Tips and Advice for Staging a Luxury Home
Luxury is one of the best ways to sell a home. People want to picture their lives being infinitely better, with all of their wants and needs taken care of. Unfortunately, most homes don’t fit this description, so it’s up to staging to help make the buyers see what the properties are capable of.
If you’re getting ready to sell your luxury home, and you want to make sure buyers see it as luxurious as it can be: these are the top tips to keep in mind.
Don’t Use Your Own Furniture
Although your furniture may be incredible unless you purchased it within the last year and know for a fact that it's from luxury brands: avoid using it when staging your home. You want the furniture in your property to match and look attractive while also effortlessly breathing luxury into a space.
There are many staging companies that offer rentals of luxury furniture, charging by the week or month, so you don’t have to go out and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on furniture you’ll never use. Consider one of these services.
Sell The Lifestyle the Buyer Will Want
Although you may think you're being charming by adding a little kitsch to the decor or including family photos: you're hurting your chance of selling to a top-paying buyer. You want to sell them the lifestyle that they want, not charm them into being your best friend.
This means getting rid of any signs of the previous owners, avoiding anything too personal or kitschy, and keeping to high design standards. Avoid most Pinterest boards because you can't tell when they were made or what person designed them: you could fall down a bad design rabbit hole.
Decorate With Original Artwork, Not Prints
If you live in an incredible city like Chicago: you’re surrounded by art every day. Similar to how you would beautify your garage floors through
epoxy paint for cement: it’s time to beautify your walls.
Although prints can be lovely, if you're going to hang art on your luxury home's walls: make sure it's the original artwork. Not only will this add texture and visual appeal, but it also adds the perception of value since originals are always worth more than their prints.
If you can, leave the artists' cards on the kitchen counter or somewhere that the buyers touring the home can find them. This will show you took this property, and these pieces, seriously.
Keep Paint Colors Neutral but Not Gray
Gray home decor has received a bad reputation in home decor in recent years since so many house flippers have been using this as their go-to neutral color. Although you should use neutral colors and natural
furniture wood stain colors to show off the home: you should keep these in the warm browns and tans and away from gray entirely. Neutral colors allow the home to be attractive to anyone instead of being painted in someone's least favorite color of the week.
Get Rid of Any Sign of Clutter
Clutter is a luxury killer. If you can move out of your home before you list it. If you have to live there while you sell it, make sure to Marie Kondo your entire home. Get rid of anything that doesn't bring you utility or joy. If you have a lot of items that don't fit this description but don't want to get rid of them: you can rent a storage unit. This step gives you somewhere to store your items for later, without your potential buyers walking out because your cutter knocked thousands of dollars off of their perceived value of your home.
Use Lighting to Tell a Story
The lighting in your home can tell a story! From how it filters through a
metal screen facade to how well-lit your kitchen is at night, help your home sell by updating your lighting. Updating fixtures, using smart bulbs, and using warm-white light instead of pure white, will soften the space and make it look more luxurious and welcoming. If your windows are older, go for a
window sash replacement to welcome in more natural light without having to replace the whole window.
Make the Kitchen into a Dream Come True
Your kitchen should be a space where anyone can see themselves entertaining the moment they walk in. Use lighter cabinets on the warmer natural wood side, and avoid the all-white kitchen craze. Although you should have white and clean surfaces within the kitchen: this color shouldn't take up more than 80% of the kitchen, or it overwhelms it and can make the space look cheaper.
Luxury is More than the Price
A high price tag usually comes with luxury items: but it’s so much more than its cost. Take the time to invest in your property and make sure people can see the luxury in it regardless of how much money you actually put into making it attractive.
Andrea Erickson is a contributor to Innovative Building Materials. She is a blogger and content writer. Andrea is focused on helping fellow homeowners, contractors, and architects discover materials and methods of construction that increase property value, maximize energy savings, and turn houses into homes.