Stage Your Expired Listings to Sell Fast
Despite our best efforts, it’s easy to judge a book by its cover. Or rather, a house by its presentation. It makes sense, however. It’s difficult to walk into a dark, dirty, and cluttered home and feel at all drawn to that property. We tend to recoil even if the house is actually in good shape underneath. It’s hard to be imaginative and see ourselves making the space a home if it appears so unsightly. So, the solution? Stage to sell! And your expired listing clients in Manhattan or Brooklyn might just need a little nudge to help them. Sometimes it’s hard to think what buyers want and expect to see. But you as their real estate agent have a sense of that. Here are a few staging ideas you can bring to your expired listings who might need a little help.
1. Declutter
This is the first step because it’s absolutely essential. There might be good things already in place but with all the clutter, it’s impossible to tell. The first step in any staging process is to remove any and all clutter from the space. If your sellers don’t have space to store away all the kids’ toys, paperwork, mail, and knick-knacks, maybe they could get a small storage unit just for the time it takes to sell. Or if there’s space, stow clutter in bins under beds and in closets. You will also need to advise clients to depersonalize. This means taking down all personal photos, political or religious pieces, and even kids drawings stuck to the fridge. It’s not that these are inherently turn offs to buyers. But rather, it makes it more difficult for the buyers to get a sense of what they space could be if it were theirs. You want them to be able to sample, in a way, what living there would be like. So, it needs to be inviting but sparse. Cozy but minimalist.
2. Streamline storage
Another aspect to decluttering is to organize and streamline the storage spaces. Yes, you want to hide things out of sight. But you also must remember that buyers will open closets and look in the linen cabinet and kitchen cupboards. Unfortunately, this means you don’t want to just have clients stuff their storage spaces full to the brim. Purging old belongings may help. And a storage unit can be a backup if they need more room. But if buyers open a closet and clothes start falling out on them, they will get the sense that there isn’t enough storage in this home at all. General good practice is to only fill cabinets and closets about 50% full. This way they appear more spacious and buyers can see how much storage is there.
3. Clean and polish
Next, once the clutter is removed, your listings will want to deep clean. Get under and around all furniture. Scrub bathrooms and kitchens in all the corners. Dust all furniture. Clean baseboards and behind toilets. Make the home sparkle and shine so that it’s appealing to buyers. This will help you secure more offers and do so quickly!
4. Maximize light
This step extends to many aspects of staging. But the common goal is to maximize light in each room. Get rid of heavy blinds or curtains. Install new blinds if needed. Refresh rooms with a fresh coat of paint. Preferably a light, airy or neutral hue to better reflect the natural light. If a room is particularly small or doesn’t have much natural light, be strategic about the placement of mirrors. And consider soft lamps in the corners to help brighten the darker areas of the room.
5. Tend to repairs
Lastly, in order to present the listing as ready to sell, the sellers should expect to put at least a little bit of time and effort into repairs. These might all be smaller and more cosmetic. However, anything broken or banged up in the house will put buyers off and make them feel the home isn’t taken care of. They might wonder what deeper (and more expensive) problems are lurking in the property. Help the sellers make a checklist of items to fix, such as creaky doors, broken doorknobs, or leaky faucets. Recalk the tub if it’s worse for wear. Replace hardware in the kitchen if needed. These small details may seem insignificant but they go a long way in updating a home and making it feel cared for and move-in ready.
Follow these steps to help your expired listing clients stage to sell quickly in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
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