Staging an empty house is a breeze but getting your - very lived in - home ready for market can be a challenge. Kids, pets, and years of clutter tend to become incredibly overwhelming. We’ve put together a few hacks to help get your home ready for market.

Declutter

This will be hardest but the most important task. Potential buyers have a hard time looking past a house full of junk. It probably isn’t actual junk but to someone who isn’t you… it looks like junk. Keep table tops clear of items except for a few decorative pieces. Kitchen counters should be basically free of items except your every day small appliances and cooking utensils. If you have a lot of small items that you use regularly (vitamins, remotes, cosmetics) try putting them in a basket- baskets make the space look cleaner and more organized.

Remove Personal Items

We know you love your family pictures but the family that is coming to view your home doesn’t want to see them. Instead of making the house feel like home, family pictures and religious items make a potential buyer feel like an intruder and they have a hard time picturing themselves living there. Safely box up family pictures, religious items, pet items and as many kids toys as possible. You’ll be ahead of the game when it’s actually time to pack up!

Buy Props

Fresh towels, new decorative pillows, abstract art… whatever your missing! The goal is to get your home to look like a model home. Nice rolled towels on the bathroom counter with a faux orchid is really inviting and expensive to the eye. You also want to make sure your walls aren’t bare. Bare walls make the house feel cold and unappealing. Remember the toss pillows you bought 2 years ago? Yea, the one the dog ripped or the kid colored on… toss those and get some new pillows that you only put out before showings.

Confused about what to pack up and what to keep out? Kristy Ann Designs provides occupied staging consultations for an hourly fee. We can simply give you a report and let you do the dirty work or we can stay (or arrange another date) to help. We have a large inventory of items that can be rented on a monthly basis or we can shop our local discount stores for inexpensive items to place in your home. We know what it takes to get buyers in your home!