SPONSORED: 10 tips for successful home staging

Preparing your house for sale can be a daunting and overwhelming task, whether you have lived in your home a few years or many. The longer you've lived in your home, the more things you will have acquired.

It's necessary to take a step back and recognize that this is no longer your home, but rather an investment for your future. You want your home to have broad buyer appeal among members of your target market. Remember, most people want to move into their new home without having to make updates to it.

Here are 10 home-staging tips to save you time, money and energy:

Curb appeal
Stand back and view your home as if you were seeing it for the first time – this is the first impression stage. Depending on the season, you may want to have pots of colourful and attractive flowers to greet buyers. A clean and inviting door mat, new and shiny door handles and/or knockers, or a freshly painted door are also sure to impress.

Declutter
Start your pre-pack as soon as possible. Decide what you are going to keep, what you will give away or sell, and what you will throw away. Many clients will rent storage lockers or have pods delivered, so they can start to clear out what anything that is not going to make the house look good for showings.

Clean
A clean home translates communicates to potential buyers that the property has been well taken care. Bathrooms and kitchens must be sparkling clean at the very least.

Depersonalize
We know you love your family photos and other personal treasures, but you want buyers to focus on the best features of your home and not your personal things or collections. Pack them up carefully, so you can showcase them in your new home.

Neutral colour scheme
Choose three colours or less to paint your house for selling. If you have an open floor plan, paint all the main-floor walls the same colour. Bedrooms look good in light sage greens or warm blues like the new aqua.

Highlight your home's best features
Arrange the furniture in each room to create obvious focal points that show off the home's selling features. For example, if you have a beautiful fireplace, place furniture in a parallel grouping that draws the eye to the fireplace.

Clearly defined room functions
If you were using your guest bedroom as a den, add appropriate furniture to turn it back into a bedroom for showings. If you do not have the right furniture for each room, consider renting it. There are more and more rental furnishing companies opening every day. If you don't want to rent, borrow instead.

Lighting
Spend money on new light fixtures in brushed nickel or stainless steel. Brass is out, so don't fight it. There are many low-cost lighting stores to select from, so there is no excuse for having dated light fixtures.

Window treatments
The most popular on the market are the two woods in a white tone to go with your trim. Decorative side panels will do the trick if you need to add warmth and colour.

Flooring
Tile or linoleum is great for entranceways, bathrooms, kitchens and laundry rooms, while a good-quality laminate or hardwood is perfect for living rooms and family rooms. Bedrooms are attractive in a neutral carpet.

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For more information, visit https://www.centralcalgary.com/.