Tips for Staging Your House on a budget
You have probably already read a lot about how to sell your home on a budget. Staging is a common strategy used to increase the amount of money that prospective buyers will bid or offer and sell your home more quickly.
Staging is well-known to have a big impact on the interest of buyers and is one of the most important things you can do before selling your home. Home staging is a great way to get buyers to commit to buying your house at a lower cost.
It can be difficult to find ways to effectively stage your home when you are on a budget. Continue reading to discover cheap home staging tips that will keep you stacked up and move your home!
1. Get advice from your real estate agent
Home staging is one of the many things that real estate agents can help you with. It may be your first home staging, but your real estate agent is likely to have staged many more homes.
It is free to ask your real estate agent for advice on how to stage a home. A real estate agent that has visited your house and scouted the potential buyer pool in your area will also have a better understanding of what staging decisions are most likely to appeal to buyers.
2. Declutter and clean your home
By cleaning and decluttering, you can make your home more attractive and inviting. You should consider performing routine tasks like vacuuming, cleaning and dusting before you begin staging your home. You can continue your cleaning spree to achieve a deep clean by cleaning out the gutters, polishing faucet heads and removing limescale from bathrooms. You may discover that you need to perform additional tasks as you go through the cleaning process.
3. Clear flat surfaces
It is easy to make your room appear bigger by clearing the flat surfaces of your home. Shelf, counters, tables, and desks are all places where clutter can accumulate. You can decorate a surface, but keep it simple and neat. Some good ideas include candles, lamps and vases of flowers.
4. Remove personal Items
It is important to remove personal items from your home to help buyers visualize themselves. The prospective buyer may not have the same family makeup as you. You may find it difficult for potential buyers to imagine themselves living in your home if you display pictures of you and your family.
5. Choose neutral colors
The goal of most home staging techniques is to make a house appealing to as many potential buyers as possible. It is a good idea, if your home has walls that are painted in a vibrant and dramatic color to paint them with a neutral shade that will appeal more to buyers. Neutral paint is relatively inexpensive and often seen as the best home staging option.
6. Natural light
Natural light is important to most buyers. It is therefore in your best interests to maximize the natural light that your home receives. It is a good idea to remove heavy draperies or decorative upholstery from your windows. Replace these items with sheer drapes that allow maximum light to enter.
7. Change the lightbulbs
It is possible to get different results by replacing light bulbs in your home. It is sometimes a good idea, especially when your home lacks natural light, to buy bulbs with a high color temperature (bluish or white-blue). If you want to add the finishing touches to a reading corner or office, then it may be better to choose lightbulbs that have a lower temperature (yellowish). The color and temperature can affect mood, productivity, and temperament.
8. Closet organizing
Closet space also indicates the amount of storage that a home has, so you can be certain that buyers will pay special attention to your home’s closet. It is possible to stage your home on a tight budget by organizing the closets in your home.
You can probably transform your closet in a matter of minutes. Keep the floor clean, make sure your clothes are neatly hung, and remove about half the items that you usually store in the closet. These tips will help you create more space, and give a better idea of how to use the space.
9. Open house flyer template
It might be a great idea to create a flyer for an open house with your real estate agent. The flyer should include information about the home, acreage and schools in your area.
You don’t want any information on your flyer that portrays your home negatively, but if the ratings are positive then it is important to include them. An open house flyer can be a great staging tool because, in addition to highlighting your home’s features, it also gives potential buyers something tangible to take with them so they can compare your home to the other houses they are considering.
10. Add mild scents
Home staging is more than just appealing to the buyer’s eye. Baking soda can be used to freshen your home and save money while staging. Sprinkle some baking soda on the surface and let it work overnight. Then vacuum it in the morning. You can use this to remove odors from pets or other sources you have lost your nose to.
You can continue to freshen your home by washing your walls using mild soap and non-abrasive scouring sponges. Consider purchasing a diffuser that will release natural scents like lavender or eucalyptus after you have completed these steps.
11. Complete minor home repairs
We won’t tell you to do any major home repairs when staging your house on a budget. But we will recommend that you complete any minor repairs already begun.
Have you recently started replacing cabinet or door handles? Give your home a stylish appearance by completing this project.
Have you recently purchased new blinds to replace those that Fido ate? Install blinds while staging the house to ensure they work.
Do you have another minor repair in mind? You should make the repairs if they cost less than a takeout night. You could reduce the time that your home is on the market by a few dollars.
12. Landscaping
It is easy to underestimate the power of curb appeal. It’s true that a buyer may not make an offer on your house after just one look, but it isn’t unreasonable to believe they could reject a home if the first impression turns them away. Landscape your front yard to create a welcoming atmosphere and make your home look inviting.
Planting flowers and other plants with odd numbers will add style. Mulch is another great way to add style. Cut the grass, and you’re done!
13. Create clear pathways
Consider how you have arranged your home. How do the rooms flow into each other? Is it easy to navigate between rooms with your current furniture arrangement?
Consider rearranging your rooms to create clear paths. These paths will give your house a more modern, accessible look. You may have to remove some furniture if you are having trouble creating a clear path in a certain room or part of your house. Clutter is your enemy, and clear paths are your staging friend.
14. Give spaces a purpose
What can a buyer do with that third bedroom? You may not be able to tell them if you do not show them. Every room should have a purpose. This sense of purpose does not have to be deep or knowledge that reveals life’s meaning. Your living room could say “This is where we meet”, your dining room could suggest “This is where we eat” and so forth for other rooms in your house.
To create a sense of purpose, stage the room so that it suggests an activity about to take place. Setting the dining table in a way that suggests a certain activity is about to unfold can create the illusion that the room will transform at any moment into a healthy scene.
15. Use mirrors to create space
Mirrors can create the illusion of more space in many ways. Consider using a group of mirrors to reflect light or to create fake windows.
16. Give your bathroom a cheap face-lift
You don’t need to spend a lot of money on updating your bathroom. Find updated fixtures and faucets at your local discount or hardware store. Consider buying cheap shower curtains or liners to make each bathroom look new.
17. Take inventory of your home
Use items and supplies you already have in your house to save money on staging. Take inventory of your supplies and items before you start staging your home. Then, incorporate them into your staging plan. You may need to run to the shop after you have started staging your home, but you have at least saved money.
18. Thrift stores & yard sales
You can start by visiting your local yard sale or thrift shop. You may be able to find home staging items at these places. You can find picture frames, cleaning products, linens, and much more at a fraction the price of a department store. This is perfect for staging your home on a budget.
19. Benefit from return policies
Keep the receipts for any picture frames or other home décor that you plan to return when you sell your house. If you retain your receipts and do not alter your purchases, most retailers will offer you a 60-day return policy.
20. Stage your home virtually
Consider virtual staging if your home is empty and you want to upload pictures on different platforms for home selling. You can create realistic scenes in your home to show how it would feel to live there. By using virtual staging, you can avoid buying furniture or moving it to sell your house.
Professional photographers and editors are able to convert virtual furniture into photographs easily. The cost of these services can range from $25 up to $100 depending on the skill level, extent of work and turnaround time.