10 Low-Cost Home Staging Tips That Make a Big Impact

Are you wanting to sell your home? Staging your home can help you get a better price. But hiring a professional home stager can be very expensive. Don’t worry! There are many low-cost tips you can use to stage your home yourself. These tips will make your home look great without costing too much money.

Declutter and Depersonalize

One of the most important things is to declutter and depersonalize your home. This means removing personal items like family photos, religious symbols, and quirky decorations. It also means removing extra furniture and anything else that makes your home look messy or crowded.

A clean, clutter-free home looks more spacious and welcoming. It makes it easier for potential buyers to imagine themselves living there. It creates a neutral space that appeals to more people.

For example, let’s say your living room is full of your kids’ toys, your collection of knick-knacks, and too much furniture. This makes the room look smaller and cluttered. It’s hard for buyers to picture their own belongings in the space.

But if you remove the toys, pack away your knick-knack collection, and remove a couple pieces of bulky furniture, the room will instantly feel bigger and more inviting. Buyers can then visualize setting up their own furniture and decorating with their own style.

Maximize Natural Light

Making the most of natural light makes your home look bright, airy and spacious. Here are two easy ways to maximize natural light:

1. Clean your windows – Dirty windows block out sunlight. Use a simple vinegar and water solution to clean all your windows inside and out. Wipe them dry with a cloth to avoid streaks.
2. Use light curtains – Heavy, dark curtains make rooms feel gloomy and small. Replace them with sheer or white curtains that let in lots of light. Open curtains fully during the daytime.

For instance, say you have a small bedroom with one window. The window is streaked with dirt and has thick, dark curtains half-closed. This makes the room feel cramped and cave-like.

But clean that window thoroughly, remove the heavy curtains, and hang some affordable sheer white curtain panels instead. Keeping them open allows beautiful natural light to pour in. Suddenly the room looks much brighter and airier.

Rearrange Furniture

You can completely change how a room looks and feels just by rearranging the furniture. Best of all, it’s free! Some tips:

• Create a focal point like a fireplace, artwork or pretty window view. Arrange seating to face this focal point.
• Ensure furnishings are spaced apart enough for easy movement through the room. Don’t overcrowd with too many pieces.
• Define different activity “zones” like a conversation area and reading nook in larger rooms.

Let’s look at an example living room that feels cramped and closed-off. The sofa and chairs are lined up along the walls. The small coffee table is pushed up against the sofa, with no room to walk around it.

But by pulling the sofa and chairs inward to create a cozy U-shape seating area, it opens up the flow of the room. Angling the chairs towards the fireplace focal point creates an inviting conversational layout. Adding a side table beside each chair provides surface space too.

Neutralize Color Palette

Using neutral colors like beiges, grays and taupes creates a blank canvas that lets buyers picture their own style in the home. Two easy ways to neutralize:

1. Paint walls – Use soft neutral shades like “Swiss Coffee” by Behr, “Revere Pewter” by Benjamin Moore or “Agreeable Gray” by Sherwin Williams. These light hues make spaces feel calm and open.
2. Use neutral decor – From pillows to curtains to rugs, stick to colors like white, tan, gray and taupe. You can add just a few pops of bolder accent colors if desired.

As an example, perhaps your living room currently has dark red walls, a multicolored patterned sofa and clashing decor items in various bright shades. This creates a jarring, closed-in vibe that may be unappealing to many buyers.

But painting those walls a soft greige (gray/beige blend) and switching out the sofa for a neutral oatmeal-colored piece instantly calms down the space. Add in some solid tan curtains, ivory pillows and a plush gray area rug. Now it feels like a relaxing oasis that lets buyers envision adding their own style on top.

Add Impactful Small Updates

You don’t have to do massive renovations to give your home a fresh, updated look. Some minor changes can go a long way:

1. Update hardware – Replace old cabinet pulls and door handles with new hardware for an instant facelift. Look for affordable options at home improvement stores.
2. Add fresh flowers – Place vases of fresh florals around your home. They add color, beauty and pleasant aromas. Use blooms from your garden to save money!

For instance, let’s say your kitchen is dated with chipped countertops and scuffed, yellowed cabinets. It looks old and dilapidated. But before budgeting for new counters and cabinets, try these small updates first.

Swap out those old cabinet knobs for sleek new nickel pulls from the hardware store. Then place a few vases of vibrantly colored fresh-cut flowers from your garden around the room as accents. Instantly the space looks brighter, cleaner and more inviting for very little money!

Repair and Deep Clean

Making minor repairs and giving your home a deep, thorough cleaning are must-dos before listing. This makes such an impact on overall presentation.

First, fix anything broken, squeaky or leaky like cabinet hinges, faucets, light switches. These little flaws can be big turn-offs to buyers.

Next, remove all clutter and knick-knacks. Then get out your cleaning supplies and really scrub every surface from floors to walls to windows. Pay extra attention to making kitchens and baths sparkle.

If you don’t have time for heavy-duty cleaning, consider hiring an affordable one-time cleaning service. This allows you to start fresh with a clean slate.

For example, perhaps your main bathroom has cracked floor tiles, a leaky toilet, soap scum-stained shower doors, and toothpaste smears on the mirrors and sink. Not exactly making the best impression!

But by re-grouting the cracked tiles, fixing that toilet leak, thoroughly scrubbing down the shower doors and toilet, and cleaning all surfaces until they gleam like new, it can make even an outdated bathroom look well-maintained and cared for.

Optimize Curb Appeal

You only get one chance at a first impression! That’s why great curb appeal is crucial when selling. Here are two areas to focus on:

Landscaping – Keep your lawn freshly mowed and yards cleared of debris. Make garden beds look neat and bright with fresh mulch and seasonal flowers. Powerewash walkways, fences and exterior surfaces.

Front door and entry – Make your front door pop with a fresh coat of paint or stain in an eye-catching color. Polish or replace worn door fixtures like the handle and kickplate. Place a new trendy welcome mat and perhaps potted plants flanking the doorway.

As an example, consider a home with an overgrown, weedy yard scattered with kids’ toys and tools. The front walkway is cracked and stained, and the front door is faded and dull.

Imagine the difference after having professionals give the yard a seasonal cleanup: neatly edged lawn, pruned shrubs, freshly mulched flowerbeds with bright annuals, and a power-washed pristine walkway.

Then top it off by painting the front door a modern shade like navy blue and updating the entry light fixture and potted plants flanking the door. Wow, what an upgrade in first impression!

Stage Key Rooms

While you want your whole home looking tidy, be sure to place extra staging focus on the rooms buyers care most about: kitchen, living room, master suite and bathrooms. A few key tips:

Kitchen – Clear all clutter from countertops and remove non-essential small appliances. Consider updating cabinet hardware, faucets and light fixtures if needed. Place a simple vase of fresh florals or bowl of fruit on counters as a bright accent.

Living room – Aim for a cozy yet open flow, with conversational furniture arrangement facing focal point like fireplace. Include occasional tables, lamps and pillows in fresh, neutral tones.

Bedrooms – Put fresh, white bed linens on beds with just a couple of colorful accent pillows. Remove most personal items from surfaces to keep palette clean.

Bathrooms – Clear all bathroom counters and replace towels with fresh, fluffy white ones. Enhance with subtle fragranced items like potpourri or candles. Ensure all fixtures are sparkling clean.

So for instance, rather than viewing a dark, cramped living room stuffed with over-sized sofas and chairs, buyers could enter into a bright, open concept space with streamlined seating focused on a cozy fireplaced nook. Or be wowed by a spa-like master bath with clean lines, calming hues and lush towels instead of a cluttered, cramped vanity space. It’s all about creating inviting spaces.

Use Mirrors

Mirrors can be your secret weapon for giving small rooms an open, spacious feel! By reflecting light and views, they create the illusion of depth. Some tips:

• Strategically place mirrors opposite windows to reflect that natural light and outdoor scenery.
• Use a large, floor-to-ceiling mirror to maximumize openness in tight spaces.
• Create a gallery wall of mixed shape/size mirrors in a living room or hallway.
• Place mirrors in creative spots like behind bathroom vanities or on closet doors.

For example, let’s say you have a tiny, boxy kitchen with no windows except a small one over the sink. Adding a mirror across from that window will help bounce the natural light around, tricking the eye into perceiving more spaciousness.

Or consider a narrow entryway hallway. Placing an assortment of decorative hanging mirrors along one wall creates interest and amplifies the sense of expansiveness as you move through. Just be sure to avoid mirrored walls directly across each other to prevent a closed-in vibe.