With a sluggish real estate market, just having a sign posted outside your home or several classified ad postings may not be enough to sell your property. If you’ve been stock with your posting for quite a while, you’ll have to take new measures to make a sale. Home Staging is a popular way to increase not only the chance of selling, but also the value of the property itself

Home staging can have many definitions. It could range from simply cleaning and tidying up, to investing on decorations and furniture and up to personalizing the house for the anonymous future buyer. With that being said, the expense will also range from absolutely nothing but pure labor, to thousands of dollars from your pocket. Don’t get me wrong, home staging is not simply decorating. If you have lived in that property, it will include depersonalizing the home so the future buyer can imagine himself/herself in that house. It could be a marketing tactic, but it could also benefits both parties. For home staging tips, continue reading this article. 

Why Do Home Staging? 

According to Wall Street Journal, buyers look into three factors when deciding on their purchase – location, condition, and price. As a seller, you want to be firm on your price. You will not want to dive into the buyer’s supposed budget just to get the sale. You should know your property and what it’s really worth. So price isn’t a variable. 

For the location, obviously, you can’t just move your home from one city to the other. It’s fixed and you understandably have no choice on this matter. It’s also a definite constant. 

This leaves you with one factor to affect- condition. This is where home staging comes into play. So “how to do home staging?”, you may wonder. Will you be able to do it on your own? What should you do to effectively home stage your property? Below are some tips to help you out. 

Image Credit: Qanvast, Form & Space

Home Staging Tips

Lighting

Lighting can impart almost any mood you want to- from bright to cheery and subdued to romantic. That’s why light is very powerful. Importance of lighting is most especially relevant in home staging. The general knowledge of how brightness affects the size of a room, how lighting can highlight the best part of your home, and how it can also hide certain flaws of your space, are all part of lightings contribution to home staging. There are three types of lighting, all of which should be used for home staging. 

Image Credit: Qanvast, ELPIS Interior

Type 1  -Using  Ambient Lighting 

Not to undermine the other types of lighting, but ambient lighting is perhaps the most important one for the household. Truth be told, ambient lighting can stand on its own. Ambient lighting is the light that is soft and indirect. It provides just enough light for general everyday jobs that’s why it’s also called general lighting. 

For every room, make sure you provide good ambient lighting, uniform enough to illuminate the entire space. This will provide encouragement to those doing real estate trippings. 

Chandeliers

Chandeliers fall under ambient lighting. Although some may consider it more as a statement piece, it actually provides bright light radiated to all angles and illuminates the entire room. Gone are the days when chandeliers were very Victorian or classical, now there are modern chandeliers available in the market. As a statement light, you need it to set your theme, and a theme is very important in home staging. 

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These days, chandeliers can be used not only in the living room but even in the bedroom, dining, and kitchen. The main goal is to illuminate the space and look nice, but if you have the budget to provide all these, why not? One of the goals of home staging is get the attention of the prospective client, and chandeliers are a great way to make them interested. 

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Recessed Lights and Other Ceiling Mounted Fixtures

Recessed pin lights are ceiling mounted fixtures used commonly before for offices. Nowadays, it has been widely used by homeowners because it’s cheap and low maintenance. It also provides general lighting, although you need several of it for your room. It’s good for making the room bright, but not so much for design. 

A good way to utilize recessed lights is by getting a ceiling mounted fixture that is definitely less cheap than a chandelier, and mix it up with recessed lights. With a ceiling mounted fixture on the middle and several recessed pin lights on the perimeter, you’re able to present a room that is visually appealing and effectively bright. 

Image Credit: Home Reno Guru, Flo Design PTE LTD

Space your pinlights approximately 4 feet apart (on center) if you have an eight-foot ceiling. If you have a 10 foot ceiling, space the pin lights 5 feet apart. 

Type 2 – Using Task Lighting

Task lighting from the term itself aims to help the homeowner perform the task at hand- reading, working, studying, cooking, shaving, etc. You should still consider this when home staging even if you’re not the one to perform the task, which you’ll be able to understand more in a while. Task lighting comes in many forms and techniques. It can include table lamps, bedside lamps, bathroom mirror lights, adjustable lamps, under the counter lighting, and many more. 

The point of task lighting is to aid the homeowner without tiring the eyes so it should be glare free. When you provide task lighting, trippers will easily imagine themselves in the home you’re selling. They may say “Hey, I can read my book here”, or “This is a good spot for baking”, etc. Once they imagine themselves in the home you’re selling, a connection may be established. 

When providing task lighting, avoid halogen lamps and fluorescent bulbs. The former generate a very stark light, while the latter can be hard on the eyes when projected near the task at hand. 

Image Credit: Renopedia, Living Icon PTE LTD

Pendant Lights 

Although you will not be the one to live in the house, you would still want to impress prospective buyers by making them see that you have the complete package. Pendant lights are a good way to do so. Pendant lights can be used in aiding the task while it is also a popular and stylish choice of designers. 

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Pendant lights can be used anywhere. You can use it for the Kitchen Island, walk in closets, hallways, and even the dining room. Some also use pendant lights for ambient lighting as a cheaper choice compared to chandeliers. 

The difference between pendant lights and chandeliers is that the former directs light downwards while the latter radiates light to all angles. Either way, both lights will be functional and extremely pleasing to the eyes. 

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Type 3 – Using Accent Lighting

A while ago, I mentioned that ambient lighting is the most important type of light in general. In home staging though, accent lighting levels the competition. Accent lighting creates a mood and adds interest to a room through highlighting areas and objects that you will prefer. It can be a plant, an artwork, a display, an architectural element, or even the wall itself. It may not be recognized much, but accent lighting may make or break your sales pitch. 

Image Credit: Qanvast, Prozfile Design

Track Lights

Track Lighting is a good technique to highlight your home or a certain object. With many heads available, it can focus on multiple objects while still serving as a task light, depending on where the heads are directed. 

The track light itself is already stylish especially if you have a modern themed home. If you’ve recently gone into a museum, you’ll notice that this method is widely used. It’s the same concept that you’ll have to use into your home for home staging. Direct the light into the display and get the attention of the buyer.

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Wall Lamps and Wall Sconces

Same as track lights, wall lights can do both task lighting and accent lighting. It depends on where the light is reflected. Some wall lamps are plainly accent lights that project light upwards and downwards, highlighting the wall and creating a triangle shaped shadow that is very eye catching.  

You can install wall lamps on the sides of the bed, on plain walls of the living room, and on the hallway so no part of the house will be dull. 

Image Credit: Just Organized

Get a similar look with: Vilhosa Best of Twins Wall Lamp

Uplight and Spotlight

Uplights or spotlights can also be an integral part of your home staging. Place an uplight on a gloomy corner, perhaps below a plant, and create interesting shadows that will lighten up a previously dark color. This will create a visual interest on an otherwise blank space. 

You can also experiment with spotlights on plain walls. Even without an object to highlight, just try directing the spotlight towards the wall. Play with its orientation and location. You may discover something interesting.

Image Credit: Pinterest

Other Non Lighting Tips 

Ask for Opinion

If it’s an old home, consult your family and friends. In particular, ask those who have been to your home several times. Ask for their honest opinion. If they can recall, what was odd in the house? What was great with the house? Are there things they can recommend?

It’s also important to establish a borderline between improving the house to make a sale and your personal attachment to the house. Depersonalize it. It’s not for you anymore, so don’t be biased with your preference. You’re asking for opinion so you can collate and combine all those positives and negatives into one central idea- a better home for sale. 

You can also ask help from a real estate agent so they can give you more tips, as they know the preference of clients well. If you don’t want to spend or you don’t personally know a real estate agent, continue reading to get more ideas. 

Image Credit: Renopedia, Design 4 Space

Focus on Important Rooms

Let’s face it, majority of those selling their homes have doubts on spending too much on home staging. Why? Well there’s always the risk of spending too much and not sell the house at once. However, we don’t recommend neglecting home staging as a whole. In order to somehow save money, you can instead focus your home staging on important rooms while keeping the other parts plain and simple. 

Direct your effort on the living room, master’s bedroom, kitchen, and one bathroom. With this, you’ll be able to show the client how it should be done, and how the house can look like once decorated wholly. 

Image Credit: Home Reno Guru, Designer Furnishings

In lighting, make sure to provide a statement piece on the living room. A chandelier or a ceiling mounted decorative light will do. On the master’s bedroom, at least put wall lamps on the bedside and cove lighting on the ceiling. For the bathroom, install pendant lamps near the sink. 

Image Credit: Home Reno Guru, Starry Homestead PTE LTD

Patch and Repair

If your house is decorative but the roof is leaking or the wall paints are chipped off, then it just doesn’t make sense. You want your house to be the full package. There has to be a sense of balance between aesthetics and functionality. That’s how home staging should be. 

Image Credit: 9Reno

Furniture and Fixtures

A good interior designed home should have complementing furniture, lights, and color pallet. In planning lighting, you’ll have to consider the furniture and the color of the wall, and vice-versa. Having expensive furniture will not guarantee you an excellently home staged home. Instead, go for a cheap furniture that will match your lighting and the color of your home. You can even have it rented! 

The buyer will have the option anyway to replace it with furniture they prefer. The lighting, however, could be fixed, since it will involve electrical works that could be an added cost on their part. 

Like in the image below, the lights provided were all in theme with the furniture and fixtures.

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Other Recommendations

• Move-in Ready

Some buyers prefer houses that are move-in ready. Just be sure to do your research on the market in your area as a move-in ready home will require a lot of expenses 

• Declutter

Well this one’s a given. As they say, first impression lasts. Pull out your personal belongings and make sure the house is tidy. 

• Rent If Necessary

Buying everything may be risky. Despite multiple efforts to make a complete home, some just have their own preference. For furniture such as sofa, cabinets, console tables, etc., you can rent instead. 

•  Go with Neutral Colors

Bold and bright colors make a statement. However, for some, it may be a turn off. Go for the colors white, gray, and beige for your walls. These are the safest colors. 

• Allow Natural Light

Natural light is the cheapest form of light. It’s basically free. It also helps in brightening the house, making it bigger and spacious. Complement it then with artificial lights such as those mentioned previously to have good lighting both in the morning and at night. 

Image Credit: Qanvast, Schemacraft

These are our home staging tips. Selling your home is not impossible. You just have to invest a bit for it to be appealing and enticing. Instead of practicing a monologue for your sales pitch, just let the house do the talking and answer questions of the buyers instead.