How we staged our home while living in it!

Are you planning to sell or rent your home in the future? Ever wondered why some homes stand out and others fall flat? There’s a lot that goes into making a home sell - but one of the things that is easy to control is how you stage it!

We are currently in the process of renting out our condo as our family moves into a new home down the street. To find tenants, we had to stage our home, have professional photos taken, post the listing online, and host showings - all while living there! Read more about managing the rental process here.

Since we were still living in the unit while it was being viewed, I spent a few days getting the house ready. This meant not just deep cleaning, but also making the space look neutral enough so that ANYONE could see themselves living there. In other words: staging! The staging process looked slightly different for the photos versus having people actually come look at the place - I’ll get into that below…

For anyone in the Chicago area, PDET Photography did our listing photos and we love them! The photos included in this post were all done by PDET Photography - check them out!

STAGING TIPS FOR PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEO

Before we listed our condo for rent, we had professional photos taken and our realtor filmed a video tour. This meant the place needed to look AMAZING. If all goes well, you’ll only have to do this part one time. Here is what you need to think about before having photos taken:

Clear Off Surfaces - Spaces tend to look bigger when there is less clutter. Clear off your kitchen counter tops, move appliances into cabinets. Clear off dressers, save for a lamp and a book or candle. Surfaces should feel clean.
Clean Windows - Clean windows let in a lot more light than dirty windows! Make sure your windows sparkle.
Straighten Beds & Couches - A room will look infinitely more tidy if the couch pillows are fluffed, the comforter on the bed is straightened.
Replace Light Bulbs - Go around and replace any light bulbs that are out or don’t match.
Tidy Entry Way - Again, it’s about making the place look like anyone’s home. So that means removing a lot of personal items. Minimize the coats on the rack to one or two. If you don’t have a nice spot to put shoes by the door, put them in your closet. Tuck away items like mail and keys into a drawer.
Take Out Trash - Take out the trash in each room before photos are taken. Especially in bathrooms or offices where the trash cans are open at the top.
Wipe Down Kitchen Appliances / Stainless Steel - This will make your kitchen sparkle. A clean kitchen is a MUST have for staging.
Less is More - Stash any extra clutter on the floor away in closets or hallways that won’t be photographed. Think: games, magazines, laundry, nic nacs, etc. The less you have, the more open and spacious the room will appear.
Mop - Your floors should shine! Sometimes vacuuming isn’t enough, you’ve got to mop to get that shine.
Remove Personal Items - Before the photos were taken, I removed most of our family photos and baby items. I put them into closets. This just creates the neutral setting. You want someone without a baby - or someone with roommates instead of a spouse - to also see themselves in the space.
Remove Signs of Pet - This one is big for a few reasons. First, of course you want to clean up any pet fur and take out the litter, clean up the pet food bowl / areas. That is just part of deep cleaning the home. Second, some people may be allergic to cats or dogs, or might not like pets. Again, creating that neutral space where they can see themselves living there.
Deep Clean - Don’t know how to deep clean the home? Pay someone to do it for you. It will make a world of a difference! Hopefully throughout staging, listing, and showing you’ll only need to have it cleaned once or twice. But it will be worth every penny!

STAGING TIPS FOR IN PERSON TOURS / SHOWINGS

Before anyone came over for a tour, I would go room by room and complete these tasks. Depending how messy the house was this could take me 1-2 hours or 5 hours on a weekend. For the most part, once we listed the home, we did our part to clean up every night before bed. That way, if someone messaged us to see the place the next day, we were ready!

We ended up showing the place to about 8 groups before we had a signed lease. This required a lot of time prepping for lots of showings, but it was worth it. Something that helped was to try to schedule two or three showings in one day. This saved us going through the entire “get ready” process every single time someone wanted to come.

Here’s what I did room by room before a showing:

KITCHEN

Open fridge and get rid of anything that may smell, wipe up any spills
Wipe down stainless steel appliances that tend to show finger prints
Empty dishwasher and make sure there are no dirty dishes in the sink
Wipe down the sink
Run the disposal (drop a lemon slice or some soap into the disposal to get rid of any smells)
Wipe down counter tops, clear any clutter (bottle drying rack, blender, toaster - I put all of that into the pantry and only kept the coffee machine, mixer and knives on the counter)
Tidy up the pantry
Take out kitchen trash and recycling
Turn on oven light, stove top lights, and any under cabinet lighting

BEDROOMS

Dust dressers and night stands
Clear surfaces of clutter (stack books, hide phone charger and baby monitor, leave one or two framed photos and stash the rest in a drawer)
Make bed (tuck in the sheets, fold the blankets, fluff the pillows, place pillows on the bed so that the pillow case opening is facing inward)
Stow dirty laundry in the washer or in your closet
Clear off the “chair” or “bench” that holds random laundry and bags
Tidy the closets (although you might not have photographed the closets, pantry, coat closet for the listing, the tenants will want to open up every door to see how much space they get)
Vacuum or mop bedroom floors
Turn on bedside lights

KIDS ROOMS

Dust dressers, nightstands, and changing table
Tidy up toys and stuffed animals
Remove extra clutter like action figures, extra books, etc.
Stash as many toys as you can inside the closet
Take out diaper pail trash
Turn on lights

BATHROOMS

Wipe down sink and toilet
Shut toilet lid
Clear off sink (stash toothbrushes, toothpaste, combs, products, EVERYTHING in a drawer or cabinet)
Put out fresh bath towel and hand towels, fold them nicely on the towel rack
Minimize toiletries in the shower/bath
Remove any kids bath toys
Shut the shower curtain or shower door
Vacuum bath rugs
Turn on vanity lights

LIVING & FAMILY ROOMS

Fluff couch cushions and pillows
Fold throw blankets
Wipe down coffee table and consoles
Turn TV off and stash remotes in a drawer
Hide any unsightly cords
Move kids toys into kids room or kids closet
Vacuum rugs
Turn on end table lights

DINING ROOM

Wipe down dining table and chairs
Stash highchair in a corner or booster seat in a closet
Clear off china cabinet or buffet, except for a candle, some flowers, etc.
Straighten art
Vacuum rug or mop floors
Turn on dining room lighting

OUTSIDE

Hang a wreath on front door
Vacuum welcome mat and sweep front steps
Make sure landscaping / driveway looks tidy (stash tools in garage, remove any dead plants or branches, sweep any leaves away)
Turn on front porch light

30 MINUTES BEFORE THE TOUR

A few more general tips before the prospective renters or buyers arrive:

Turn On Lights & Fans - You want your place to feel light and bright, even on a grey or rainy day. Turn on all of the light fixtures. I even turned our ceiling fans on low, just to get air circulating and to draw attention to - yes, we have working ceiling fans!
Light Candles - Light a candle in the main rooms - maybe one in the living room, one in the master bedroom - about 30 minutes prior to people arriving. This will make the house smell great and feel cozy.
Fresh Cut Flowers - Grab some fresh flowers at the store. Placing flowers in a vase in the kitchen or dining room is an added friendly gesture. I will sometimes put bud vases in the bathrooms with one flower.
Check Thermostat - Making sure the house is set at a comfortable temperature is really important and not just for the day of the tour. If tenants feel like it’s stuffy or too cold, they might think the HVAC is broken or doesn’t work well. Save them the worry and make sure the place is a comfortable temperature well before the showing.
Vacuum - This is an obvious one, but you want your place to feel super clean and the number one way to do that is to vacuum! Vacuum the stairs, vacuum the kitchen, vacuum the front porch! Generally, this has to be done within 30 minutes of people arriving, especially with a toddler on the loose!

Take Out Trash - You likely do this before you have friends or family over, so of course you need to do it before you have a tenant come see the place! And I mean every single trash can. The bathrooms, the basement, the diaper pail - all of it goes. And while we are on the topic of stinky things, we also empty the kitty litter 20-30 minutes prior so that there are no weird smells coming from the cat closet.
Play Music - I always have music playing at my house. But I noticed when I was attending open houses that a little bit of background music really sets a good mood. I recommend something like jazz or lofi hip hop.
Refresh Yourself on Specifics - If you have multiple people viewing the property, make sure you have the right names with the right times. Have important information on hand like room dimensions and cost of utilities.
Decide Who is Giving the Tour - Ok, also not necessarily staging related, but after giving a handful of the house tours, we determined it was only necessary to have one of us there. I like to give the tenants an option: would you like to walk around yourself or I can give the tour and show you around? The only time someone didn’t want me to give the tour was when there was a broker involved.

I hope this was helpful to anyone looking to list their place in the future. I have loved documenting the process this time around. Don’t get overwhelmed. At the end of the day, if you put some effort in, it will pay off. Happy decorating!