If you’re planning on selling your house, you may have never considered employing a property stylist to style your home and make it more appealing to buyers. However, property stylists know how to make your home feel more welcoming to prospective buyers and look more expensive. With that in mind, we asked professional property stylist Sara James, of Perth Style Co, for her top house-selling secrets.
1. Declutter
“Declutter and de-personalise the entire home. Think hotel-like presentation. The key to this minimalistic approach is hiding any clues that people inhabit the home. Buyers are attracted to new and fresh, not old and used. Having the home professionally cleaned is the most cost-effective way to ensure buyers are not confronted with any nasties like odours, hair in drains, dusty surfaces, dead bugs and stains.”
“It’s a common misconception that you may need to spend a lot of your presale budget on cosmetic improvements. But by decluttering heavy furniture items, personal items and giving the home a good clean you can create a lasting impression. People want to see the home they are buying, not all your personal belongings.”
2. Let there be light
“Light is your best friend when you are presenting a home. Open all those curtains and blinds and use natural light as a tool to create airy open spaces. Even opening windows and creating airflow is comforting to buyers visiting the home.”
“To create a show-stopping experience, replace your standard and power saving globes with high wattage globes and power up the entire home like a stadium. Adding an extreme amount of light will do wonders for your photo shoot and also wow people as they visit in person.”
3. Reconsider colours
“Along with my personal pet hate of visible electrical cords, colours play a part in what makes or breaks an appealing room. My advice is always stick to nature-inspired cool tones. Follow ocean and earth for inspiration, such as blues and shades of grey. Marble, slate and limestone, mixed timbers and natural greenery add warmth.”
“I personally stay away from reds, oranges and purple – even if they are trendy! Simply because they are too overpowering and aggressive for a marketing campaign for your home.”
4. Work in pairs
Creating a symmetrical floor plan is my favourite way to create a luxurious room. Use the centre of the room like an axis: whatever you add to one side of the room you need to balance on the other. Centre the beds in the bedrooms, pair the bed with matching side tables and lamps and centered artwork. This will not only photograph beautifully, but create a sense of space around the bed to enhance the size of the room. Placing a sofa directly in line with the media unit and coffee table is another beautiful way to create the room’s symmetrical feel in a living space.”
5. Nail your photoshoot
“Prospective buyers now look at images of a property online before they even consider stepping foot inside the house for an inspection. That means you need to make a great first impression with your property photos online.”
“When preparing your home for a property photoshoot, do a little dress rehearsal. Most photographers will take photos from the corners of the room, so use your iPhone and test what you can see. I guarantee your test photos will show you things like cords showing, kinks in rugs, off-centre artworks and sheets not tucked in at the end of the bed. Rectifying small things will improve the quality of your images. This is a part of the property sale you can absolutely control and I strongly you urge you to.”
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