Style your Neutral Bay home to increase profit

If you’re looking to put your property on the market, never underestimate the power of styling – it can mean the difference between a marginal profit and an exceptional one! But rest assured, home styling (also known as staging) is nothing to be afraid of. There’s also no need to go out and buy all new furniture and furnishings. Most of the time you can work with what you’ve got, or rent a few key pieces if need be.

What’s important to know is that done in the right way, home styling is worth it when you’re selling your home. So let us guide you through some of the key pointers of how to make it work for you and your house.

The importance of style and presentation

The reason for styling your home when it’s on the market is to ensure any potential buyers view it at its absolute best. Because you’re not just selling a house with four walls, you’re actually selling an aspiration.

Everyone has a reason for moving on from their current home, and whether it’s to upsize, downsize or for a change of lifestyle, they will also want to be ‘trading up’ in terms of design, quality and modernity. So you need the visual appeal to be strong, giving them a reason to see why your property is better than any others on the market.

How to style your home

Essentially, styling and presenting your home for sale is to display all of its benefits and show someone what they would enjoy about living there. And the best place to start is by providing as much of a ‘blank canvas’ as possible – so removing clutter, personal items, and anything that could distract the eye from seeing the house as it is.

We all get comfortable living in our own surroundings, so we might not care about a rug that has seen better days, or windows that need a good clean. But when a person is looking to make a significant investment buying a property those things do matter.

Styling doesn’t have to involve bringing in all new furniture and furnishings, but is more about tidying away anything that doesn’t add to the overall ambience of a space.

Good photography

What you do want to achieve with your presentation is the ability to achieve exceptional photos of your home. With practically every property search beginning online these days, you need to impress when a potential buyer sees your listing on the internet.

And people are very astute at being able to see where an effort has been made, compared to a house that has been photographed ‘as is’. Having your property dismissed in the blink of an eye due to how it looks is obviously not the result you want, and can also encourage low-ball offers as people assume it’s a fire sale and not a carefully considered decision.

What does a professional stylist do?

A professional stylist is someone with an expert eye who can view the potential of your home, and offer objective feedback as to what’s needed to meet the standards expected by buyers. They are someone who keeps up-to-date with trends and also understands what works to get a property sold.

A stylist has the ability to ensure each space in your home is seen at its best, by using the right colours, accessories and furnishings. They may advise investing in a fresh coat of paint, or replacing fixtures that have a detrimental effect on the feel of your home.

The cost of a stylist in Sydney will depend on the type of home you have, and whether you’re looking for them to do a complete overhaul, or just provide you with advice, tips and tricks of how to take a DIY approach. Bear in mind that investing in the right styling will almost definitely increase your sales price.

6 top styling tips for your Sydney home

1. Remove everything personal from the walls and spaces of your home. From family photographs, to pet beds and benchtop clutter – you’re looking to create a neutral base that people can imagine themselves living in.

2. Simple can be effective. Never underestimate purchasing modern, low-cost furnishings – such as couch cushions, throws, bedding, rugs and wall art. And take them with you when you go!

3. The details do matter. So fix any paint chips, stains, wear and tear, broken handles etc. Everything small will add up to the overall look.

4. Go for matchy-matchy. Maybe that’s not how you like to live, but it creates less distraction for people if everything in a space/room is cohesive.

5. Seek inspiration and copy it. One of the easiest ways to understand how to present your home for sale is to check out what everyone else is doing. Browse local listings (to keep one eye on the competition too) and check out Pinterest for easy, yet effective styling tricks.

6. Curb appeal is important too. What is the first impression of your home going to tell people? Keep it tidy, low maintenance and welcoming.

Talk to us

Are you thinking of selling? We are the Neutral Bay real estate agents to talk to, and we can help you achieve a great result for your property sale. Get in touch today.