Home Staging On A Budget

There's no doubt that appealing home staging is key to attracting interested buyers, but how much should you spend on staging? Whether you're working with a tight budget or merely trying to save every dollar you can for your move when selling your home, it's possible to do a great job staging a house on a budget.

Simple, Smart, Budget-Friendly Staging

Staging a house on a budget may present unique challenges to deal with, but you're far from alone. Remember that your real estate agent has done this many times before, so they should be a great source of advice for staging priorities and ideas.

Refresh Restrooms And Eliminate Tough Stains

A dirty bathroom with stains and old fixtures is not likely to have shoppers falling in love with your home, so some elbow grease may be required to get bathrooms looking their best.

• Want to give your bathroom a fresh look without the cost of a full remodel? Replacing old bath, shower, and sink fixtures is an easy way to make bathrooms look new without taking up too much of your budget.
• Tough grime stuck on your bathroom walls? No problem! Just mix a solution of one part water to one part bleach in a spray bottle, spray the dirty areas, and wash it all away to get old walls looking like new.
• Replacing cabinets is costly, but a fresh coat of paint or stain is not. Just make sure to choose a look that matches the rest of your bathroom.

Renting Furniture To Stage An Empty Home

You can still find affordable furniture rental options when staging on a budget — especially if you stick to staging only the most important rooms. For furniture, the most important spaces are the master bedroom, living room, and dining room. Furnishing these rooms helps to sell your home by making it easier for buyers to imagine what life would be like there.

Make The Most Of Kitchen And Dining Areas

Just like with the bathroom, new fixtures and a fresh coat of paint on cabinets go a long way toward making an old kitchen look new again. Since kitchens are often the site of old smells and stains, you'll want to clean your kitchen to professional standards.

• Investing in some flowers, candles, or other items with a pleasant, subtle scent is a great way to make the kitchen feel like a welcome place for buyers.
• Lighting matters — in kitchens, dining rooms, and throughout the home. Brighter light bulbs and natural light will help you show off all of the work you've done to stage the home.

Don't Forget To Consider Curb Appeal

You want buyers to be impressed from the moment they arrive at the curb, so it pays to invest in your yard and the entrance to your home. Make sure your yard is clean, your lawn is cut, trees/hedges are pruned, and your garden is looking lively. You'll also want to apply a fresh coat of paint and updated fixtures if the entrance to your home has seen better days.

Staging a home on a budget is so much easier when you invest your effort where it matters most. By making affordable fixes, refreshing well-used rooms, keeping up with curb appeal, and strategically renting the right furniture, you can maximize your value when selling your home.

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