The best way to start de-cluttering is to take it one room at a time. Have 3 boxes on hand. Use one for keep, one for give away or yard sale items, and one for trash. Pack away the items you plan to keep, but don’t use every day. The home will appear neat and some of the packing will already be done.What is clutter? Things that are left laying around. For example books, magazines and newspapers. Also, too many knickknacks, plants or kitchen appliances on the counters. Papers are the main culprit of clutter. Make sure junk mail, bills and the kids school papers are all put away. They are usually found in bookcases, on desks, tables and on the kitchen counter.   

     August: Curb Appeal

Curb appeal is one of the most important steps in staging.  If the outside of the house is not appealing to buyers, you will never get them through the front door.  The first step is to make sure there is no trash or childrens toys laying around.  The second step is to mow and weed the lawn and flower beds.  Third, take a step back and look at the house from the street and then up close.  Make sure there are no major cracks onthe sidewalk or driveway.  The siding should be clean and free of chipped paint.  All repairs should be done at this time.  The front door should "pop".  Less than one gallon of fresh paint on the door will make the entrance feel more welcoming.  The final step is landscaping.  If there isn't a large budget for this step,  potted plants by the door will add life and color. 

September: Color

When you walk into the home, does it feel too dark or too cold?  The colors best to use when staging a home are light neutral colors.  This doesn’t mean every room should be beige.  There are subtle tints of most colors that will look great.  A grayish blue, a creamy yellow or sage are good examples.  Just be sure to choose a paint that will accent architectural features, but aren’t bold or bright.  The rooms should appeal to the most buyers, so make sure the color will coordinate with most people’s furniture.

My suggestions for paint brands include Sherwin Williams and Behr.  Sherwin Williams is on the high end for price, but you definitely get what you pay for when it comes to paint.  The cheaper brands are very watery and splatter when rolled on.  You will also need more coats, which are very time consuming and may cost you more in the end.  Sherwin Williams is very low odor, has low VOC’s (great for your health and the environment), and is thick so no splatters. You can sometimes get away with 1 coat, but their warranty is only good if you use 2 coats. If you want to save a few dollars, Behr paint from Home Depot is my next best choice.  It isn’t as thick so there is a little splatter.  You will also need 2 coats for sure.  The benefit of Behr is that Home Depot can color match with a computer, so you have unlimited choices.  Sherwin Williams doesn’t have this feature, but they have thousands of color choices available.

 October: Smells

How’s the old adage go?  If you can smell it you can’t sell it?  As buyers walk through homes, you don’t want your listings to be remembered as “the cat pee house” or the house that smelled like garlic and onions from dinner the night before.  This is a delicate subject.  My best suggestion is to explain to the sellers that only one third of home buyers are pet lovers, and to reach the majority of buyers, little spot or fluffy may need to “move out” during showings.  Unfortunately, removing the pets won’t take care of the odors.  Carpets, draperies, bedding, and all other soft surfaces retain the smells.  Thorough cleaning of these areas will make a dramatic difference.  Of course during the staging process, the buyers will be encouraged to make all areas spotless including ceiling fans, laminate and other types of floors, etc.  These areas can be culprits of odors as well.  Never try to cover up the smell.  This will only make it more obvious.  After a good cleaning, I do suggest using the Airwick plug in.  I use them in my own home and they tend to last the longest.  I keep an apple cinnamon in one room and a vanilla passion in another.  Combined they make a great fall scent.  It’s nice to come home to.