Curious to know what exterior staging is? Learn how it can help you sell your home faster, and use the exterior home staging tips from Staged and Sold in L.A. to set your home apart. Contact our team to schedule a consultation.
Exterior Home Staging
Beautifying the outside of your home is an important part of home staging. No matter what time of year it is, there are always some things you can do to make the exterior of your home look as warm and inviting as possible. With that in mind, we’ll cover a list of tasks you can perform that range from basic to advanced to help you determine which areas need the most attention.
Exterior home staging is an important part of getting the offer you want for your home. When you’re ready to sell, be sure to contact Staged and Sold in L.A. to schedule a consultation and learn how we can help you show your house at its best. Our Top Rated Local® home staging company can help you sell faster with professional home staging whether your home is vacant or occupied. Contact us today.
Curb Appeal
The goal of exterior home staging is to sell your home faster and with less hassle. It’s not that potential buyers are looking to purchase clean windows or pretty flower beds, but these are an effective means to a desired end. When potential buyers come to your home, you want them to see an attractive property, as this communicates that you have taken care of the home. Properly done, exterior home staging should accomplish the following:
- Impress viewers with curb appeal
- Make potential buyers feel welcome
- Enhance the best features of your home’s exterior
- Eliminate problems and clutter
Exterior Home Staging Basics
While you may not spend a lot of time thinking about the way the exterior of your home looks, it’s important to keep in mind as you get your home ready for listing. With that in mind, there are a wide variety of tasks you can do to the exterior from minor fixes to major remodels. Let’s look at a list of some of the basic fixes you should tackle:
- Clean windows (inside and out) and repair screens — clean windows will let in more light, which will help your home appear more bright and spacious.
- Pressure wash the exterior walls, including stone and concrete — If your paint is in good repair, a pressure wash will remove layers of dirt to give a “like new” look.
- Rake up leaves, prune dead branches, and pull weeds — make sure all landscaping looks green and lush.
- Regularly mow, weed, and edge your yard — avoid a shaggy lawn through regular lawn care while your home is listed.
- Store all basketball hoops, toys, hoses, and other maintenance tools — remember the goal is to help potential buyers see themselves in the space.
- Replace exterior light bulbs — if necessary, you can also update or replace light fixtures.
- Polish, paint, or redo house numbers and other hardware - attention to the shiny details will help catch the eyes of potential buyers.
- Replace storm door and front door as needed — if either one looks worse for wear, consider whether they need to be cleaned and painted or completely replaced.
- Add new welcome mat — make sure potential buyers are greeted with a welcome mat that is clean and adds warmth to your entrance.
- Reseed bare patches in lawn — if necessary, resod your yard to create a pleasing exterior.
- Add patio chairs and a table to your front porch — create a cozy look that invites prospective buyers to sit down and enjoy the view.
- Add fresh mulch or additional rocks to flower beds and planters — new mulch adds a pop of color to flower beds and additional rock helps to fill in any gaps.
- Place accent plants by front door — plants with yellow flowers are a great option to select when purchasing accent plants.
- Add fresh paint to shutters, door, and trim — the clean lines created from new paint on the trim and shutters will create instant visual appeal.
While it may take a few weekends to accomplish these tasks, you’re sure to be amazed at the incredible curb appeal they will add to your home. By investing a relatively small amount of money and some time, you could see big payoffs when it comes to the offers you receive.
Next Level Exterior Home Staging
These exterior home staging projects require more time and money, but can have a much more significant impact on your curb appeal and the offers potential buyers are willing to make.
Landscaping
Depending on the amount of time you have before you need to list your home, you might consider taking your exterior home staging to the next level. In addition to completing some of the basic tasks we mentioned, you can also invest in some landscaping if your home currently has little to none. Shrubs, flower beds, and tree saplings are all great additions that show potential buyers the amount of work you put in to maintain your home.
Sidewalk, Porch, and Driveway
If the surfaces of your sidewalk, driveway, porch, or steps are in poor condition, then you’ll want to consider addressing these areas to improve your curb appeal. Potential buyers do not want to see cracked pavers, chipped stairs, or weeds and tree roots growing up through the concrete and asphalt. These types of flaws tell potential buyers that you’re willing to let someone else deal with the maintenance nor do they create a good first impression. Unless there is major damage, you might be able to do some simple repair work on the pavers, concrete, and asphalt. If you’re not sure if these repairs are something you can do, check with a few local home improvement stores or handymen to see whether you would be better off hiring professional help.
Gutters
When they do their job, it’s easy to forget about the gutters on your home. When you focus on exterior home staging tasks, you need to thoroughly clean them out and make sure they are firmly attached to the house. Depending on what you find, you may need to replace sections of your gutters to create a better first impression.
Garage Door
If your garage door opens and closes when you need it to, you may not pay a lot of attention to its appearance. Since your garage door likely takes up as much as 40% or more of the front of your home, it’s important not to neglect its appearance. If your garage door is old, beaten up, or broken, then you’ll want to make sure to get it repaired or replaced. A new garage door essentially provides a facelift for the front of your home and instantly adds great curb appeal.
Roof
Perhaps the biggest ticket item on the list of exterior home staging tasks is repairing the roof. While you may not want to think about dealing with roof repairs, failure to do so could cost you money in the low offers you get or in the concessions that buyers want. If your roof is around 20 years old, then it would be wise to consult roofing experts in your area to give you an estimate on what should be done. Roofs that are old or damaged by hail, wind, and other weather events not only need to be replaced to protect the home, but will also make a great first impression on potential buyers. In fact, completing roof repairs could procure a higher offer than what you expected.
Home Staging
If you want to sell your home in less time and get great offers, then home staging is something you can’t ignore. At Staged and Sold in L.A., we can offer the expertise and assistance you need with both exterior and interior home staging. Our team of interior designers know what buyers are looking for, and we can help you set your home apart from the others on the market. Contact us to schedule a consultation, and see what our Top Rated Local® home staging company can do for you.