How important is having a very stylish looking interior when selling a home? Can buyers see beyond clutter/weird wallpaper and spot potential?
The interior of a home plays a crucial role in creating a positive first impression on potential buyers. Clutter and mess can be distracting for buyers making it hard for them to appreciate the space available. Weird wallpaper or outdated décor is usually off-putting. A majority of buyers want to be able to move in and not to have to do any ‘work’ straight away. The people prepared to buy a project at the moment are relatively few and far between and they will always be the ones to make low offers.
Clutter and outdated décor can also give the impression to a buyer that a home hasn’t been maintained. Buyers may start to worry that if the seller hasn’t changed the wallpaper in 20 years then maybe they haven’t repaired the roof or the windows either.
At Lemon and Lime, we encourage a neutral colour scheme, particularly in wall colour, then we add colour and personality through the furniture and accessories. These items bring together the overall look of the room adding style and a purpose. By demonstrating to the buyer where to position furniture, where to hang artwork and what pieces fit well, they can begin to imagine how their belongings will fit and are more likely to proceed with a good offer.
How does an owner know if they need to have their home styled? Is this a question for their agent, or for a very forthright friend? What sorts of decors would you recommend have a face lift (ie: messy, very dated, very personal …)
Staging should be an integral aspect of every agents’ marketing strategy. It is one of the most valuable, and underused, differentiators in their marketing toolkit to help homeowners to achieve the all important fast sale with a great offer. Every agent should be offering an expert consultation to their sellers about their presentation before they launch to market. In that way it is never a difficult conversation with a seller, its part of an overall strategy to maximise every sale.
Only about 1% of the population live in homes that are ‘market ready’ every day. It isn’t a normal thing to do if you have a family or pets or a busy life. Every home can benefit from a few tweaks before the photographer arrives. These tweaks don’t have to cost anything. Most professional stagers will offer some free tips to enable a seller to do some work themselves.
If a home is messy, smelly, dated or just tired then a good staging business will be able to co-ordinate tradespeople quickly to do any decorating or repairs that will benefit the sale. They will then be able to advise on furniture and accessory placement and rent any additional furniture that may be necessary.
What impact does good staging have on the value/saleability of a home?
Staging helps potential buyers envision the full potential of a home. When a property is well-staged it often appears more attractive, inviting and move-in ready. Buyers can see themselves living in a well-organised, aesthetically pleasing space which can lead them to see the property at a higher value. Lemon and Lime have staged a large number of properties which have achieved a quick sale with an offer as much as 15% higher than a similar unstaged home. Our current average time for our clients to achieve an acceptable offer is 21 days against a national average of 66 days.
A recent example would be a cottage we staged in Leicestershire. The agent contacted us on behalf of the owner who had lived in the house for 30 years. Having been widowed a few years earlier and her children having grown up and left home she was very daunted at the task of sorting out rooms ahead of the photographer arriving. Over a four-day period our team decluttered rooms which had had boxes and unused furniture piled up. Laid new turf in the garden and decorated the music room. We finished on the Wednesday, the house was photographed on Thursday and the owner accepted an asking price offer the following Monday. She went from feeling overwhelmed at the task ahead to feeling delighted about being able to move quickly to the next phase of her life.
How much should you spend?
The cost of staging can vary considerably depending on what work is required at the property. There are a number of considerations such as square footage, house value and location which can have a bearing on the actual figure. To give a guide, a good declutter and style ahead of professional photos being taken, can cost anything up to 0.5% of the property guide price. A part-furnish, usually applied when rooms don’t have the right furniture or when part of the furniture has gone because of a relocation or a separation, tends to be around 1% of the guide price. Fully furnishing an empty home is likely to cost roughly 1.5% of the guide price.
We encourage clients to regard the spend as an investment in the overall marketing. Our own stats as well as those of the Home Staging Association and Rightmove evidence the financial difference staging can make. This may be anything from 5% to 15% difference to an identical unstaged home.
Take the first step towards successfully staging your home! Call Lemon and Lime Interiors today on 01332987740 to discover how our expertise in home staging can transform your property and attract potential buyers. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to maximise the appeal and value of your home. Pick up the phone and get in touch with Lemon and Lime Interiors now to find out more information and start your journey toward a successful sale!
