Experienced agents know that you need to sell a home to a potential buyer not once but three times. First through the photos on the internet, second when they see it from the outside, and third once they’ve walked through the door.
So we’ve got some tips from home stylists that will help to improve those all important first impressions. Not only can a bit of styling make people more likely to fall in love with a house, it could actually increase the amount they are willing to pay for it.
Here are 11 things you can suggest to your sellers that won’t cost much but could make all the difference.
Take a wander around your client’s home and make a few suggestions for quick, easy DIY fixes. You could suggest they fill chips in woodwork or plaster, replace tiles and glass panels that are cracked, paint over scuffs and remove mouldy grout or sealant from bathrooms and sinks and replace with fresh.
If people get a negative impression from the front of a house it can affect their view of the whole thing. Worryingly, it can also negatively impact their perception of its value. That’s why it’s worth suggesting to your client that they stand in the street and look at their house through buyers’ eyes. Some ideas could be tidying the front garden and pots, cutting the grass, mending cracked tiles on the path or roof or washing down or repainting exterior paint work.
Persuade your clients to streamline. Photos of rooms that have too much clutter can make them look cramped. Ask them to consider placing oversized or outdated items in storage to open-up the space and help viewers to see the potential of each room. However, try to avoid stuffing garages and sheds full of possessions – remember viewers may want to look there too.
If sellers have a room in their house that is used as a junk or storage room, try to persuade them of the benefits of ‘styling’ it as a room that is in everyday use. Whether they create a guest bedroom, an office or even a playroom, giving that room a purpose will help viewers to see its potential rather than disregarding it as nothing more than an oversized cupboard.
While your clients may love their dark navy-blue bedroom, it’s likely that a good proportion of viewers may not. Neutral colours can create a feeling of space in a house and they’re proven to help potential buyers feel more positively towards it. So if you feel there are any colour schemes that will be a particular turn off, suggest a paint job. Living with plain walls for a little while is a small price to pay for a quicker, higher priced sale.
Perhaps one of the most important things to be done before real estate photos are taken is a good thorough clean – concentrating on corners, cobwebs, shelves and bathrooms. Special care should be taken to remove pet hair from rugs, sofas and beds. Cleaning windows will not only make them look nicer, it will allow more light to spill into the property. Seeing a spotless home gives viewers a much better impression that is more likely to lead to a second viewing and possibly even a sale.
The kitchen is a very important room in the house – many sales have been made or broken here. So persuade your clients to give theirs the attention it deserves. Suggest they create the impression of lots of workspace by making sure everything is put away in cupboards, clean ovens, hobs and sinks and add greenery with pots of herbs or succulents.
Ultimately a home should be viewed as a blank canvas, helping viewers to envisage living there. Suggest temporarily tidying away personal photos and ornaments that may not be to everyone’s taste. The aim is to create the kind of clean, almost generic look that might be found in a show home.
Following on from tip 8, get your sellers to consider making the rooms look inviting. Place fluffy towels on guest beds, plump cushions on sofas and tactile rugs on flagstone floors. Use collections of vases, pots or ornaments to create interest – groups of odd numbers such as three or five are particularly pleasing to the eye.
While you should never insinuate that your seller’s home smells bad, it may be worth helping them to freshen it up when viewers are likely to be popping round. Suggest throwing open the windows to air the property or adding candles or air fresheners to key rooms.
One of the easiest ways to give a great first impression both in photos and in person is to add some ‘life’ to a home. This can be done with fresh cut flowers or bowls of fruit. If the region is known for oranges, lemons or lavender, for example, why not suggest using these to brighten up a table top or dresser? They will create lovely splashes of colour in photographs and perhaps even a wonderful aroma for those looking around the property.
This kind of ‘local’ touch is particularly effective if you’re trying to hook an international buyer.
Find out how to make sure your photos look professional when you upload them to your property listings.
