Tips for staging house

TripleH

UnderOffer said:

As a buyer I do like to have all the bedrooms photographed and listed, I like to see all sizes. As a seller I asked for all the bedrooms to be shown in listing, EA wasn’t keen and wanted potential viewers to be left “wanting to see more”, I insisted and it didn’t put off viewers or offers, I was probably the only listing with that agent with all 4 bedrooms shown. 

If a room is missing, I assume its because its hideous and would put people off. My family home from when I was very small came on the market a few years back. They didn't show the bathroom which makes me assume it still had the 'lovely' plum/aubergine suite and matching tiles.

babyblade41

I'm going to add from my POV .. The photos are important but more important is having a good floorpan... with both metric & imperial measurements.

When I'm looking for a property I put in just over my price threshold in the area that I want to be in , then the rest of my requirements in terms of importance .

When I view it's the last piece of the puzzle so I always tell those who are selling to not make a fuss at tidying up it won't affect my decision at all

By the time I get to viewing I would have virtually made up my mind & the viewing is just to make sure everything is where it should be  . My due diligence is done well before I see the property in person

Everything looks incredibly different when it's empty so little Johnnys toys scattered all over the place is irrelevant .

The last property I offered on had mounds of dog poo in the garden... easily solved   

powerspowers

Good tips here!
I sold a house in 2020 and was disappointed that we weren’t getting many viewings. We did a big declutter and had the photos redone. Also painted two childrens rooms white and replaced the cabin beds with singles which made a huge difference in the photos. 

twoLou

Most things have been covered already but a couple of things - try and get the wheelie bins out of sight and personally  I don’t like seeing the lights on as always makes me think it’s going to be dark but that’s usually up to the photographer, thankfully the one that came to me was of the same opinion.

jonnydeppiwish!

youth_leader said:

I think kerb appeal is mentioned a lot - shine your door knocker, pots of flowers, cut the grass regularly for drive pasts, clean doormat etc.

For the bathroom definitely toilet seat down, people feel awkward about it. All toiletries in the bathroom out of sight,and scrub everything in there until it sparkles, matching towels, clean bin etc.  

Kitchen should also be scrubbed and clean, hide away recycling etc.

For the bedroom people recommended plain bedding to me, I bought a couple of plain eiderdowns. 

For the lounge remove personal photos etc.

One thing that let me down was having plug in electric radiators on view.   A viewer commented that 'obviously the boiler isn't good enough'.  My house had single glazed sash windows and stripped floorboards with a six foot cellar underneath, we did need the additional heat when it was 0 degrees.

 

I think the tip about the eiderdowns is an excellent choice - very simple to achieve a tidy (tidier in case of teenagers who normally have a floordrobe!), and relatively inexpensive.

Plus you can take them with you and not have the heating in at night, saving on energy supplies!

Declutter at least twice - once on your own, then with a blunt friend. 

If you can tidy the garden then do - a quick strim will last 2-3 weeks, lawnmower weekly.

Brush/tidy outside.

hazyjo

Another: open curtains, shutters and blinds FULLY and keep windowsills mainly clear.

Re my garden comment, not saying Chelsea Flower Show standards, just don't let that and the front of the house look stark and get rid of any dead plants.

jonnydeppiwish!

Oh and get rid of any net curtains - there’s nothing worse than those to make a house look dank and dark.

Loza2016

My pets hate in estate agents photos are 
Items stored on top of kitchen wall cupboards. 

Things stuck onto the fridge like pictures, magnets etc 
cleaning products on show in bathroom and to many toiletries on show. 

Skiddaw1

All of the above definitely, and do keep on top of it. I know it's a buyer's market currently (it was the other way around when we last sold) but whilst you're on the market you need to be permanently staged as you never know when the EA will be on the blower to arrange a short notice viewing. I nipped around with the hoover and polish every day, made sure the windows and floors were clean, kept us topped up with fresh flowers, picked up any dead leaves in the garden, etc. It's a bit of an effort but it means you're always prepped and ready to go when a call comes.

Woolsery

Skiddaw1 said:

 I know it's a buyer's market currently (it was the other way around when we last sold) but whilst you're on the market you need to be permanently staged

I thought it was the other way around at present; too many buyers for too few properties, at least where I am.

I don't think it will last, mind!