If you are a homeowner who is selling your house, then you should know that staging can make a big impact in the number of offers you receive. One of the most important areas of a home is the kitchen – the place where delicious dinners are made. To make buyers fall in love with your kitchen, here are five staging ideas that will get some offers cooking.
1) Clear The Counters
The first thing you should do is store away all the items on your counters. The goal of staging is to make your kitchen look larger and more streamlined, so you should put away the blender, electric kettle, toaster, coffee maker, and other bulky items. Make sure that you also remove the magnets and notes stuck on your refrigerator.
The only thing that should be on your counter is an item that gives the area a pop of color. This could be a vase filled with flowers, a bowl of lemons, or potted herbs.
2) Make Sure Everything Is Clean
Having used your kitchen for years, you might have gotten used to all the dirt and grime. Your potential buyers, however, will want nothing less than a sparkling clean kitchen. So you have to scrub the sink, wipe out the drawers and polish the stainless appliances.
If you need to clean grout, sprinkle some baking soda and spray white vinegar over it. Use a brush to scrub the grout and then wipe it up. Another helpful tip is to cut up a lemon and run it through your garbage disposal before a showing. This will neutralize the unpleasant smells coming from the disposal that could scare away your buyers.
3) Lighten Things Up
To make your kitchen feel even more spacious, let as much natural light into the space as you can. You can do this by opening heavy drapes, or replacing these with sheer curtains and minimal window treatments. You could also consider buying under-cabinet lights. These battery-powered lights cost very little, but will make your kitchen feel modern and sophisticated.
4) Get Rid of Nasty Smells
Smell is often the trickiest thing to detect in your home, because your nose adapts to odors and scents very quickly. Guests coming into your home, however, will notice smells right away. If they discover bad odors in the kitchen instead of pleasant smells, then they might be put off.
The easiest way to make sure your kitchen looks and smells clean is to purchase scents from a store, but remember to stay away from heavy fragrances. Instead, look for light scents that won’t make it appear that you are trying to hide something. Some great choices are “citrus” or “ocean breeze”. These types of scents will leave your kitchen smelling great, but not overly perfumed.
When you are selling your home, you should also try not to cook dishes with strong odors. If you know potential buyers are coming in the next day, you should not fry fish or sauté garlic the night before. Not only will this leave odors in the air, it will also leave oil splatter all over the stove.
5) Organize the Cupboard, Pantry and Fridge
People who are looking to buy a new home will want to imagine how their pans, pots and food items fit into the kitchen. This means that they will not only look at the counters, but they will also look inside the pantry, cupboard and fridge.
A great way to organize your kitchen is to use clear storage containers. Clear containers take up less space visually, so you end up convincing your buyers of a clutter-free space.
A properly staged kitchen will definitely impress your potential buyers, but it can still take a while to find the right offer for your home. If you want to sell your Jacksonville, NC home in a flash, call Blue Hen Homebuyers at 910-802-2222.