It’s easy to get overwhelmed when staging and selling real estate. Staging a home is a time-consuming balancing act that requires you to be equal parts stylish and neutral. This guide will help you stage your Brookhaven or Buckhead living room properly, so you can appeal to the widest range of well-qualified buyers, and highlight your home’s best features.
Below are trends to avoid (and embrace) when staging your property for a quick and profitable sale.
Neutral color palette
Bold accent walls are a stylish tool for homeowners to show off and define their space—but when selling your house—there’s a risk that potential buyers won’t like the same color you chose. In the living room and elsewhere, bold accent walls often end up on the list of things that buyers want to be fixed before they move in. This means more work for you or the buyer and can dampen the buyer’s enthusiasm for your home. You want to use neutrals on your walls, cabinets, and flooring so that potential buyers feel like the property is “move-in ready.” There’s currently a lot of competition for condos for sale in Buckhead and homes for sale in Brookhaven, and you should encourage your buyers' imagination with as clean a color palette as possible.
Keep in mind: if your home’s color scheme is too monochromatic, it can make the space feel lifeless and flat. The goal when staging your home and establishing a color scheme is to create a warm and inviting space that is appealing to a wide array of buyers. Allow neutrals on walls and flooring to set the stage for other colors. Your local paint supply store will have many options for color schemes that you can use as a guide. They will even provide recommendations for accent colors you can include with pillows, wall art, or other removable items in the space.
Furniture
Large couches, armchairs, and love seats provide room and comfort to stretch out and settle into a home with your family. But when staging your house for sale, that large, overstuffed couch isn’t going to do you any favors. Large furniture makes rooms feel smaller and more crowded, and reminds potential buyers that someone else has been getting cozy in their future home. Replace large pieces with slimmer, more modern furniture that promotes a good flow of foot traffic and doesn’t hide the corners of the room. Allow the architecture of your space to speak for itself whenever possible. When buyers walk into a room, they should see open space, with clear pathways, and no large distractions from the best features of the room.
Modernity and Minimalism
Once again: balance is the crucial element of staging interior design. It’s true that replacing old and clunky furniture with sleek and modern pieces is always a good idea, however, it's possible to over-use any aesthetic. Using an abundance of over-simplified, ultra-modern furniture pieces (especially in an older, distinguished home) can make a house feel cold and unwelcoming. A blend of styles will give your home a unique and cozy feeling. Clean, contemporary lines open a space up but should be paired with plush pillows and accessories to provide warmth. Try this no-fail pillow formula to create a perfectly staged couch: layer a square 24-inch pillow with a 20-inch pillow on either side and put a lumbar pillow in the center or off to one side of the couch. This technique can make sleek, modern pieces strike a perfect balance between clean lines and comfort.
Rugs vs. carpets
Current trends favor natural, hardwood flooring over carpet. Ditching the carpet in a space is a good way to go when preparing to sell Buckhead real estate. As a counterbalance, all hardwood with no soft coverings can easily feel cold and unaccommodating. Adding area rugs will provide much-needed color, warmth, and coziness to your home for sale. This is especially true in your living room, or in your spaces with an open floor plan. An area rug will pull it all together and provide both comfort and structure.
Oversized artwork
While a large piece of artwork can be a wonderful focal point in a long hallway or dining room, they do not work in every room of the home. When using artwork, mirrors, and any other decorative wall art in a room with furniture, the object needs to be in proportion to the furniture. For example, objects hung over the sofa should be approximately two-thirds the length of the sofa. This can be done with one piece of artwork or with a grouping of pieces. When staging your living room to be listed, be cautious about hanging too many objects on the wall. If you have a natural focal point in the room, like a fireplace or large window, you might not need much else. Bare walls on condos for sale in Buckhead are fine if they help highlight the home’s best features.
DIY staging
There’s a lot that you can do yourself while staging a home for sale. You can clean the property, declutter, and depersonalize. You can start moving extra furniture pieces into storage and conceptualizing how a potential buyer will see your home for the first time. These processes also take a lot of time, and when it comes to the final touches, it’s extremely helpful to consult with a professional.
Professional stagers often have artwork, decor, and furniture available to their clients, which will save you time and money. Most importantly, professional home stagers will be able to highlight the features of your home that are most important to potential buyers in Brookhaven or Buckhead. Professional staging will increase your chances of selling your property fast, and for more money.
If you’re ready to stage and list your Atlanta home for sale, contact the local real estate experts at Erin Yabroudy & Associates today. Erin and her team know what it takes to buy and sell properties in Buckhead and Brookhaven, and pride themselves on providing the best real estate customer service in Atlanta.