Dos and Don’ts of Staging Your Fairfield Home

Clean, declutter, and depersonalize—here’s how to get your Fairfield home ready for buyers.

While the Fairfield, CA, housing market remains saturated with interested buyers and high sale prices, it’s still vital to get your home looking as good as possible before listing. Throughout the pre-listing process, focus your efforts on appealing to your home’s ideal buyer.

Complete any necessary repairs, work with an experienced Fairfield real estate agent, and price your home competitively (via a comparative market analysis). Once you’ve taken care of these necessities, it’s time to stage your home.

What is staging?

Staging is the process of rearranging, adding, and removing furniture in your home to make it as appealing as possible to ideal buyers. When staging your Fairfield home, you want to add neutral yet stylish pieces that encourage buyers to visualize themselves living in your home and give each room a designated purpose. By hiring a professional stager, you can increase the selling price of your home by up to 23%, and your home is likely to sell much faster than its non-staged counterparts. If you don’t want to hire a pro, you can still experience the monetary benefits of staging by paying attention to the following dos and don’ts.

Do: clean first

Deep cleaning your Fairfield home for sale should be the first step in your staging process. In most cases, it’s a good idea to hire a professional who has experience cleaning homes in anticipation of listing them for sale. A pro can look at your home with fresh eyes and will have the tools, supplies, and know-how to ensure every nook and cranny of your home is sparkling (and in the shortest amount of time.)

Don’t: leave your stuff in the house

Buyers looking at houses for sale in Fairfield don’t want to walk in and see all your papers, books, extra clothes, and knickknacks scattered about the home. Decluttering is a crucial part of staging and makes your home appear brighter, larger, and well maintained. Remove any items that are taking up unnecessary space and put them in a storage unit, as opposed to storing them in closets, attics, or basements—all of which will be seen by potential buyers. Storage spaces should be free of clutter.

Do: neutralize

Neutralizing means removing anything personal or distracting from your home such as collectibles, sports memorabilia, family photos, and unique artwork. All of these items should go into your storage space. Additionally, any statement walls or brightly colored rooms should be painted in warm, neutral shades that accommodate a wide range of interior design styles. Fairfield real estate professionals suggest painting living rooms and bedrooms in light gray, off-white, or beige—while kitchens and bathrooms should get a nice coat of light blue or gray paint.

Don’t: let buyers know you have pets

Buyers tend to be put off by visible or olfactory indicators of pets. While looking at houses for sale in Fairfield, buyers may perceive obvious signs of pets (or the pets themselves) as a signal that the home is unclean or will require more work before move-in. Find a place for your pets to stay during showings and remove items like dishes, toys, and pet beds.

Do: make touch-ups

As insane as it may sound, even the smallest scuff, chip, or crack could insinuate larger problems for a potential buyer, and lead them to choose another house for sale in Fairfield. Walk through your home with your real estate agent to identify any areas that need touching up, and schedule a handyman to do the work before any prospective buyers look at your home.

Don’t: have a dark home

A well-lit home looks welcoming and large. During the staging process, remove all heavy window coverings, and place extra floor or table lamps in rooms that don’t have much natural light. Be sure to ask your Fairfield real estate agent to turn on all lights prior to showings.

Do: remove large or unnecessary furniture

Bulky furniture (or too many furnishings) can crowd a room and make it appear smaller. If you have large couches, chairs, or tables, put them in your storage unit and replace them with smaller, more lightweight versions. Each room should have only the furniture necessary to help the buyer identify what it will be used for. For example, a guest bedroom should have only a bed, bedside table, and maybe a dresser if the space permits while a dining room needs nothing more than a table and chairs.

Don’t: forget the final touches

It’s often the little things that push houses for sale in Fairfield over the edge for buyers. Prior to showings, place vases with fresh flowers in strategic locations throughout the home. Burn candles or put out some heated vanilla oil to create a pleasing aroma. Play relaxing music softly in the background and set your dining room table with high-quality linens, dishes, and wine glasses (to evoke images of dinner parties or cozy family dinners). Finally, hang a festive wreath on the front door and place a cheery welcome pat on the porch.

Staging is an integral part of the pre-listing process. If you want to sell your home quickly and for the highest price possible, follow the above staging tips or hire a professional stager who can get your home into ideal condition.

Preparing to list a Fairfield home for sale?

Fairfield real estate agent Julie Walsh can provide you more local staging tips, and painlessly guide you through the rest of the listing process. Contact Julie today to begin the home-selling process—or to begin the search for your next California dream home.