3 Tips for Staging Your Maidstone Home on a Budget

When the time comes to sell your home in Maidstone, you want to do everything you can to make it look appealing to potential buyers. Fixing up any aspects of your home that needs maintenance is one way to go, as is renovating or modernising some rooms to increase your home’s resale value, but if you have already finished these or aren’t planning on making any major renovations before the sale, how do you attract buyers?

Here at Knight Edmonds we know that staging your home is a crucial element to the home selling process. It allows people to imagine their lives in their potential new home and gives them a chance to see what it would be like if they lived there themselves. Homes that aren’t staged have less chance of being sold quickly because it’s hard to imagine how you would fit into a new home when there’s no furniture and you have to picture it all in your head. It helps improve your online property listing as well as helping with open house events. Not only that, but it also can increase your sale price by an average of one to five percent if you implement home staging tips before putting your home up on the market.

Home staging can be pricey if you hire a professional and rent furniture to make it look picture-perfect but don’t give up on the idea if you don’t have a big budget to work with. You can easily stage your home with a low budget. Whatever you do, try not to leave your home completely empty.

So, how can you make your home look appealing to buyers without spending a small fortune? Here are three tips for staging your home on a minimal budget.

1. Tidy up everything

The first step is to clean like mad, both the inside of your home and the outside. The exterior of your home matters as well because it’s likely the first impression most people will get when they see your property either online or from the street. You want to have good kerb appeal to draw people inside to see more, so your first task is to straighten up your garden. Keep your grass cut, remove any debris like fallen branches and leaves, and make sure your hedges are trimmed and maintained. If you want to improve it further, plant some flowers or display hanging baskets where you can.

Now for the interior of your home. Staged homes look incredibly neat and tidy, free of clutter and junk. Everything is carefully placed and organised. Start by packing up some of your belongings in each room – roughly 30 percent of each room should be packed up before putting your home on the market. This will make every room in your home feel bigger. Once you’ve removed some of your things, you should do a walk-through and de-clutter as much as you can. The tip here is to get rid of it, not stash it somewhere you think is hidden. Potential buyers will be opening cupboards to see how much space they have, so keep that in mind (and remember to clean out and organise your wardrobes too!). Countertops and bookshelves should be sparse except for a few purposeful decorative items. Also, it’s important to neutralise your home in terms of taste and personal belongings. Think of the buyer: what would they want to see? Take down some family photos to make it easier for buyers to picture themselves living there.

Once this has all been done, it’s time to go from room to room and give everything a good deep clean, making sure to take extra care in the bathrooms and kitchen. Open windows for some fresh air (avoid spraying air fresheners in case people have sensitivities to the scents or chemicals) and try to vacuum before all viewings or open house events.

2. Maximise your space

Staging your home with your existing furniture is easy when you consider making it function less like a home that serves your needs, and more like a show home. Focus your efforts on the rooms people spend the most amount of time in, like the living room, master bedroom and kitchen, and spend extra time staging rooms that are smaller so you can quell potential buyers’ fears of not having enough space for their furniture. Move your furniture around so there’s an obvious social space and still room for foot traffic. Potential buyers will want to walk around and check out the space, but it’s also good to help them imagine living in a space where they can easily have conversations and entertain friends and family.

3. Re-invent your space with the right decor

The trick to staging your home on a minimal budget is to use items you already have to re-create your space to make it feel cosy and homely, as well as stylish and attractive. Every room should be inviting and warm, so consider some tips like placing plants near features you want to draw the eye to – like a fireplace or entertainment unit – strategically hanging mirrors to make the room look bigger and brighter, and using vases to add a pop of colour where needed.

For more advice on selling your home and to arrange a free valuation, contact our professional team of experts at Knight Edmonds on 01622 291491.