There are many reasons design and good preparation are absolutely necessary to sell a home.  The tips below will boost a home’s value, create more generally better offers, and help a home to sell much faster.  Please share this with anyone about to sell their home to increase their overall success!

1. Create a memorable home for the right reasons

When buyers look back at the homes they have toured, they typically use the unique traits of a home to distinguish one home from another…whether those differences are good or bad.  I have noticed buyers say things like: “The home with the weird kitchen;” “The house with the dark dining room;” or “The home with that gorgeous fireplace.”  Always consider your home’s strongest points and address them if needed.  Need help?  Read on…

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2. Men and women buy homes differently, here is how to address both…

Ever been to an open house?  Did you ever study the people walking through?  So much of what we as designers do is study the body language of our clients and listen very carefully.  Designing and buying a home are emotional, so this is a must.

Men tend to study and explore spaces with their hands searching for stability and weight.  They knock on walls.  They shake furniture.  The pull on knobs and push on columns.  They comment on the support trusses and the depths of walls.  How do women differ?  We tend to run our hands over the back of soft chairs.  We press the bedspread and run our fingers over the wallpaper to feel the texture.  We study the colors and the feeling the lighting gives us.  Both men and women need to be addressed when selling a home to get the most money possible.  Empty homes can cause pause for so many buyers with little to touch or look at.  Even furnishing one room beautifully can help…ideally this should be the main living space.  Why?  The kitchen and baths already have items to touch such as drawers and cabinets.  Therefore, those rooms aren’t as important to furnish (though accessories never hurt and I recommend fluffy towels at minimum).  However, furnishing the main living space allows the potential buyers to “feel” what it is like to live in a space.  Beautifully arranged furnishings invite them to walk around or through them.  It invites their eyes to rest and their minds to wander and appreciate the style of the home.  That pause can make a buyer think longer and want to live in that space.

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3. Does everything need to go neutral?

No.  I know real estate agents may disagree with me, but personal experience has taught me otherwise.  Repeatedly.  We designed a darling red and green home in Brookside for a client.  Their agent told them to paint it all beige.  They refused and asked him to raise the price another $10k.  The clients received 4 full offers in 24 hours.  It was beautiful and they knew it!  People will pay for beautiful…IF it is well done.  We have heard the same thing from other past clients over the years.  They call beaming about how much they sold their house for.  If a home is designed or styled well, it will bring more money.  The key?  It must be designed or styled beautifully.  All of that being said, if a home has odd colors, yes, beige or gray may be the seller’s new best friends.

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4. A lovely home generates traffic

Everyone wants to see a gorgeous home in person.  Period.

5. Good design helps to define spaces and increases the value of each square foot

Homes with odd spaces need those areas to display a purpose.  So often buyers, when presented with an empty home, can’t see past the basic rooms or see a reason to pay for extra or odd spaces.  Confusion sets in.  Then doubt.

A space that could have helped to discourage a potential buyer could actually become the home’s highlight with the right treatment!  Such assets mean more money in the seller’s pocket.  A talented professional will have a brand-new perspective on an entire home and most certainly would be worth the money.

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6. A beautiful home adds peace of mind to the buyer

So often, people want to move in and feel like they are in a “new” home right away.  An updated and beautifully edited home can allow potential buyers to relax immediately and not worry about updating or changing any items.  Anything to reduce anxiety allows their minds to picture enjoying the space much easier.

…and gives them instant style

Most buyers would like to think they have style and their home is no exception.  Buying a home that already has a beautiful style, is a huge asset compared to a home that is completely neutral and needs some “love” to make it special.  For many people, the thought of purchasing a home is a luxury and buying one with style will alleviate work and take anxiety off of their plate.

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7. What is considered beautiful to a buyer?

That question is, literally, the million-dollar question.  A well thought out home design that is beautifully edited and doesn’t use every trick in the book (and isn’t a reflection of too much HGTV), will generally bring the most money.

8. How can the seller can see the home from a new perspective?

Photograph the home!  Looking at each room (and the exterior) from a different perspective will suddenly make clutter, strange paint colors, dark rooms and the wrong furniture much more obvious.  Print the photographs so they may be studied and notes can be made.

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9. The seller has ONE JOB that will make the selling of their home successful

The seller’s one job is to listen to their hired professionals and follow their direction!  To sell a home, the seller must “remove” themselves emotionally from the home before they physically move out of the home.  It is no longer a home to the sellers.  It must become a piece of valuable property in their minds.  They must hire excellent teams (interior designer, Realtor, stager, contractor) so they will come out a winner!

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10. Like an attractive celebrity…

The value of beauty is real. Humans want to live amongst stunning pieces and be seen in gorgeous places. People will pay more for your home when it is at it’s most attractive.

Best of luck to you on making your home a beautiful place people want to be and on finding your next fabulous home.  Cheers!

Jill Tran

Tran + Thomas Design Studio….  Saving our clients time, frustration and money while giving them more beautiful and functional spaces

•   200+ lines of curated lighting, furniture, window treatments, art, rugs, antiques, etc.
•   New construction, remodels and redesigns 
•   Sources, concepts, layouts, ideas, guidance and advice from over 35 years of combined design experience
•   TWO designers working side by side for better solutions, communication and ideas
•   Family owned since 1982

Luxury From Imagination…

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