You're probably thinking of staging as putting on a show for potential buyers. You're inviting potential buyers to take the lead in staging a home. You need to be able to see the buyers from behind the scenes and allow them to take the homeowner's role.

These are some ways to create a scene that will impress the critics or the home-buyers.

Why Stage A House Before It Is Sold?

You can stage your house for sale DIY or hire a professional. This will make it stand out from other listings in the area.

Staging your home helps potential buyers visualize themselves in it, which is a key first step to getting them to make an offer. You'll also be in good company with other sellers. The Consumer Housing Trends Report shows that 82 percent of urban and 71% of suburban sellers agree that staging their home is a top pre-listing activity.

How To Stage Your Home For Sale

• Declutter:

  Take a room at a time, taking out the things you don't use between now and your move day. You want potential buyers to see that your home is well-organized. Are you unsure where to store all your stuff? You might consider renting a temporary storage unit.

  Make your home feel Potential personal buyers want to see themselves in your home. Although it may be emotional, you can go through your home and take out the items that make your home feel personal.

• Remove Signs That Pets Are There:

  While you may love your cat, potential buyers might not. So take the time to thoroughly clean and get rid of toys, food dishes, water bowls, and other items.

• Deep Clean:

  Your mother might say, "Clean like company's coming." You may even want to go one more step. You want to make it look like no one lives there. This means no dirt on windows, dust bunnies on floors or watermarks on counters. Clean homes show potential buyers you have taken good care of them.

Best Staging Tips To Help You Stage Your House For Sale

After you have decluttered and depersonalized your home, removed all pet traces, and cleaned up the place, it's time to start staging. For the best staging advice, read on.

• Lighting Should Be Increased Everywhere

  Staging a house is not an easy task. Potential buyers often comment on the lighting in a home. First, make sure to replace any out-of-date lightbulbs and switch to higher wattage bulbs. Then, clean your windows, open the blinds, turn on the lights, and make sure you have them turned on before you show the home.

• Make Conversational Furniture Arrangements

  To create more social spaces, take a look around each room. You can increase the space in your rooms by placing loveseats and couches next to each other: mix and match. You would probably point your couch towards the TV in real life. Staging your home for sale doesn't mean you have to live in it. It's about selling it.

• For Broad Appeal, Stay Neutral

  Yes, the bright red accent wall shows off your personality. But, there's only you, and this house has been your home for a while. So it's time to tone down the color. Neutrals are your friend. Also, you'll want to ensure that spaces are gender-neutral. Finally, the new owners of your home won't use or decorate the rooms the same way as you.

• Make Sure To Update The Finishes

  Take a look at your home and make sure you are paying attention to any maintenance items. A Saturday can be worth it to paint a room, regrout or re-caulk, remove the wallpaper or replace dated or worn hardware.

• Have A Look At The Outside

  The first impression of your home is its curb appeal. Mow your lawn and clean up after yourself.

• Arrange In Odd Numbers

  Professional stagers and designers recommend decorating in threes.

• Set The Table

  This is a finishing touch that can help buyers visualize their homes. Are you looking for a holiday dinner party?

• Style With Polished Accents Is The Way To Go

  You should only use new towels in your master bathroom, or no towels at all. For example, you can't use your towel-soaked bath towels in the morning shower.

• Make The Space Seem Larger

  To reflect light, add mirrors, switch a heavy powder room cabinet for a pedestal basin, or take a leaf off your large dining room table.

• Unique Floor Plans Can Show Value

  Your home's uniqueness and character should be highlighted. For example, you can create a reading corner, add storage space, or place a desk in an area that isn't being used.

• Use Extra Rooms Deliberately

  Never leave a room unoccupied. Make your guest room usable by staging it as an office or craft room, but not all at once.

Investing In Real Estate Staging

• DIY Home Staging:

  If you follow the tips above, you can stage your home yourself. It's also an affordable option. You should give yourself enough time for your tasks before you list goes live.

• Partially Home Staging:

  This is a cost-effective option that allows you to do all the cleaning and decluttering yourself before hiring a professional stager. They will reorganize and reimagine your existing furniture and decor to make it more appealing to buyers. A stager can also be hired to do a walkthrough and advise you on preparing your house for sale. The actual staging work will be left up to you. They usually charge $100 to $150 per hour.

• Professional Home Staging:

  If your market is competitive or you don't have time or desire to stage your home yourself, you might consider hiring a professional home stager. Depending on your location, some stagers charge per room (between $250-$500) while others charge between 1% and 3% of the sale price. The cost of professional staging services will usually include the rental of all furniture and accessories for a predetermined time period (usually around a month).

• Live-In Stagers:

  A new trend in high-end homes is live-in staging. This is when a person temporarily moves into your home, usually as part of your staging team. They are responsible for making sure your home is welcoming, ready to show, and warm. This can be particularly helpful if your home is in another city.

• Maintenance Of Staging:

  If everything goes according to plan, offers will start coming in, and you won't have to live in a staged house for too long. This home staging advice will help you sell your house quickly:

• Get A Weekly Cleaner, Or Set A Routine:

  It took a lot of work to keep your house in tip-top shape. You can either hire someone to clean your house every week or set yourself some daily tasks to make sure everything is in top shape while you wait to get the perfect job.

• Get A Robot Vacuum:

  Let technology do all the vacuuming. This will ensure that there won't be a dust bunny anywhere on the floor during a show.

• Give Yourself Extra Time If Your Children Are Present:

  It is well-known that children can ruin a clean space in minutes. Therefore, if you have children, your agent should give you at LEAST two hours' notice before a showing. This will allow you to clean up the room and get out of the house.

• Hire Someone To Look After Your Pets:

  Fido is a great way to welcome potential buyers, but not everyone likes to have to meet your pet while they are touring your home. So have someone watch your pets, or bring a bag with all the supplies for them to you to take with you to every show.