How to Stage Your Home for a Sale
Potential buyers make their decision to purchase your home in the first 30 seconds upon entering. First impression is the key to selling your home fast and for top dollar.

In addition, well staged homes sell for 30-50% faster than their counterparts.

[edit] StepsDe-Clutter, Clean, and/or Organize all rooms in the house - This should be your very 1st step.
Address any and all repairs that need attention. Inspect your house inside and out to search for cracks, etc. The small investment of time and money will mean a bigger return when it comes to the sale price.
Remember that improvement in landscapes will add curb appeal to attract a buyer. Use plenty of color in and around the front walkway and porch areas.
Update exterior lighting.
Paint the exterior and interior of the home. Interior paint should be in neutral tones.
Spruce up furniture that is outdated with slip covers.
Keep the bathroom as bare as possible, never leave your personals in view when showing your home. In fact, depersonalising your whole property is a powerful selling tip. Buyers will be more attracted to your house when they can imagine themselves living there. To make your house look lived-in without looking like anyone actually lives there, pack away into storage:


All family photos
Holiday souvenirs
Trophies & certificates
Collectible items
Children’s artwork
Home Gyms that haven't been used in months
Whether selling professionally or by yourself, make sure you have some fliers made up with details and photos of your house for prospective buyers to take away with them.
Know that an open house should appeal to all five of the senses:


Sight: Open the blinds and drapes to let in natural light. Keep clutter away and consider keeping your pet out of the home for that day. Play a colourful family movie on your TV and/or computer (e.g. Finding Nemo) with the sound off.
Smell: Put out flowers in the main rooms of the home, as well as scented candles. Bread in the oven is another good idea.
Taste: Make some cookies or something else for your guests. This will also help improve the aroma of your home. A hot pot of coffee helps with taste and smell also.
Hearing. Turn off the sound on all television sets and computers, and have some easy listening or jazz music playing in the background softly.
Touch. Have your guests sit on the softest couch, and make sure everything is clean and dust-free.
Space. When showing guests around your property, let them enter the room first. In smaller rooms e.g bathrooms, stay at the door. Too many bodies in too small a space causes a problem.



[edit] TipsListen and follow advice from your real estate agent!
You are putting your home on display, so present it well! If you don't think you have an eye for presentation, ask one of your friends or family to prepare your house for you. If you can't see a problem with clothes lying around and sticky floors, get someone else to present your house for you! Pay them if necessary - as presentation is so important in presenting your house.
Remember: you are decorating your home for someone else so keeping that in mind will help you to make purchases that will appeal to the masses.
Do not over-price your home! Have your real estate agent compare your home to others in your area of the same size for sale (get what is referred to in the industry as a Comparative Market Analysis) - They will determine the right price to list your home at. If you home has been on the market more than 3 months, doing this should help you sell your home along with staging your home. The whole point of staging, is getting your home show-able inside and out. If a potential buyer drives by your home and doesn't like the look of the outside (curb appeal) of your home, they will move onto another home. You have to grab their attention and get them in the door, so they will want to view your home.
De-clutter your home as well as deep cleaning will work wonders, and will show to potential buyers that the house is in stellar condition.



[edit] WarningsEvery room in the home, including the garage and decks, should be absolutely clean. Empty waste baskets and garbage pails daily. Try to keep pets out doors along with their litter boxes and food bowls during showings. Try to relax during this stressful process.



[edit] Things You'll NeedYou will need to make a few purchases. As mentioned earlier, sofa slip covers, flowers, and maybe new flooring. Make the purchase needed to update the home so that it will show well. You will certainly see a return on your investment.