Secrets of the Open House
Take it from Bing Crosby. When you sell a house you've got to "ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive."
Houses don't just sell themselves, even in booming markets. In fact, owners and their real estate agents go to great lengths to show off a home's best qualities and downplay its imperfections.
Exit stage left
Such strategies are known as staging, an expression borrowed from the theater to describe dressing up a house to sell. In fact, staging is so important that there are entire businesses dedicated to it. Sellers who are still in the house should take cues from a Pottery Barn catalogue. The house should look cozy and lived in, but not too lived in.
How's your curb appeal?
First impressions count for a lot. In fact, buyers often make up their minds about a house before they even get to the front door. Everything should look pristine at the approach -- even the mailbox should be in tiptop shape.
If your yard is in good condition, sprucing it up may only be a matter of planting flowers and keeping the grass is trimmed. If you've neglected your landscaping, consider calling on a professional.
While you're at it, add a bench or other "hardscape" to the scenery. People see a bench and they imagine themselves sitting there with their cup of coffee every morning.
Less is more (money)
Clutter does not a good open house make. It's not just that most people have too much furniture to start with, they forget that a house needs to appeal to a crowd. There can be 20 people in the house at once during the open house. Owners should take out a third of their furniture and put it in storage. When it starts feeling stark you’re almost there.
This "editing" process also means removing personal photographs, packing up most knickknacks, recycling magazines, cleaning out cupboards and closets, and pairing down children's toys.
Sometimes sellers even hire interior designers to make suggestions on everything from furniture arrangements to paint colors. People are tired of seeing white walls. If done the right way, colors can add thousands of dollars to a home's asking price, though the opposite is true as well. If people don't know what they're doing, their paint colors can easily take $20,000 off the price of a $300,000 house.
Take your places, people
Consider the open house your home's big debut, only you're not going to be in the audience. Sellers should never be home!
It goes without saying that every room has to look impeccable, but the lighting should also be first rate. Table lamps are switched on even if it's a sunny day and florescent kitchen lights stay off. Candles serve the dual purpose of adding warm light and soothing smells.
Though most buyers are familiar with that old trick of baking cookies, It is still beneficial to pop a batch in the oven to make the house feel inviting. (Apple pie and roasted turkey are variations on this theme.)
If traffic or loud upstairs neighbors are not your home's best selling points, cue the mood music.
And if your neighbors are really loud, consider paying the upstairs neighbors to leave during the open house.
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