Before I can try and settle down somewhere we have to get rid of the house in Connecticut. Bought as the bubble was bursting we know we will lose money but even so we can’t just list it. We gotta make it desirable first.There’s a lot of nonsense spoken about making houses look good for showing (referred to as staging here in the US). In fact there are whole cable TV shows dedicated to the alleged art. Reality is that it is not that hard.
Overall, you must allow nothing to distract your viewers from the positive experience. You want them to leave discussing where they could put their bookcase and where to drink their morning coffee; not the clothes that were on the floor or the smell by the sink.
The Bazza rules to house staging are:
1. Above all – Clean your house inside and out! All buyers will be put off by a grimy, tired or spider web laden house
2. Find the cool features of your house that others will like and emphasis these. Also consider a little guide book or some well placed notes (don’t over do it) to point out the unique or positive aspects. Most rooms have an area or part where the eye is automatically drawn to. If you can get a friend to walk into each room and tell you the first thing they see, that will tell you what that focal point is and you can decide if it is what you want it to be.
3. Make the most of the space (applies to the external part of the house too)
--- De-clutter
--- Move furniture to allow most floor space to show
--- Allow walls to show but not totally bare (see item 7 below)
4. Make the most of the light – even spacious houses look small when dark.
--- Ensure windows can let in the natural light
--- Make sure all light switches and bulbs work
--- Consider putting in brighter bulbs were safe to so
5. Fix those little annoyances – the house inspector is going find them anyway.
--- Dripping taps
--- Wall dents
--- cabinet door knobs missing trim
6. Ambience: Make the house feel home like with smells and possibly some music
7. If you are the kind of person who covers every inch of wall with photographs of loved ones. Remember the point about no distractions and making the most of space. You don’t have to take down every picture but let the wall area be seen. Beware those sporting or other cultural displays too. For instance if you are a Yankees fan - you don't want to turn off an itinerant Red Sox or Mets fan - think I'm joking? I'm not. Remember you want people to leave talking about how pleasant your place was not the Jeter poster on the ceiling.
8. Take some sensible steps to make your house child safe, if it isn’t already.
9. Find a secure place to put valuables.
10. When people come – go out! I know it’s scary but every time I view a place with the residents there the visit is much shorter and I never feel good about the house.
In the next blog I’ll explain how we implemented those rules.
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Bazza
