Successful Open House

10 Tips to help make a real estate open house successful

A real estate home showing can be stressful for the home seller; especially, if the seller is not prepared for them. Here are some simple ideas and tips to alleviate the seller and to help with having a successful open house.

• Make all rooms look presentable i.e. beds made, laundry picked up and put in hampers, and dishes washed and put away
  
• Designate a junk draw to put all last-minute circulars and mail that came in that day, so tabletop or counter top is clean and tidy
  
• Designate a basket for toys to be able to clean up fast for last -minute showings
• All hallways and entryways should be clear of debris and clutter for ease of accessibility and walk through.
  
• Do not cook any ethnic or over-bearing smelling foods the day before a scheduled open house, as the smell could linger in the home, and possibly turn off a buyer 
  
• If you smoke cigarettes/cigars, you should smoke outside of the home, so it does not smell like Nicotine/smoke 
  
• The use of Plug In’s or aromatic candles can be over-powering in the home, also of mention some people are sensitive or allergic to different scents. The home should just smell clean and fresh. 
  
• Clean all the pet litter boxes, and put pets in a safe place
  
• Clean up the yard of any pet debris
  
• Lighting, keep lights on throughout the home so the house is easily navigated, and well lit.

Utilizing these simple ideas are just some of the ways that the seller can have their home show ready.  It can make a seller’s house stand above the rest of the homes that are on the market in the target area. Think of the home as a product, you want that product to look it’s very best to captivate a potential buyer and get the house sold!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Sara, from Eye Luv Decor is a real estate home stager in Central Pennsylvania; servicing Altoona, Hollidaysburg, Duncansville, Newry, East Freedom, Huntingdon, Tyrone, Bedford and Cresson. She is a former real estate agent, owned and operated an upholstery business, a graduate of the Staging Diva Program, she has staged and redesigned many homes. Visit her website at http://www.eyeluvdecor.com or call 814-650-7445 with any questions or to schedule a home staging consultation. 

Top 5 Reasons To Hire A Real Estate Home Stager

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO HIRE A REAL ESTATE HOME STAGER

You have decided that it is time to sell your home. You could be selling for various factors i.e. you are moving to a better job, may be getting married, need a larger home for a growing family or are looking to downsize to a smaller home nevertheless the decision has now been made. What are your next steps? Of course most people would say, talk to a realtor. Yes you could do that; however, you may want to think about calling a Real Estate Home Stager first.  Here are the top 5 reasons to do so.

1. A Real Estate Home Stager can help you potentially get more money for your home with design element changes. So when the realtor does come in for an initial viewing they will see the houses true potential and price the home accordingly.
2.  A Real Estate Home Stager will come into your home and perform a working consult, giving you expert advise on how to make the home "show" ready. They can answer any questions you might have and alleviate the stress of you revamping your home by yourself.
3. A Real Estate Home Stager can show you small changes that can be made throughout your home to romance and wow a potential buyer. With HGTV, DIY networks and design magazine articles it is seen now as an industry standard. It is what buyers are looking for when they are viewing home. 
4. A Real Estate Home Stager can show you the best use of the spaces within the home to help a potential buyer fall in love with the space, and visualize themselves living in that space.
5. A Real Estate Home Stager can offer recommendations on storage, moving, repairs and getting more organized. 

When you hire a Real Estate Home Stager you are taking the stress off of yourself. You  have enough to do in a day when you incorporate that you are working a full time job or maybe getting your children ready for school, transporting them to various events i.e. girl/boy scouts, sporting practices/attending games, music lessons, play dates, etc. You may belong to social groups and have after work activities to attend to. Then you think, how am I going to get the house ready for showings when my calendar is full? That is why you would hire a real estate home stager. The home stager is experienced and versed in various ways to target buyers in your target market by the influence of design. Design is thinking made visual. With everything going on in your daily life, it is good to be able to hand some tasks off to a professional home stager. 

OTHER FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN LISTING YOUR HOME FOR SALE:

• Finding a reputable realtor who will serve as a lesion between yourself and a potential home buyer. 
• You WILL want to get the most money for your home in the perspective real estate market i.e. the realtor will perform a comparative market analysis of what your home could sell for in your perspective area. So you DO want the realtor to see the homes potential right from the start. 
• You may need to find a new home to move to
• You may have already bought a new home and need to sell the existing home fast

There is many benefits to hiring a Real Estate Home Stager, I have only listed a few. The next time you are in the market to sell your home, you would be doing yourself a favor in having a Real Estate Home Staging Consult.

Sara LaPalme

www.eyeluvdecor.com
814-650-7445