Have you ever walked into a model home? It’s amazing, isn’t it? It’s one of my favorite things to do. That feeling you get isn’t by accident. Homebuilders spend time and money researching what causes an emotional attraction when you step into a model. To get the highest price for your home and sell in the shortest amount of time you will want to follow some tips we can learn from how builders stage their model homes.
Create Your Buyer Profile
The model home for a $200,000 home neighborhood will be staged differently from the model home in a $1,000,000 home neighborhood. Before even developing a neighborhood builders will create the buyer profile. Where are the buyers coming from, what is their income level, what features are attractive to them?
When preparing and staging your home you should also first consider the buyer profile. In some cases this will prevent you from over-improving your home. Frequently we are able to save our clients from spending money in areas that will not produce a positive return on investment.
For example, many sellers of entry level homes often ask us about replacing their Formica countertops. In the current market that may not be necessary. You might spend $6,000 and only see a $5,000 increase in sales price.
On the other hand, if your home is competing with new construction the buyer profile for your home may expect certain upgrades and without those upgrades your home may sit on the market and sell for a lower price.
Be Cohesive
Something you’ll notice about a model home is things simply work together. It may not be possible to get your home to look exactly like a model home but doing the best we can to follow this principle is worth the time and effort. When things in a home are too “mix and match” a buyer will be confused and a confused buyer doesn’t buy.
A good example of this would be if you are replacing the carpet in your home. It’s tempting not to replace the carpet in one low traffic room. The challenge here is a buyer will notice the difference, become confused and start wondering what else wasn’t done right.
Step Outside Yourself
Your home is probably the most personal thing you own. Our clients who get the best results are able make a shift from thinking about their home as where they live to a business. It’s so important for sellers to be able to say “look, it’s time to market the property and not worry about what I like or don’t like, it’s time to put our best foot forward.” We know it’s hard to do but when you’re selling your home the more you can think like a buyer the better off you will be.
Listen To Your Agent
To get the best results you need to place trust in the professional you hired. I’ve seen over 5,000 homebuyers at open houses. That gives me a great perspective on what turns them on and what turns them off. Often, it’s not what you think. It’s tempting to use logic when staging your home. It’s tempting to put together a plan based on how we think buyers should act. What we have learned over the years through studying buyer psychology is buyers often don’t act logical.
I always ask clients how honest they want me to be. When preparing a home for sale our intention is to give honest advice, not hurt anyone’s feelings. The more open you can be to taking professional advice without taking it personally the better results you will get.
Don't Display Anything Too Personal
We want buyers to feel comfortable. We want buyers to feel like it’s their home. Displaying too may personal items and pictures will make a buyer feel awkward.
Most of us need to de-personalize when we sell our homes. When thinking about removing a personal item or not ask yourself “Is it going to help the sale?” If not it’s probably something that should be packed until you move into your next home.
Take Advantage Of Our Free Home Staging Furniture
Whether your home is vacant or you just need a few pieces of furniture and staging items as the cherry on top for your home you should take advantage of our Free Home Staging Furniture Package .
Kopa Real Estate has a large inventory of home staging furniture our clients use for free. In some cases that means completely staging a 4,500 SF home. For other homes it might only mean bringing in a bedroom set to showcase a 2nd bedroom downstairs the sellers were previously using as a craft room.
Kopa Real Estate helps people like you prepare and stage your home to get the best results possible. If you are planning to sell a home in the Austin area including Cedar Park, Round Rock, Leander, Georgetown, Pflugerville, Liberty Hill, Kyle and Buda contact us today at 512-791-7473 or email eric@koparealestate.com.
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