Can you have a beautifully staged home and still live in it whilst your home is on the market? Yes, with some thought, planning and discipline, you can.
Homes that are staged, whether professionally or DIY typically sell faster because they enable the buyer to ‘visualise’ the home as their own. If your budget doesn’t extend to having your home professionally staged by a Home Stylist there is plenty you can do to stage it yourself and still go about your daily life while it’s on the market.
Depersonalise
Do a sweep through your home and pack away all personal items. This includes personalised framed wall hangings, photos, trophies, awards, certificates, any religious icons, memo boards, pictures and magnets on the fridge, calendars, children’s artwork etc.
Take a harsh look at your furniture
Do you have too much furniture? Is it looking a little worn around the edges? You may need to consider putting pieces in storage or a neighbour/family member’s garage. If you’re removing major items like couches you’ll need to find a temporary replacement so phone a few Home Stylists and ask if they hire out what you require.
If replacing furniture is not an option, remove as many excess pieces as you can and work with what you have. Will a throw rug and some new cushions help spruce up a tired sofa? If you remove a heavy chest of drawers, add some petite side tables along with a new doona cover does your bedroom come to life while still enabling you to use it?
Ensure each room has a purpose
You may be using a corner of your living area as a home office, a spare room as a children’s playroom or your back deck as a handyman’s temporary workshop. Adjust the spaces back to their original purpose so buyers can see the potential of each room. Yes, it will be inconvenient while you continue to live there but it’s only temporary. In the interim, you may need to work with a portable home office (a laptop on the dining room table) and a toy crate that packs neatly away in a cupboard.
Conduct a daily sweep
Allocate a specific time each day to go through the home and put away items that have made their way onto countertops, under furniture or other random places. Get the whole family involved by allocating each member a specific zone. Look for items such as shoes, phone chargers, daily mail, books and magazines, toys, electronic devices, discarded clothes, dirty dishes, personal items such as toiletries, reading glasses, etc.
Smells
Be mindful of the smells that are naturally (or unnaturally) occurring from your day-to-day living. Do you have a dog? Now’s the time to ensure they’re bathed, clipped and brushed regularly. Are you cooking curries or other fragrant foods? Perhaps some time spent planning a menu of simple food that produces minimum odour will help keep your home smell-free. Is the residual smell of your personal spray deodorant swirling around the confines of your bathroom? Change to roll-on. Do you like burning candles or incense? Wrap these items up in plastic bags and put them away so traces of their fragrance won’t upset people browsing your home.
