If you need to sell your Chicago home quickly, you may be looking at options to speed up the process. Every seller’s situation is different, but staging your home is worth considering. Whether you’ve already moved into a new home and don’t want the house you’re selling to look empty, or you just want to highlight the best things about your current home, staging can make your home more appealing to buyers. Here are a few ideas to keep in mind:

Create a Plan

Having a plan in place before you begin is an important first step. For many sellers, this will begin with setting a budget. Find out how much you can comfortably spend on staging. This will help you decide if you can outsource the staging to professionals, or if you’ll need to take a DIY approach. There are no guarantees in real estate, so you don’t want to take a risk if you can’t afford to. This is why it’s important to establish a plan that’s right for you (and your budget). If DIY is the way for you to go, having a strategy in place before you get started will give you a framework to keep the project moving smoothly.

Keep it Neutral (without sacrificing character)

Some sellers think that painting all the walls white is the best way to appeal to buyers. While a stark white in every room isn’t necessary, keeping a more neutral color palette can help your home appeal to more buyers. While staying neutral is a decent general rule of thumb, it shouldn’t come at the expense of character. You want to highlight everything your home has to offer. While you might tone down the purple walls of your daughter’s bedroom to a more user-friendly shade, an accent wall in the living room doesn’t necessarily need to go if it complements the rest of the room.

Offer a Blank Canvas (but keep it warm)

Very often, sellers focus on making their home a blank canvas for potential buyers. And it’s true that we want to make it as easy as possible for buyers to see themselves living in the home, but when taken too far, that blank-canvas approach can make a house feel cold and clinical. For instance, a room stuffed full of personal knickknacks should probably go, but getting rid of all you photos and artwork can make the space feel empty. Consider keeping some of your less-personal details to keep the space feeling warm.

It Shouldn’t Look Staged

Staging can be a fun opportunity to experiment with different styles. While choosing to give your home a bit more flare in your staging is one thing, you don’t want to go over the top. Potential buyers should feel that this house could be their home. It shouldn’t feel like an antiseptic hotel. In other words, it shouldn’t feel staged. Look for a balance between clean/stylish and comfortable/livable. That’s the key to staging successfully.

If you’d like a recommendation for an experienced, local stager, or if there’s something else we can be of assistance with, please reach out to us. We’re always happy to help.