{"id":75081,"date":"2018-05-25T14:15:46","date_gmt":"2018-05-25T18:15:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bhgre.com\/bhgrelife\/?p=75081"},"modified":"2018-05-25T14:16:36","modified_gmt":"2018-05-25T18:16:36","slug":"ask-a-pro-staging-your-home-for-potential-buyers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bhgre.com\/bhgrelife\/ask-a-pro-staging-your-home-for-potential-buyers\/","title":{"rendered":"Ask a Pro Q&A: Staging Your Home for Potential Buyers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Living in a home for any period of time will leave a wealth of clutter that can prove challenging when it comes time to stage it for potential buyers. See if this process is the right one to help you keep your treasures. <\/em><\/p>\n

Question: We have lived in our home for more than 30 years and have done quite a bit to it. We are planning to finish the remainder of our remodeling and sell. How do I \u201cstage\u201d and edit out 30 years of living?<\/p>\n

-Wanda G.<\/p>\n

Staging is all about creating a blank slate. Many potential buyers simply have a hard time seeing past your treasures, which they may see as clutter!<\/p>\n

Depending on the housing market in your area, it\u2019s also smart to finish any partially completed remodeling projects that may be a distraction.\u00a0Starting a new project, unless it is to fix a glaring problem, is probably not necessary. As you interview potential agents, see what they have to say.<\/p>\n

The most time-consuming part of staging is going to be the \u201cediting out\u201d or, essentially, massively de-cluttering. As you obviously know, any time we live in a house for a long time, we tend to hang onto things simply because we have the room. Since you\u2019ll be moving anyway, pack up the valuables, art and especially all your personal items including family photos, trophies, unique treasures and mementos, large collections, etc. This may be a great time to encourage your family members to ask for what they want! Or, get a storage unit if you can\u2019t move directly into your new place.<\/p>\n

Try very, very hard to store only items you will use in your new home, and donate the rest. You\u2019ll thank yourself later – trust me on this! Otherwise, you\u2019re paying good money to keep things you don\u2019t really want. Allow plenty of time for this process if you are working or have a busy life – maybe even a couple of months! It\u2019s more than a weekend project. And give yourself a realistic deadline to keep on track.<\/p>\n

-Jennifer Adams<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"