’t have any reason to haggle on the list price. Here, three professional home stagers offer some of their top tips for styling a property to make a great first impression.
2. Repair and Retouch
Before you put your home on the market, it’s a good idea to do any maintenance or repairs that could put buyers off or prompt them to offer a lower price.
“Remember, most new homeowners will want to move in right away, so the idea of them having to replace, repair or redecorate could be off-putting,” Gunn says.
“Potential buyers can also accidentally make massively inflated valuations based on what they believe certain repair and replenishment works will cost,” she says, “so by getting these jobs done in advance, you’ll make the property more saleable and give buyers less wiggle room when it comes to making an offer.”
“Badly done work can also have a negative impact,” Titilola Ajayi-Jones of The HomeWorks says. “Use tradespeople and professionals as much as possible. Not everyone knows how to plaster a wall, paint, tile, install a kitchen countertop or lay a carpet.”
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Before you put your home on the market, it’s a good idea to do any maintenance or repairs that could put buyers off or prompt them to offer a lower price.
“Remember, most new homeowners will want to move in right away, so the idea of them having to replace, repair or redecorate could be off-putting,” Gunn says.
“Potential buyers can also accidentally make massively inflated valuations based on what they believe certain repair and replenishment works will cost,” she says, “so by getting these jobs done in advance, you’ll make the property more saleable and give buyers less wiggle room when it comes to making an offer.”
“Badly done work can also have a negative impact,” Titilola Ajayi-Jones of The HomeWorks says. “Use tradespeople and professionals as much as possible. Not everyone knows how to plaster a wall, paint, tile, install a kitchen countertop or lay a carpet.”
Connect with a general contractor on Houzz
3. Dilute the Decor
To encourage buyers to imagine the potential of your home, avoid decor that can be distracting. “Try to keep the wall colors neutral,” Elaine Penhaul of Lemon and Lime Interiors says.
“If you have a lot of existing dark wood furniture, instead of buying new, make it work with the rest of the room,” she says. “Bring in some modern pieces to help pull the scheme together in an eclectic style. It will have a great effect without a major price tag.”
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To encourage buyers to imagine the potential of your home, avoid decor that can be distracting. “Try to keep the wall colors neutral,” Elaine Penhaul of Lemon and Lime Interiors says.
“If you have a lot of existing dark wood furniture, instead of buying new, make it work with the rest of the room,” she says. “Bring in some modern pieces to help pull the scheme together in an eclectic style. It will have a great effect without a major price tag.”
Browse furniture and decor in the Houzz Shop
4. Clear the Decks
Allow potential buyers to see the space available in your property by keeping the rooms as decluttered as possible. “While we’re not all called, or able, to live the minimalist lifestyle, excessive clutter can choke the life out of a house and make it appear stressful,” Ajayi-Jones says.
Penhaul agrees, adding: “Potential buyers will find it hard to look beyond the clutter. They’ll want to see the space available and how their furniture will work in your house. A messy and chaotic home detracts from the property itself and causes some buyers to walk away, as they can’t see what’s behind the clutter.”
“A good way to declutter is to classify items as either ‘practical,’ ‘beautiful’ or ‘sentimental’ and assign to each a value from 1 to 10 to decide whether to keep it,” Ajayi-Jones says. “Anything under 5 can be donated or recycled.”
“Don’t hang on to things you don’t need,” Penhaul says. “Starting this process early will give you an advantage when you move into your new home.”
Organization is also key for buyers. “Have as much storage as you can and know where everything goes, so it’s easy to tidy up,” Ajayi-Jones says.
Your Guide to a Spotless, Beautifully Organized Home
Allow potential buyers to see the space available in your property by keeping the rooms as decluttered as possible. “While we’re not all called, or able, to live the minimalist lifestyle, excessive clutter can choke the life out of a house and make it appear stressful,” Ajayi-Jones says.
Penhaul agrees, adding: “Potential buyers will find it hard to look beyond the clutter. They’ll want to see the space available and how their furniture will work in your house. A messy and chaotic home detracts from the property itself and causes some buyers to walk away, as they can’t see what’s behind the clutter.”
“A good way to declutter is to classify items as either ‘practical,’ ‘beautiful’ or ‘sentimental’ and assign to each a value from 1 to 10 to decide whether to keep it,” Ajayi-Jones says. “Anything under 5 can be donated or recycled.”
“Don’t hang on to things you don’t need,” Penhaul says. “Starting this process early will give you an advantage when you move into your new home.”
Organization is also key for buyers. “Have as much storage as you can and know where everything goes, so it’s easy to tidy up,” Ajayi-Jones says.
Your Guide to a Spotless, Beautifully Organized Home
5. Make It Look Lived-In
While a light, neutral scheme allows viewers to see the bones of your home, an empty property won’t have quite the same effect.
“If you’re planning to sell a vacant property, staging makes a huge difference,” Gunn says. “It allows buyers to visualize the space and, if done well, can transform an empty shell into a home.”
While a light, neutral scheme allows viewers to see the bones of your home, an empty property won’t have quite the same effect.
“If you’re planning to sell a vacant property, staging makes a huge difference,” Gunn says. “It allows buyers to visualize the space and, if done well, can transform an empty shell into a home.”
6. Eliminate Odors
It’s not just the appearance of your home that will influence viewers — the scent is also important. “An unpleasant smell will immediately put off potential buyers,” Penhaul says. “So address any smells, such as dog, dampness or cigarette smoke.”
Remove any evidence of pets, such as a smelly bed, and use a carpet or upholstery cleaning service to refresh the carpets and furniture, she says.
Ajayi-Jones recommends you find professional help to address the smell of mildew and mold. “If necessary, call in an expert to find out where water is seeping into the house and fix the problem,” she says. It could be broken gutters or poor drainage outside the house. “None of these should be excessively costly to fix but will certainly be harder to deal with as the problem gets worse,” Ajayi-Jones says.
She cites an example: “I’ve seen a house with excessive water damage — mainly because of a broken gutter costing a maximum of [$400] to repair — take about [$130,000] off the value of the house.”
It’s not just the appearance of your home that will influence viewers — the scent is also important. “An unpleasant smell will immediately put off potential buyers,” Penhaul says. “So address any smells, such as dog, dampness or cigarette smoke.”
Remove any evidence of pets, such as a smelly bed, and use a carpet or upholstery cleaning service to refresh the carpets and furniture, she says.
Ajayi-Jones recommends you find professional help to address the smell of mildew and mold. “If necessary, call in an expert to find out where water is seeping into the house and fix the problem,” she says. It could be broken gutters or poor drainage outside the house. “None of these should be excessively costly to fix but will certainly be harder to deal with as the problem gets worse,” Ajayi-Jones says.
She cites an example: “I’ve seen a house with excessive water damage — mainly because of a broken gutter costing a maximum of [$400] to repair — take about [$130,000] off the value of the house.”
7. Brighten It Up
Both natural and artificial light can be used to show your property at its best. “Your house needs to be bright and well lit for viewings to demonstrate the true size of the space,” Penhaul says, “so consider how your lighting looks in each room.
“Pull back curtains and open blinds to make the most of the natural light, but also think about creating an ambiance by positioning additional lamps on side tables around the room,” she says. “We find big floor lamps work well for adding more light and also as a great statement piece for a room.”
Both natural and artificial light can be used to show your property at its best. “Your house needs to be bright and well lit for viewings to demonstrate the true size of the space,” Penhaul says, “so consider how your lighting looks in each room.
“Pull back curtains and open blinds to make the most of the natural light, but also think about creating an ambiance by positioning additional lamps on side tables around the room,” she says. “We find big floor lamps work well for adding more light and also as a great statement piece for a room.”
8. Maximize Marketing
When choosing a real estate agent, high valuations and low fees aren’t the only things you should consider.
“Choose an agent with a proven track record and one whose marketing stands out,” Penhaul says. “They should also be able to advise you on the profile of your likely buyer so your presentation will appeal to the right audience.”
Our experts agree it’s vital that your agent use a high-quality professional photographer. “Competition is tough and you want your property to stand out across all the marketing mediums,” Penhaul says. “If you’ve gone to the trouble of making sure your home looks perfect, you’ll want your photographs to reflect that.”
More on Houzz
Read more guides to selling a house
Find a home professional
Shop for home products
When choosing a real estate agent, high valuations and low fees aren’t the only things you should consider.
“Choose an agent with a proven track record and one whose marketing stands out,” Penhaul says. “They should also be able to advise you on the profile of your likely buyer so your presentation will appeal to the right audience.”
Our experts agree it’s vital that your agent use a high-quality professional photographer. “Competition is tough and you want your property to stand out across all the marketing mediums,” Penhaul says. “If you’ve gone to the trouble of making sure your home looks perfect, you’ll want your photographs to reflect that.”
More on Houzz
Read more guides to selling a house
Find a home professional
Shop for home products
A good place to start when beginning the process of selling your home is to imagine how potential buyers will see it.
“You may have been living in your home for many happy years, but when you’re selling, you need to step back, take a deep breath and start looking at it with fresh eyes — potential-buyers’ eyes,” says Alx Gunn of Alx Gunn Interiors.
“Grab a pen and notepad and walk around each space, making a note of all the potential snagging points and areas that could be improved,” she says.
To help you see your home in a new light, Gunn recommends that you take photos. “Grab a camera and take a wide-angled landscape shot from each corner of each room,” she says. “Examine the photos and see what stands out. Do you need to replace pillows, buy new bed linens, add a few plants or declutter surfaces? Looking at your property through a picture will help you refine your spaces.”
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