Tips for Decorating Your Home:
There is a big difference between decorating a house that you plan to live in, and decorating a house that you plan to sell to someone else. The most important thing to remember is to create an atmosphere where the potential buyers can picture themselves being able to move right in without having to do a lot of work.
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 In most houses it is best to take out all of the furniture, leaving walls, floors, and windows as clean as you can possibly get them. If a potential buyer comes in and sees dirty walls, floors, and windows, they automatically think of the cleaning and upkeep that it takes to keep a house nice. You want them to be free of those types of worries while they are looking at your house. Rent a carpet cleaner, or have your carpets professionally cleaned. Wash the windows inside and out. Open them up and clean out the sills. People will always look out the windows to see the view around your home, and if they are nice and clean, it will once again free them from thinking about cleaning and maintenance.
It doesn’t cost much to buy a few gallons of paint to give your rooms a fresh, new look. When choosing paint to use to prepare a house for sale, it is best to use neutral colors. Even if a potential buyer likes to decorate a house with lots of color, you want them to be able to visualize the rooms in the colors they prefer, not your favorites. It is also a good idea to avoid using borders, because you risk the chance of choosing something that is completely opposite of a potential buyer’s taste. You may like to decorate in country style; perhaps they like to decorate their homes in a more formal Colonial, French, or Italian style. There are many different shades of white that can be used to create an interesting, but neutral effect. Perhaps you would like to choose a lighter white for the walls, and a shade or two darker white for the trim and baseboards, or visa-versa. I like to use semi-gloss on the walls and glossy paint on the trim and baseboards. It gives a nice, clean look to a room. There are also various shades of cream that will give you the same neutral look that white does, but creams warm the room up a bit making it a little cozier than the whites.
If you are leaving draperies or curtains in the house, make sure they are cleaned and pressed. Also make sure the paints you have chosen blend nicely with the color in the drapes. Leave the drapes and curtains wide open when people come to look at your house, so they can see how clean and beautiful it is. If you don’t have draperies or curtains, it is a good idea to have shades on the windows. Don’t pull them completely down; it looks like you are trying to hide something. Open them all the way up, or pull them half way down to create a cozy, homey effect. The potential buyer likes to see the windows have shades that can be utilized for privacy, in case they want to move in and cannot purchase window treatments right away.
Now, you have created neutral surroundings. The potential buyer can re-create the rooms in their minds; into something that reveals their character and personality. |
Your house will be a lot more appealing to a potential buyer if you can create some unique spaces that make it a convenient place to live and a place where they can picture themselves enjoying their favorite pastimes. You want them to be able to step into your front door and know that their favorite pieces of furniture will fit well into the spaces they see. You want them to imagine their framed pictures hanging on your walls; to spot a cozy corner where they can sit to read a book; or, a workshop area where it will be convenient to fix or create things. You want them to see your kitchen as a bright, cheery space where they will enjoy cooking meals. Help potential buyers picture themselves living comfortably in your home by creating unique and interesting spaces.
Your house will be a lot more appealing to a potential buyer if you can create some unique spaces that make it a convenient place to live and a place where they can picture themselves enjoying their favorite pastimes. You want them to be able to step into your front door and know that their favorite pieces of furniture will fit well into the spaces they see. You want them to imagine their framed pictures hanging on your walls; to spot a cozy corner where they can sit to read a book; or, a workshop area where it will be convenient to fix or create things. You want them to see your kitchen as a bright, cheery space where they will enjoy cooking meals. Help potential buyers picture themselves living comfortably in your home by creating unique and interesting spaces.
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People who like to cook want a clean, efficient kitchen. Make the room look as large as you possibly can, with light paints and sunshine coming in through sparkling clean windows. Make sure countertops, sinks, cabinet insides, and fronts are all very clean. Scrub the stove, oven, exhaust fans, refrigerator, microwave and waste baskets, so they are spotless. Now stand back and look at the room. It looks clean and empty, which is good, - and bad. We don’t want it to look too empty and cold. So, here are a few suggestions for warming it up a bit.
Put a small green plant on a corner of the cabinet.
Place a white or cream colored ceramic utensil holder next to the stove with a few brand new, shiny cooking utensils in it.
Put a coffee mug tree in an empty spot on the cabinet with some pretty coffee mugs on it.
Put a small table with a few chairs around it in the eating area (if it is an eat-in kitchen).
Put some pretty bar stools up to the bar if you have an eating bar in the kitchen.
Place a pretty teapot on the stove.
Drape some green ivy across the tops of the cabinets if space allows.
Just think of some unobtrusive accent you can use to make the kitchen look inviting and convenient.
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Create a place for entertaining outside. Choose an area in your yard that would be good for cooking and relaxing outside; perhaps out your back or side door. Take your grill, toys, lawn chairs, lawn tools, pet supplies, and hoses away from the house. Leave a clean, open space that has been raked, mowed, and swept. You are creating a care-free atmosphere where people can relax. If you have a patio or flat area, it looks nice to have one small table; perhaps with an umbrella and four chairs. Keep it simple so the potential buyer can imagine how they will personalize the space.
It is also nice if the potential buyers can see they will have privacy when they are enjoying the outdoors. You can provide a private corner, using two privacy fence sections, or, you can attach one or two sections of a privacy fence to the edge of the house. Now, you have created a private space without having to fence in the entire yard.
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Create a work area in the garage or basement. Even if the space hasn’t been used as a work area in the past, you can turn it into a convenient spot where a person who likes to fix things, and/or work on crafts, can leave their tools and have a place to work. You can use a corner of the room, and place a work bench type table next to the wall. Choose the largest table you can fit into the space (one that has a few drawers for storage would be best). You can hang a peg board on the wall above the table. Now, you have a workshop.
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Provide a convenient space for doing laundry. No matter where the laundry hook-ups are, potential buyers will be pleased if it looks like it will be easy and pleasant to do the laundry. Make sure the area where you do laundry is clean, pipes are clean, floor is clean, and that laundry supplies can be easily reached. If there is no storage in the laundry area, place a long, wide shelf above the washer and dryer, for storage of soaps, cleaning products, and the iron. You can attach a bracket to the wall that is made for hanging up an ironing board. All of this is very inexpensive and lets potential buyers see that doing laundry in this house will be a pleasant experience.
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If you have to live in your home while it is for sale, you can still do the things suggested above. You can paint, clean, and create that neutral atmosphere where potential buyers will be able to imagine this as their home. Take out everything that makes the house look crowded and cluttered. Remove unnecessary furniture, and all personal pictures of the family. Clean out closets and box up and store everything you don’t need. Keep toys and pet supplies out of sight when people come to look at the house. In addition to making your house look better for the sale, you will also have half of your packing done; – THAT’S A GOOD THING!
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