Do your own home staging! 5 Ways to prepare your house to sell

Long time no blog writing, The year is nearly over and Christmas is in a month's time - how the heck did that happen? This blog is about the latest Porter & Gold project, and a new service I am offering (a full description of this service and pricing is detailed at the end of this blog post) As well as: My 5 top tips for getting your house ready to sell, I hope you find them really useful! 

 

We've just finished working on a home staging project for independent Bristol estate agent Boardwalk. The space is a freshly decorated 2 bedroom apartment in the heart of Bristol, and together with my team, Remi and Seb, doing the lifting, van driving and handy work, it's gone really well, and Boardwalk’s photographer will be going in on Friday. I will post before and after photos on our social media when it's listed online. For this apartment I used mostly plain, solid wood pieces, with softer elements coming in on the textiles, lots of light pieces too and a superb huge framed limited print of an Aubrey Beardsley piece, “The Cape”, over the fireplace. The window area was superb, but had no curtains and dirty windows - not a good look for selling a place, along with the apartment being empty! Remi and I hung a beautiful vintage oak curtain rail for the huge front windows, making it much wider than the window frame so that when the curtains are open they do not block any light, and now frame the entire window space. I then added a huge rug, an antique oak dining table (oval shaped), with some vintage chairs and a plain ivory ceramic pot with perfect curves to the centre of the table: it has transformed a previously lifeless area into a perfect place to sit and drink a cuppa while watching the world go by, and to eat delicious meals with family and friends, or indeed for doing some peaceful work from home. 

 

I am working on the creation of a new service to offer to homes that do not need a full staging service, but instead would benefit from some help with styling, placement ideas and preparing the house ready for the estate agent’s photographer, and for the all important in person house viewings. As I work predominantly in Bristol on home stage projects, (and am on the mailing list for a lot of estate agents!) I've often noticed that most Bristol homes do not need a ‘full stage’ when they come to market. A large percentage of them could really benefit from styling however, and this is where the new service comes in. It’s a concise, affordable and actionable service that will add value to home owners as it will help homes to sell for the right price, and keep them from hanging about too long on the market as well. (See full details at the end of this blog post). 

 

Five ways to prepare your house to sell:  

 

As on my most recent home stage (detailed above), it's important to have a look around your house and decide what is your favourite area. Keep in mind what could work as a mix of functionality and beauty - like a dining area, or aesthetically striking walls with unusual art work…a sofa area, even a stairwell or nook! Then clear any clutter from this area, and clean it thoroughly. Then have another look and decide if you can add some accessories to lift the look of the area - a big carved bowl for a dining table or a stunning pendant light are always popular and make for good photos too. Another example could be your living room / sofa area: get symmetrical - not identical, by facing your sofa square on to two arm chairs with a table in the middle, and maybe on between the two chairs (space depending) and add a floor lamp with a beautiful shade, and some decent fat cushions, with natural fibres, and 2 or 3 thick, good quality, wool blankets… a pile of books or magazines on the coffee table add depth to these spaces too. 

 

2. Deep clean your house and clear your clutter! This may be very obvious - however! It gets missed a lot so I am including it. This clearing and cleaning of your space really does clear the atmosphere of a home too, and changes the energy, and literally freshens up the entire place. Put away anything that is not useful or beautiful. If you cannot bear to part with the surplus things (yet, get some storage boxes and put things in them for now to sort out later (from my experience it's very rare that you will ever need anything you put away again!). Then get to work to clean, dust, wipe and hoover every inch of your space - open the windows, play some tunes and maybe even burn some incense (I am part hippy so this is how I do my house cleans). There are lots of great books about clutter clearing, Marie Kondo is quite extreme but I have used it before - my favourite ever book on Clutter Clearing (if you feel you need some extra help to get started) is: Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, by Karen Kingston, an absolutely life changing book for many people - myself included! 

 

3. Lighting! Check round your house and remove any ugly, cheap or broken lamps or ceiling shades - and thoroughly dust the ones that are staying! Replace broken or ugly ones with simple round paper shades, Ikea do good ones that are recycled paper, or ones made with natural materials. Etsy is a great place to look for natural lighting options. 

 

4. Windows are the eyes of the house and deserve special attention… get them cleaned, Inside and out, and if you can, hang cotton or linen curtains on wooden (or copper pipe) poles….if possible, hang the curtains so they do not block the windows when they are open. Long length curtains, even to the floor, add drama to a living area, and could be part of your statement area plan. 

 

5. Floors are the base for your home's whole look, and are very important. Clear and cleaned floors are marvellous things on their own, however! If you have not got lovely exposed floorboards or nice carpets….do not worry! Large rugs, hessian or woven wool, are widely available on Facebook Marketplace - choose a colour that works with the furniture you already have. A large rug in a living space ties the room together. If you like you can do a series of smaller rugs to add some texture and take the eye away from what might be underneath. It's not to totally hide your floors, but show how good they could look while offering a refreshed look. 

 

I hope the above information is useful for you when getting your house ready to sell, and if you have any further questions please do email me. And if you do not have time to do the home styling and staging on your own, and would like some help to get your house ready, please get in touch and together we can make a plan to prepare your home and help you make the decor changes that will really catch the eye of potential buyers and make your house stand out. 

 

Have a brilliant day, and thank you for reading my blog post! 

 

 

Samaya  

(Director, Porter & Gold) 

 

As promised, here is the information and pricing for the new home stage and styling service, the other staging services we provide, as well as some juicy information and statistics on the benefits of home staging: 

 

 

You may have heard of home staging and interior styling, and if so then you already know the benefits it can add! However, if you'd like more information, a few statistics and some examples, then this section is for you. 

 

 

 

A few recent examples of home staging projects Porter & Gold have worked on: 

 

 

 

Introducing our home styling and staging service, designed to help homeowners maximise the sale value of their homes. Interior decor expert, Samaya Ling, known for her exceptional ability to craft living spaces that truly resonate with people. Samaya will personally guide you in creating an inviting, warm, and irresistibly appealing environment that will captivate potential buyers. 

 

This service is perfect for homes that already have a solid foundation, are well decorated, and furnished. Samaya can add her expertise to advise you on creating a statement area in your home for really adding a unique look to your property, as well as room layouts, shelf and wall displays, and art and object placement in just the right spots, alongside practical advice on clutter and minor decoration that may be needed. 

 

When you come to the time to sell your property, please get in touch and we'll have a chat to see if this service is a good fit for you. If it seems like a good way to go, we'll set you up with a meeting with Samaya and she can then help you make the decor changes that will really catch the eye of potential buyers and make your house shine. 

 

During the 90 minute style and stage appointment, Samaya will work with you to create a clear plan of action for preparing your house for photography and viewings to make sure your property is looking its absolute best. It is important to note that the styling is not just for when the estate agents do the photos! It is for the in person viewings too, as this is when the real wow factor of styling and staging works its magic. After Samaya’s visit you will receive an email document with a list of the recommendations for your home. We are confident that the 90-minute staging and styling consultation service will enhance the appeal and boost the sale value of your home. 

 

The Home style and staging consultation 90 minute service costs £350.00. Email us here to book. 

 

 

 

 

As per for the home stage and style service, the above services create a significant difference to the marketing power, desirability and final sale value of your property. 

 

Contact us to make an inquiry and see if we are a good fit to help you sell your home! Love, Porter & Gold