Preparing for the Open House: Beyond Cleaning

Seeking that perfect display home isn’t as overwhelming as it sounds.  Some hire professional home stagers to improve their homes appearance and sale price.  These professionals often have large storehouses of furniture and accessories or rental agreements with various stores.  After evaluating your home, they may decide to swap your sofa for on that may better suit the room. Once the home is sold, the loaner sofa goes back to where it came from. The same goes for any accessories or add-ons they provided.  If hiring a professional is not in your cards, there are a few steps you can take to achieve a similar outcome.

Painting is inexpensive and can make a dramatic impact on your home.  Colour and light are usually the first things people become aware of when entering a room.   Light tones can make a room seem larger and brighter. Using select colours on the wall can bring out the colours in furniture, rugs, or accessories.  Complimentary colours (yellow-purple, blue-orange, and red-green) can be applied sparingly or in light tones. Pale blue walls, for example, may highlight orange cushions on a sofa.  Try to keep your wall colour neutral and appealing to most buyers.

Flowers can also make a room seem more appealing.  By making a small investment on a couple of bouquets, your home will seem cheery and well attended in the eyes of prospective buyers.  If you are out of vases try a rustic look with a clean mason jar with a large bow around the top. Even a pop can inside a deep basket, covered with florists moss is an inexpensive solution.  Try a large bouquet in the living room or dining room and small simple arrangements of a few flowers in other rooms.

Examine the furniture in each room and decide if you have too much clutter.  Why pay to move items you may not even like? The same concept can be applied by having questionable furniture in your home during an open house.  If you have an old chair that desperately needs to be reupholstered or items which clash with the majority of your furniture, it may be time to take action.

Do you have a large blank wall? Consider renting artwork.  An enticing painting can inspire an entire room. Some artists or galleries may rent artwork for much less than retail value.  Artwork can range from $400 to $4000 to pay close attention to the zeros on the price tag!

Minor changes may not transform your home completely but the can make a dramatic impression on potential buyers.