8 Tips for Staging Your Indian Wells Home to Sell

Before moving to a new home, an important task remains: preparing your Indian Wells home to sell. While this might seem overwhelming or complicated, it can be a smooth and seamless process. There are several practical and smart steps you can take to ensure your home makes the most of its time on the market and sells at a faster rate.

One such step you can take is staging your home. This means preparing and setting up the space for the prospective buyer. This can include everything from cleaning, rearranging furniture, removing personal photos and keepsakes, and incorporating other strategies to help your house put its best foot forward. Of course, when one takes this all into consideration it can lead them to ask a vital question: is all this work, time, effort, and money involved in staging worth it? When it comes to selling your home and getting the best offer possible, the answer is a resounding yes!

By staging your home, you can maximize its character, highlight the best features, and put its strengths on display for potential buyers. Additionally, this is a fantastic way to put your house in the best light possible, thereby attracting more attention and interested parties. As per Investopedia, “Good staging is a form of visual merchandising that draws on some of the fundamentals of interior design.” The goal is to flatter the house and surrounding property without being overtly obvious about it. Although this can be a time-consuming and long process, staging your house will increase your chances for a great sale. Consumer Reports says that there is a 3-5% value increase for a clean and decorated home. Since staging is such an essential and valuable aspect of getting the most bang for your buck, where should prospective home sellers begin? What is the first step in the process?

Give your house a good top-to-bottom scrub. Prospective buyers will appreciate your efforts and their attentive eyes will easily be able to pick up on any stray dust, thus, making a thorough cleaning a good step in maximizing the profits from your sale. The goal here is to make everything sparkling clean and look shiny new. Mop the floors, dust the furniture, vacuum, clean carpets, and give the bathroom a thorough scrub.

While it might seem like a simple or obvious step to take in the process of selling your Indian Wells home, cleaning can often be overlooked in the anticipation of preparing your house. Gather the family around, grab the mop and cleaning supplies, and make sure your house is spotless. This will add to the value of your home and give it a fresh, new look that buyers will be quick to pick up on.

Another essential aspect of preparing your house for sale is decluttering and organizing the space. You want the rooms to be open, spacious, and clean. In fact, professional stagers recommend that you remove 50% of the items. This includes getting rid of unwanted items and clutter. After all, the two major issues with clutter are that it distracts buyer’s from feeling fully welcomed in the house or noticing its best characteristics. The other problem with clutter is that it makes your rooms feel cramped and crowded. In order to maximize your house’s space, you want to remove anything that gives it a messy or claustrophobic feel. This is the perfect opportunity to get some boxes and put into storage anything that you don’t need: seasonal clothes and coats, board games, toys the kids have outgrown or no longer use, sports trophies, personal knickknacks, etc. Additionally, this is a great time to get rid of things you no longer need such as clothes that you never wear or books that you’ve been meaning to give away. Taking these steps to declutter your space will pay off in the long run – prospective buyers will appreciate the value and cleanliness of a spacious and open home.

Another aspect of decluttering is to consider furniture placement and repositioning couches and chairs into cozy, comfortable arrangements. Pare down excess furniture that doesn’t serve a purpose or add value to the room. This will make each room user-friendly and open up more space.

Perhaps one of the most well-known steps in the staging process, depersonalizing your space means removing any family photographs from the walls, children’s artwork hanging on the fridge, birthday cards strung about, or personal keepsakes and treasures that are important to you and your family. While these carry special meaning for you, they won’t hold the same memories and nostalgia for buyers who are touring your house and considering making it their own.

The goal of depersonalizing the space is that you want buyers to be able to envision themselves in your home and feel like it could potentially be theirs. They want to imagine their personal treasures in the space and their family photos over the fireplace mantle. Additionally, depersonalizing includes keeping clothes hidden away as much as possible and clearing the bathroom counter from make-up, jewelry, etc.

Giving each room a purpose and definition will make your house stand out. Furthermore, it will show the buyer practical and smart ways to make the most of the space. Whether it be a living room or bedroom, you want to display your house’s full potential and help buyers see that every inch of the space is usable and worth their investment. Buyers want to make the most of their dollars. When they see that each room has a defined purpose (even if they end up using the room for a different reason), they can have peace of mind that they are getting what they paid for.

One of the best things you can do before selling your house is to make necessary repairs and do maintenance. Whether it is applying a fresh coat of paint to the outside to trimming bushes, there are lots of great ways you can brighten up the overall appearance of your house. This can include everything from updating the mailbox, adding fresh mulch in the beds, or mowing the lawn. The goal is to improve curb appeal and give your house that extra sparkle that prospective buyers will notice. While you might be used to the way your house looks or not notice certain details, you can rest assured that buyers will pay attention to them. Since the exterior of your home is the first thing they will see, you want to leave a strong and positive impression even before they walk through the front doors.

For example, planting flowers can add a pop of color and spruce things up a bit. Or perhaps you want to place a fern on the front porch to give it a more welcoming touch. Additionally, make sure the sidewalk, porch, and entryways are clean and accessible. Put down a new welcome mat. If your porch has the space, add some patio furniture. Carefully work to maintain the front and back yards and ensure they are inviting spaces. You want the exterior to feel welcoming, friendly, and up-kept.

Working lighting is essential because it gives prospective buyers a better look at your house. Whether it be replacing burnt-out bulbs on the porch or ensuring that each closet light is working, this is a step in the staging process you simply shouldn’t skip over. Open the window blinds, add some lamps, and check that all light bulbs are in proper working order. You want your house to feel open, airy, and quite literally, to be seen in the light best.

Last but not least, add any finishing touches to your house to give it an airy and cheery feel. For example, update couch pillows or add house plants to give them a splash of color. Fill the house with pleasant aromas such as fresh flowers or an essential oils diffuser. Use plug-in fresheners and candles to contribute to the atmosphere.

Are you ready to sell your Indian Wells home? Or are you wanting to learn more about our specific property listings? Feel free to contact Team Armstrong for all your Indian Wells house, luxury condo, and real estate needs. Our team would love to help you sell your home or assist in the exciting process of finding your future dream home. Let’s get started today! Explore our extensive collection of Indian Wells homes for sale and find the perfect match for your lifestyle.