8 Tips for Staging Your House Prior to Sale

The real estate market in the greater Montreal, Laval and South Shore region is heating up. A strong job market and a thriving economy are increasing demand. Inventory is relatively low with 16% fewer properties for sale than this time last year, which increases competition and drives up prices. In this article we will give you 8 Tips for Staging Your House Prior to Sale which will provide your home with an edge to sell more quickly and at better price.

At Mose Home Inspection Services we understand that traditional home staging is a well-established industry that focuses on making decorative changes to your home such as:

• Removing clutter
• Cleaning up thoroughly
• Performing aesthetic changes like installing new bathroom fixtures, curtains and throw rugs

As experienced home inspection professionals, we at Mose Home Inspection Services see home staging from a different perspective. From our point of view, fixing a few things before placing your house on the market is a good idea because it will make your house look well maintained, and that’s exactly what buyers want to see.

Be Prepared in a HOT Market!

In a hot real estate market like ours, properly staging your house prior to sale is important. We also strongly recommend that you get your home inspected before you place it on the market (see our article on Pre-Listing Inspections). Once you have had your pre-listing inspection done, you will have a list of things around your home that could use a little TLC.

Here are some examples of what we might suggest after the inspection:

• Caulking– Most houses will need a bit of caulking. Caulking keeps the rain out so it’s important to keep it in good condition.
• Downspouts– Simply adding a downspout extension can prevent a leak in your basement now or sometime in the future.
• Gutters– Clean your gutters. Nothing says you don’t care more than plants growing in the gutters!
• Plumbing– Slow drains and dripping taps can make buyers suspicious of bigger problems. It’s an inexpensive fix to replace some washers and old taps.
• Electrical– GFCI’s in the kitchen and bathrooms.  Even if you have an old fuse panel, you do not have to change it. Just make sure it functions properly and above all, that it has the correctly sized fuses in it.
• Windows and Doors– A simple tip here is to remove and clean the screens and clean the tracks so they work smoothly. Also a little bit of good quality spray lubricant will go a long way to making doors and windows open and close smoothly and quietly, giving them a well maintained look and feel.
• Heating– Wash the air exchange filters and core, and vacuum the inside as well. Change the furnace filter. Another good trick is to vacuum any baseboard heaters so they don’t smell when they are turned on.

Conclusion

Another important piece of advice is to declare everything else from your inspection report on the vendor declaration. For any major issues, like the roof or heat pump for instance, try to get estimates but remember that fixing them is not mandatory.

Doing a traditional staging your house prior to sale helps make your home more appealing to today’s home buyer is still a good idea in many cases. However, at Mose Home Inspection Services we believe that anyone selling their home will be doing themselves a big favour by following these simple steps for home staging, MOSE style. With proper planning and staging, your home will not only look great, but it will function great too and sell faster!

If you would like to get a pre-listing inspection of your home before putting it on the market, contact Mose Home Inspection Services at 1-855-426-1095 or visit www.mosehomeinspection.com to book your appointment.