When staging a home for sale you should look at your property the same way as a prospective buyer would. From the curb! What would be your priorities when buying a new home – in fact what are your own priorities right now?  If you are selling a home, presumably you are also buying one, or have already chosen one.

If you are not sure what you would be looking at, then think of the psychology of people when they are looking for a new home.  They likely have a few properties in their viewing list, and will probably give your home a good examination from the exterior before deciding whether or not to knock on the door for a viewing or head off to the next possibility on the list.

Even if they have made a viewing appointment they will likely cancel if they don’t like the look of your place. You know the old saying: “first appearances count.” This is very true, particularly if people are considering purchasing a new home for themselves and their family to live in for the next several years.

Staging a Home for Sale: The Exterior

The exterior appearance of your home can make or break a sale. Many will drive by – and maybe keep on driving. Or they may stop and have a closer look before driving off or knocking to find out if your interior is equally appealing.

When staging a home for sale your exterior is by far the more important. If that is unappealing, then the interior will not matter.  The prospective buyer will not even see it! Here are some tips for exterior staging.

•    Clean or even repaint all your woodwork: widows, doors, fences, gates and so on.
•    Renew your door and gate furniture: door knobs, handles, knockers, etc.
•    Get a new mailbox – this can make a huge difference.
•    Power-wash those areas of your property that need it, including paths and drives.
•    Remove all weeds, leaves, litter, old gardening tools, kids’ toys – generally tidy up.
•    Make sure all your guttering and drains are clean and odor-free.
•    Prune trees, dead-head flowers and make sure your paths are clean.
•    Mow the lawn and clear away the cut grass.
•    Plant colorful flowers and shrubs.
•    Wash all windows – inside and out.

Exterior Appeal Counts

You can add to the appeal of your home by having a barbeque area, hanging a hammock and generally showing off your home as a great place to be for fun and outside living. A basketball hoop in the backyard helps and showing your kids having fun on the lawn can also add to the appeal. Think of what you would like to see, and then act on it.

It is important that a drive-past is followed up with a closer inspection. Once you have passed that part of the viewing, you can expect potential buyers to knock and enter your home.  Without making sure that your home exterior looks as good as you can possibly make it, there is little point in working on your entrance, your hall and all the other rooms in your home.  They won’t get that far!

When staging a home for sale, focus first on the exterior. Start working on that before you put your home up for sale. It can take a few weeks to get your home looking beautiful from the outside. The importance of curb appeal cannot be overstated.