Home Staging
Staging your Central Oregon Coast Home
Here on the Central Oregon Coast it is absolutely essential to make a good first impression. Frequently prospective buyers are looking for second homes and only have a small window of time to find and purchase a vacation home. Often they contact me after viewing homes on the internet and may ask to preview a handful while they are in town. In fact, many buyers only spend a day or two here looking at homes. Thus, not only does your home need to shine above the rest, but it also needs to be ready to show on extremely short notice.
How can you ensure that your home will make the best impression possible? Here are six tips for savvy home sellers:
Focus on curb appeal. The outside of your house can be the source of a very good first impression. Keep the grass well-watered and mowed. Have your trees trimmed. Cut back overgrowth. Plant some blooming flowers or display a colorful hanging plant. Keep toys, bicycles, gardening equipment and the like out of sight. Remove all trash and debris. Have at least the front of your house and the trim painted, if necessary. Sweep the porch and the front walkway. After dark, turn on your front porch light and any other exterior lighting, create a warm, inviting look.
Clear out the clutter. Real estate agents say buyers won't purchase a home they can't see. Or more importantly, see themselves in it! If your home has too much furniture, overflowing closets, crowded kitchen and bathroom countertops or lots of family photos or collectibles on display, potential buyers won't be able to really see your home. Remove anything you don't need and that includes cleaning out the garage. Parking is often limited especially in well loved beach communities, so buyers need to able to visualize where they can store a car and accommodate guests.
Use your nose. Many people are oblivious to scents, but others are extremely sensitive to offensive odors. Often Oregon coast beach houses are left closed up for long periods of time and the inside air can become quite stale or even musty. When possible leave a window cracked and fans moving to circulate the air. To eliminate bad smells, shampoo your carpets, clean your drapes and bed coverings. Place open boxes of baking soda in smell-prone areas, and refrain from cooking fish or strong-smelling foods. Introduce pleasing smells by using neutralizing air fresheners.
Make all necessary repairs. Buyers expect everything in their new home to operate safely and properly. Picky buyers definitely will notice-and likely magnify -- minor maintenance problems you've ignored for months or even years. Leaky faucets, burned-out light bulbs, painted-shut, failed or broken windows, inoperable appliances and the like should be fixed before you put your home on the market. These repairs may seem small, but left undone they can lead buyers to question whether you've taken good care of your home.
Introduce lifestyle accessories and make your home as comfortable and attractive as possible. Set the dining room table with your best dishes. Put out your only-for-company towels. Make up the spare bed. Hang some fresh curtains. Put some logs in the fireplace. Dress your home as if it were being photographed for a magazine. Coastal themes tend to be very popular withOregon Coast home buyers - they are often seeking a get away that does not remind them of their busier city life. A few starfish casually laid on a fresh folded towel, a couple of Oregon Coast lifestyle magazines on the coffee table and a few pieces of coastal memorabilla can go a long way to saying this is a great Lincoln County beach house! Use your imagination!
Get a buyer's-eye view. Walk up to your home and pretend you've never seen it before. What do you notice? How do you feel about what you see? Does the home seem inviting? Well-maintained? Would you want to buy this home? Get friends and family members to do the same, just like proof reading -- they can see things you don't.
As part of my client service I have staging materials that I can make available should you need additional help in preparing your Central Oregon Coast home for sale.
John
