Sell your home fast in the Del Mar, CA with these home staging techniques

Selling your home comes with its own set of challenges. There’s the emotional aspect, where you’re grappling with the decision to sell and whether it’s right to do so, along with the weight of letting your home go. Then you have to figure out the right price for your property and make sure the market conditions and timing are right; working with a real estate professional will at least give you a leg up in this aspect. You also have to compete with other sellers, making sure that buyers will be interested in your house and give it a second look, especially in a particularly hot market, as well as satisfy prospective homebuyers’ expectations and demands. On top of that, preparing your house for sale requires your attention, making necessary repairs, decluttering, cleaning up, and depersonalizing the space.

In a location like Del Mar, CA, with its incredible weather, gorgeous oceanfront setting, and pleasant community vibe, the demand for housing is high, with numerous people pursuing its appealing lifestyle. The Del Mar, CA real estate market offers modern coastal homes; contemporary beachfront properties; large, secluded estates; understated farmhouse-style homes; and hilltop houses offering relaxing oceanscapes – everything that typifies a blissful beach lifestyle.

If your goal as a home seller is to stand out in the Del Mar, CA real estate market, you might want to consider implementing effective home stage decoration ideas so that buyers will instantly feel they’ve found the right home the moment they step through your door.

WHAT IS HOME STAGING?

Home staging is a common strategy that’s a part of the process of preparing your house for sale. Simply put, it involves decorating your home in a way that would appeal to a broad number of prospective buyers and highlight the best features of your home.

Home staging is both an art and a skill that requires balance – you want to style your home well enough so that homebuyers can envision themselves living in your home, while allowing them to anticipate the thrill of putting their personal decorating stamp on it. Thus, to stay true to the purpose of the home staging process, you need to pare down your own belongings, which may get in the way of having buyers feel like your place could be their next home.

To successfully stage your home, you’ll need to go through the following steps:

1. Decluttering. This is a good way for you to take stock of your belongings, decide what goes out and what goes with you when you move to a new home, and to get your house ready for home staging.

2. Cleaning. Dust, vacuum, wipe everything down, shampoo the carpet – all that falls under this step. Everything must be spotless because homebuyers who are coming to take a look at your home will inspect everything. Even if they like what they see, they’ll still want to ensure they’re making the right decision.

3. Repairing. Buyers will not simply walk through your home, they will be opening doors and cabinets, turning on taps, and sniffing out signs of wear and tear. So fix leaks, replace broken tiles, and apply a lick of paint where needed.

4. Depersonalizing. Once you stage your home, train your brain to stop thinking of the house as yours alone. It’s now in the twilight state of being both your home and somebody else’s future home. And that’s why you need to get rid of family pictures, personal souvenirs, and unusual decorative items. Homebuyers should see themselves, and not you, in the house.

5. Decorating. You don’t need to shop for a new couch or start knocking down your kitchen cabinets. Something as simple as replacing lighting fixtures, installing trendy cabinet pulls or door handles, and rearranging the furniture can go a long way in refreshing your space.

   You can also ask your Realtor for help with home staging in CA. They can either point you to home staging professionals or provide tips of their own, given their experience with selling and preparing a house for sale. They know what buyers are looking for, so their knowledge of home staging in CA will help turn your home into something that will greatly appeal to buyers.

Simply put, you don’t want homebuyers to see what you’ve done with the place; you want them to see what they can do with it.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF HOME STAGING?

• Home staging increases the value of a home
  One-fifth of real estate agents surveyed by the National Association of Realtors say that staging increased the value of a home by up to 5%. A smaller number estimated an increase of up to 15%.

• Home staging sells homes faster
  HomeAdvisor, an online marketplace that connects homeowners with local service professionals, say that the perceived value of a staged home resulted in less time on the market, or being officially for sale. It also said that staged homes cut their time on the market by up to half the time it takes for unstaged homes to sell.

• Home staging makes buyers want to move in
  Staged homes give buyers a clearer picture of what they can do with your home, what living there can look like, and the quality of life they can look forward to. Buyers’ agents agree – 81% of them said home staging made it easier for buyers to imagine owning the property. Which increases the likelihood of getting your home sold.

• Home staging makes your property stand out online
  How do sellers stand out in a real estate marketplace filled with staged homes? If you think you’ve done a good job staging your home, hiring a professional real estate photographer is the logical next step. They’ll know how to capture your home in its best light, both in the figurative and literal sense. Their lens will focus on the unique but crowd-pleasing qualities of your home and do so when your home is bathed in the softer light of early morning or late afternoon. If your home has dramatic views, sits on an elevation, or looks great when viewed from many angles, you might also consider drone videography to set your listing apart.

• Home staging can reflect the vibe of the location
  When home staging in CA is done well, it might even reflect the atmosphere that buyers associate with the location. A nicely staged Del Mar, CA home is a clear invitation to homebuyers to experience the local lifestyle and become a part of the community.

• Home staging allows sellers to pare down their stuff
  Staging your home also has one extra benefit for you: once you’ve decluttered your home and pared down your belongings, you’ll have a much lighter load once you move out.

WHAT ARE THE MOST EFFECTIVE HOME STAGING TECHNIQUES?

There are many techniques you can employ during the process of home staging in CA, but make sure that you don’t get overwhelmed by details. To keep your focus, it’s a good idea to take a look at each room and imagine what a homebuyer would want to see in it. Then, start editing: get rid of items that clutter the space, remove as many personal items as you can, and strive for universal appeal.

At this point, you should have already taken care of the basics like making repairs and cleaning up. Here are some home stage decoration ideas you can implement for each room in your home:

Staging a living room

First impressions absolutely matter. After the front door or yard, the living room is likely to be the first thing that homebuyers see when they step into your home. You want it to look good enough for homebuyers to want to explore the rest of the house. Here’s how to achieve that:

• Keep the space open. Reduce the clutter, and avoid placing one too many chairs or side tables. You want homebuyers to navigate the living room freely, not weave in and out of stuff. Also, avoid piling on too many pillows on the couch. It might look cozy, but if your sofa is especially comfortable, you want it to look inviting enough for people to want to sit on it, thus enhancing the welcoming vibe of your home.

• Let the light in. Replace dark curtains with sheer window treatments that help brighten up the living room.

• Create a focal point. Draw the eye to a notable feature of the room like a fireplace, a view, or built-in bookcases. Do so by rearranging the furniture to highlight the feature, or in the case of built-ins, carefully edited set pieces such as decorative items, a few volumes, a small plant, and so on. Just don’t overstuff the built-in.
  Use neutral colors to create a unified look, but keep it interesting with accent colors in rugs, throw blankets, or pillows.

• Define functionality. Arrange the furniture to define the different functional areas within the living room, such as seating, entertainment, and conversation areas. Arrange furniture in a way that promotes flow and conversation.

Staging a dining room

The dining room is a place for friends and families to gather and catch up, reconnect, or strengthen bonds over a shared meal. Thus, you want buyers to see the dining room as a place for enjoyment, conversation, and good times, as well as appropriate for dressier occasions.

• Make sure there’s plenty of space to move around. Homebuyers will want to walk around the table to get a better feel of the space – is there enough room to accommodate the family on a daily basis or larger gatherings if you like entertaining? To create the illusion of more space, professional stagers often use a dining room table that seats four only. If you have a larger dining room, however, having a larger table and more seats is fine.

• Update the lighting fixtures. One of the easiest ways to update a room is to replace its lighting fixtures. Refresh the pendant light that’s been looming over your dining table for ages. You can replace it with a streamlined suspension light that looks contemporary and uncluttered, a rattan or wicker pendant for an eco vibe, or a Mid-Century Modern Sputnik pendant for a retro-cool look.

• Set the table as if you’re preparing to entertain guests. This creates a welcoming scene and sparks the imagination of homebuyers. You don’t need to plan an elaborate tablescape. Just make sure to lay out nice plates, good flatware, glasses, table napkins, and a centerpiece that complements the style of your table arrangement.

Staging a kitchen

The kitchen is the most important selling point of a home. In a Zillow survey, 58% of respondents cited the kitchen as the most important room when considering a home purchase. Additionally, homes with well-designed kitchens tend to sell faster and for higher prices than those with outdated or less functional kitchens. Make the kitchen the star of your home by employing the following:

• Update your cabinetry. You can do so either by repainting them or simply replacing the handles and drawer pulls.

• Keep your countertops clear. Store small appliances out of sight. Instead, display a vase of fresh flowers on your countertop or, alternatively, a bowl of lemons or fresh fruit.

• Get rid of the magnets on your fridge door. Like the previous tip, the aim is to declutter your kitchen and keep it looking fresh and clean.

• Maximize the space. Create the illusion of more space by removing bulky items and organizing cabinets and drawers efficiently. Consider using drawer organizers and cabinet racks to maximize storage space and showcase the kitchen’s functionality.

• Organize your pantry. Pare it down – remove items so that there is open space on each shelf. The idea is to have buyers perceive a ton of storage space. Transfer a few dried items like grains, pasta, flour, nuts, spices, and candy into clear storage containers with labels.

Staging a primary bedroom

The primary bedroom is another make-or-break factor when selling a home. Homebuyers want the primary bedroom to be spacious, relaxing, and a true retreat at the end of the day. Here’s how to achieve this:

• Replace lighting fixtures. Many bedrooms tend to have basic lighting, but you can amp up the appeal of your bedroom with a small chandelier or a lighting fixture with a ceiling fan.

• Make sure the bed is a good fit for the space. If not, rearrange the room or stage it in a way that diminishes the focus on the bed. Think window treatments, lighting, and creating a feature wall, for example.

• Bedding matters. You don’t need to buy expensive sheets and comforters. It’s enough to choose from what you have but make sure they’re simple, pristine, and fit the aesthetic of your staged home.

• Keep the floor clutter-free. Enhance spaciousness by putting away things like ottomans and storage baskets.

• Secure your belongings. Keep valuable items in a safe place. Remove half of what’s hanging in your closet to make it look roomier.

Staging a home office

A home office has become a normal feature of many dwellings as remote work is here to stay. Whether you have a dedicated room for a home office or a small corner in your house that functions as your work area, you can use the following tips for staging your home office:

• Use organizing solutions. Storage boxes and organizers are functional musts. Employ cable management solutions to conceal cords for printers, laptop and phone chargers, and power strips to avoid clutter and tangles.

• Make sure your desk has enough space. Think dual monitor setups, laptop stands, a desk lamp, and other things your buyer might need on their desk. Otherwise, rearrange your desk so that a side table can function as extra space.

• Ideally, a home office should have a window. There should ideally be plenty of natural light flowing throughout your home office. This makes the space an energizing, inspiring place to spend the workday in. If you don’t have a window, make sure that ample lighting is available.

A reminder: Before opening your home to prospective buyers, don’t forget to lock away any personal documents and paperwork.

Staging outdoor spaces

“Curb appeal” is often cited as something that you should improve on when staging your home. Typically, this involves enhancing your outdoor space by making it look inviting and pretty so buyers are motivated to explore the rest of the house. Here are ways to enhance the outdoor spaces of your home:

• Refresh your doorway and upgrade door handles if needed.

• Keep it manicured. Mow the lawn, pull up weeds, replace patchy grass in your front yard, add a thin layer of mulch along footpaths for aesthetic reasons and to encourage seedlings to sprout. Spring is the best time to put down mulch.

• Enhance lighting. This will give the place a charming glow at night and also ease any worries that the outdoor areas may be too dark and become unsafe.

• Create a relaxing space. People want to see how they can enjoy their backyards and patios all year round. Make sure that any outdoor furniture is in good shape, and provide areas where people can lounge around. After all, backyards are no longer just for barbecues; they’re now enjoyed by homeowners for dining, cocktail parties, and simply unwinding. Arrange furniture around a long outdoor dining table, and place pillows and an outdoor rug for a cozy feel.

• Provide enough shade. This shows homebuyers that they can enjoy the outdoor spaces comfortably even on hot sunny days.

• Get rid of clutter. Hide garden hoses and gardening implements, and relocate trash and recycling bins so they’re not on view.

GET EXPERT HELP WHEN YOU SELL YOUR HOME IN DEL MAR, CA

Selling a home is an intricate process, one that Sean Caddell and his associates are more than familiar with. With their in-depth knowledge of buyers’ needs and expectations and of Del Mar, CA real estate conditions, they create a tailored selling strategy for each client that delivers impressive results.

Whether you need help with home staging in CA or you’re ready to sell your home in Del Mar, CA, Sean Caddell and his associates are ready to assist. Call 858.472.1074 or contact them here to get started on achieving your real estate goals.