The Inviting Home

Staging Tips and Tricks

Tips to Bring a House Home

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Making a New House Feel Like a Home: A Guide

Moving into a new home can be exciting, but an empty house can feel impersonal and lacking in character. If you’re looking to make your new space feel like home, here are some tips to help you get started.

  1. Add Personal Touches: Display photos of your family, friends, and loved ones. Hang art and other decor items that reflect your personality and style. These small details can make a big difference in creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.
  2. Incorporate Color: Paint is an easy and affordable way to add color and warmth to a space. Choose colors that make you feel calm and happy. For some, this may translate into neutrals… for others, bright and highly saturated colors.  You can also add colorful accents through textiles like throw pillows and curtains.
  3. Create a Cozy Environment: Make your home feel cozy and comfortable by adding soft textiles like throw blankets and rugs. Use lighting to create a warm and inviting ambiance, such as table lamps and string lights.
  4. Furnish Your Space: Furniture is essential in making a house feel like a home. Choose comfortable and functional pieces that suit your lifestyle and needs. Don’t be afraid to mix and match styles and textures to create a unique look.
  5. Make it Smell Good: The sense of smell is powerful and can evoke memories and emotions. Light candles, use essential oils, or simmer potpourri on the stove to create a warm and inviting scent in your home. A candle warmer is my favorite.
  6. Get Creative: Personalize your space with DIY projects or unique finds from local thrift stores or flea markets. This can add character and make your home feel like it was designed just for you.
  7. Invite Friends and Family: Invite friends and family over to enjoy your new home and create memories. Spending time with loved ones is one of the best ways to make a house feel like a home.

Making a vacant house feel like a home takes time and effort, but the end result is worth it. By adding personal touches, incorporating color, creating a cozy environment, and inviting friends and family, you can create a space that feels warm, inviting, and truly yours.

The Emotions of Home Selling!

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Vacant Staging by The Inviting Home – Photo by EP Studios

Home Seller tip #1: As soon as you can, disconnect from your emotional attachment to your home! Easier said than done, right? Last week, we talked about the emotions of Home Buying, so now, lets flip the script and look into the emotions of Homeowners. I get it… we are all sooo connected to our homes. And for good reason. They’ve sheltered us, watched our kiddos grow up, been our haven, and have heard all the weird, wacky and serious conversations. Our homes have been the one place to truly be ourselves, a place to create memories, bring babies home, and a place to care. To love. To grow.  To feel safe.  And now we’re moving on, selling, and hoping someone loves our haven as much as we do. Complicated feelings, for sure.

I don’t know what your process will look like… but somehow, I encourage you to embrace, celebrate, and thank your home… and then disconnect from your emotional attachment to it. From a home… to an investment. This may sound jaded… so here’s the why: you don’t want your emotions to cloud how prospective buyers will view your home.  You view it one way… the way you’ve lived best in it. But the potential buyer may want to live in it another way… and if you hang onto your personal feelings, you can cloud the potential.

For example…recently I staged a “sunroom” as an office after the homeowner staged it as a playroom. The playroom served the homeowner well… it was cute and tidy… but the space wasn’t relatable to most buyers.  The homeowner had to say an emotional goodbye to the adorable playroom, and think about maximizing her sale and appealing to the majority of buyers who would tour the home. She made the shift from home and baby moments… to investment. She didn’t need buyers to like how she lived in the home… she needed a buyer to want to BUY her home.

I’m not saying it will be easy… I’m encouraging you to shift your mindset from all the feelings of “home” to “what can I do to appeal to the majority of my potential buyers?” It’ll mean taking “home” out of your home.  Worth it, right?… if it leads to a buyer being able to see living their best life there?!

The Emotions of Home Buying!

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Vacant Staging by The Inviting Home – photo by Jonah Gustavson

Buying a home is not just a financial decision… it’s also an emotional one!  The entire process can be a rollercoaster of emotion from excitement and joy to uncertainty. This is because, most often, home buying is more than simply acquiring a property.  It’s about finding a place to create life, build memories, and feel safe, happy and secure. It’s about investing in a community, a neighborhood, and creating a sense of  belonging.  Unless your buyer is looking for a property to flip, more often than not, they’re feeling all the feels. They’re looking for a home that checks all their boxes from belonging and attachment to memory making and feeling secure.

Knowing this, your staging should play to the emotions of your buyer!  Home staging is visual marketing… show them how beautiful life can be living in your home! Show your buyer how living in your home will be a haven to them.  Show spaces that are warm and inviting… that beckon the buyer in and helps him/her see themselves living an amazing life there. A place of contentment and memories. Your buyer wants to purchase HOME and a well staged/styled home can evoke these feelings in your buyers.  

The Importance of Listing Photos When Selling a House

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Vacant Staging by The Inviting Home – Photo by EP Studio

Selling a house can be a complex and overwhelming process, but one aspect that is often overlooked is the listing photos. The reality is, the listing photos are often the first impression potential buyers will have of your property, and it’s crucial that they make a positive impact.

In today’s digital age, most people start their house-hunting journey online, and beautiful, high-quality photos can make all the difference in attracting potential buyers to schedule a viewing. Poor or unappealing photos can easily discourage a potential buyer from even considering your property.

Here are some tips to ensure that your listing photos are beautiful and effective:

  1. Hire a professional photographer – A professional photographer has the expertise and equipment necessary to take stunning photos that showcase your home in its best light.
  2. Clean, declutter, and STYLE your home – Before the photoshoot, make sure that your home is clean, tidy, and free of clutter, then style your spaces. This will allow the photographer to focus on the key selling points of your home and make it appear more spacious and inviting.
  3. Make repairs and touch-ups – Take care of any small repairs or touch-ups that may be needed, such as fixing leaky faucets or patching holes in the wall. This will ensure that your home looks its best in the photos.
  4. Highlight the unique features of your home – Make sure to highlight the unique selling points of your home, such as a beautiful fireplace or a spacious outdoor patio.
  5. Use natural light – Whenever possible, use natural light to showcase your home. This will create a warm and inviting atmosphere that potential buyers are sure to love.

I think of the MLS as the Home Selling Beauty Pageant. If your home doesn’t stand out and above your competition, you will not be a buyer’s first choice! You can help your contestant (home) shine with amazing photos! They are the first impression that potential buyers will have of your property, and they can make or break their decision to schedule a viewing. So, make sure that your listing photos are high-quality, attractive, and accurately showcase the best features of your home. A little investment in professional photography can pay off big in attracting potential buyers and ultimately selling your home for the best price possible.