House plants, fresh vegetables and high-end fashion magazines are among the cost-effective items sellers should be displaying in their home to maximise their chances of a sale.
This is according to a survey by CIA Landlord which discovered the importance of ‘staging’ – or making your home look picture ready – in creating a positive first impression.
Plants came top of the list of items which were not only inexpensive to purchase but added merit to the space and were most popular amongst buyers.
Leaving several copies of fashion magazines such as Vogue or ELLE also added extra allure to a home, the study found.
Applying the right wallpaper to a room can make a space look bigger and, according to the study, has the potential to increase the market value of a home by £800.
But don’t underestimate the value of books and candles in making a property look more ‘homely’. CIA Landlord said placing books on the shelves or cookbooks in the kitchen can give a lived-in feel to an interior while candles add warm lighting and pleasant smells to a home.
Certain foods also boost a room’s appeal both in both pictures and to viewers. This is particularly true of fresh vegetables in the kitchen – these create a wholesome, rural feel.
Equally, a decorative jar of sweets can also have a positive effect on how the property is viewed, the survey found.
Finally, invest in an expensive hand wash for your bathroom – Sanctuary Spa handwash proved the most popular or ‘instagrammable’ brand in the study.
What to avoid
The research also highlighted the interiors which should be avoided if you want to guarantee your home looks at its best.
Avoid closed blinds, artificial air fresheners and fresh paint stains if you can as these emerged as some of the least desirable features.
In fact a room with just one newly-painted wall or in which a small portion of the ceiling freshly daubed could be a major red flag as it suggests the stains were from a prior problem which has not been corrected.
Clutter is also a big turn off. So while it’s good to have a few, quality items scattered in prominent places, don’t go over the top.
Alex Willcocks, owner of Burbeck Interiors said: “When staging a home, the worst thing you can do is overcrowd or clutter rooms and areas. Home staging isn’t about quantity, it’s about quality. This retracts from the space, and the potential it has.
Selling a vision
Indeed, Willcocks explained home staging was all about selling the potential buyer a vision, and this needed to be incredibly appealing.
He added: “It is incredibly important for potential buyers to be able to move freely around the property and feel the space, without being impeded by the volume of furniture.
“The furniture is simply there as an attraction, rather than a selling point. It is used to highlight the space and property, not the other way round.”
