Home Staging could be the key to selling your property quickly and for the best possible price. Here at Maddisons Residential in Tunbridge Wells, Kent we are experts at highlighting the strengths of your property and downplaying any possible weaknesses it may have. We want your property to appeal to as many prospective buyers as possible.

What is Home Staging?

Staging is about creating an illusion and dressing your house ready for potential buyers. Staging makes your house appear larger, brighter, cleaner, warmer and more loved and most importantly of all, it makes people want to buy it. Staging techniques focus on improving a property’s appeal by transforming it into a welcoming and attractive product. The art of staging is to create a space that reflects a lifestyle that people want to have. There are different degrees of staging ranging from small to large scale.

What does Staging Involve?

A Home Stager may come in and just make recommendations on improvements you can do yourself. These could include:

  • Decluttering – what to remove
  • Furniture rearranging
  • Lighting solutions
  • Styling book display cabinets, shelves and mantelpieces
  • Cleaning, repair and painting suggestions
  • Rearranging art and accessories

However at the other end of the scale you may want the Home Stager to come in and completely furnish your entire home from top to bottom which will include introducing furniture, accessories and art after having the home repainted, any repairs carried out and lighting changed.

Dressing items that may be introduced into a room include:

  • Mirrors
  • Plants
  • Paintings
  • Ornaments
  • Flowers
  • Table and Floor Lamps
  • Throw Rugs
  • Small Furniture Pieces
  • Towels
  • Pillows
  • Baskets
  • Soaps

Most projects do seem to fall somewhere between these two extremes. It really depends on your needs, the time available and ultimately how much you want to spend.

Once you have decided to sell your home it really becomes a product and it’s important that your product looks better than the competition. It’s all about dressing the house for sale.

How do you make your house look bigger?

Too much furniture will make a room look smaller. Staging a room often means that up to half the furniture might be removed. This may seem drastic but have a good look round and see what you can do without. Rooms will also appear bigger if furniture is moved away from walls. It’s also important to create little groups of furniture. Sometimes a piece of furniture may look better in another room.

How can you make your home seem brighter?

Lighting is paramount. However, this doesn’t always necessarily mean switching on all the lights. Mood lighting is key and a few strategically placed lamps may be the answer or if the room benefits from natural light streaming in, that may be enough. Your home stager and estate agent will again be able to advise you on how a room can be lit to produce the best impact.

What colours should I use?

Neutrals really do work. However, there are other hues apart from beige, so don’t forget soft honey and tan shades as well as light blues, greens and yellows which can all offer a lovely contrast. In general, statistics do seem to suggest that dark, bold colours are off putting to potential buyers.

It’s important to remember that people buy homes, not houses!

If you think your property might benefit from Home Staging, please contact award winning Maddisons Residential in Tunbridge Wells to get a realistic appraisal of your property. We sell houses throughout Kent and Sussex and will help you display your home so that potential buyers see it in the best possible light.