8 Styling Mistakes Sellers Make When Staging Their Home For Sale

Styling a home to sell is very different from styling a home to stay in.
Home staging has now become a normal part of selling a home. It involves engaging with a property stylist who styles your house to appeal to a broader market.

Often all your own furniture and belongings are removed from the home and the stylist brings in their furniture and décor. Sometimes they have their own warehouse of supplies, or they rent the furniture from a boutique.

Home staging will help your house sell quickly and it will reap a lot of interest, and therefore attract more emotional buyers. Styled homes will spend less time on the market than a home that hasn’t been staged. It also usually sells at a higher price point.

But not everyone can afford a property stylist when getting their house ready for sale. And it’s when a property owner decides to do their own home staging that mistakes are made. And those mistakes can deter a sale.

Here are 8 styling mistakes to avoid when staging your home for sale. You want to ensure your house is displayed for the best possible outcome the moment it’s listed for sale.

Remove all personal photos and personal décor

Just because you’ve lived in the property, doesn’t mean you need to leave your mark on the property when it’s listed for sale. Remove all personal photos, and décor which means something to you. That giraffe head may be a turn off to a potential home buyer.

Paint the walls white or strip them back to a neutral palette

That bright pink feature wall, which evokes your bright personality, is not going to convert inspectors into buyers. Paint over the feature walls and remove the wall paper. Strip the walls back to white. This will give the home a fresh look and brighten the feel. It also allows a potential buyer to imagine how they can personalise the space.

Organise your cupboards

Cupboards can hide a multitude of sins… but when a potential buyer comes to an open home, they will most definitely open the cupboard doors to check out how much storage space they contain. Take time to declutter and organise the cupboards so they are neat and tidy.

Less is more when it comes to furniture

You may have needed the extended sofa and random arm chairs to ensure enough seating space for your family. But less is more in the living spaces. Remove furniture that makes the space feel and look cluttered. More open space between furniture can make the room look bigger than it is.

Ensure all rooms are squeaky clean and smell delightful

Bathrooms, kitchens and the laundry can be a deal breaker for potential buyers. Especially if they are dirty and haven’t been cleaned in a while. Ensure these spaces are cleaned from top to bottom. Replace silicone where needed and re-grout the bathroom where the grout has dis-coloured. Add scented essential oils to give a pleasing aroma.

Remove the pets

Pets don’t belong in open homes, and especially in homes staged to sell. Pet smell and animal fur can be a deterrent to potential buyers, even if they love pets as much as you do. Ensure your house is pet-free and remove all evidence of pets living in the house.

Make affordable upgrades

You may not have the money to renovate the bathroom, but you can give it an upgrade by replacing the taps, spouts and shower rose. Replace old curtains with blinds and remove the chandelier with a modern pendant light. These little upgrades can prompt a buyer to pay more It also shows the care taken into looking after the property.

Be open to suggestions

Your real estate agent will offer suggestions to help you get the most for your property. Take their suggestions on board as it may differentiate your house from all the others on the market.

Staging a home for sale is not an easy job, but it can be super rewarding when the house is finally finished and listed for sale. And you’ll be patting yourself on the back the moment the offers roll in because of your hard work.

You might also like to learn about why you should include a floor plan with your real estate listing.