9 Condo Staging Tips To Turn Lookers Into Buyers

Staging a condo seems easy enough, but how can you use the space to turn more lookers into offers?  We’ve got you covered.  Below you’ll find nine unique tips to stage a condo (or home).  By using these unique strategies, you may be able to turn more lookers into offers on your listings.

• 9. Remove All Allergy Related Decor.

  Empty windows and tables with no accents or decor are dull.  But during allergy season, someone who suffers needs an escape from all plant life.  Instead of flowers which can be associated with sneezing, itchy eyes and being uncomfortable, think about things that create a calming and homelike feel.  Window ledges are perfect to stage a place to sit or as a space for books.  You could even place  a small table in front where you display a statue.  Dining tables can use candles and tasteful sculptures as a substitute instead of a bouquet of flowers or a plant.  The best part is these can be saved and reused where a plant will die and need replaced.

• 8. Use Window Blinds to Display a View and Close Off a Wall.

  Recently I was helping a realtor stage a condo, and the living room had two giant windows.  One with an open view and one with a partially blocked one.  Both windows were wide open which to me made the space feel smaller and less friendly.  I recommended we close the partial view window and place a large piece of furniture or changing screen by it so that as the buyer moves through, they see the view from the unobstructed window and not focus on the window which was half blocked by a brick wall.

  Potential home buyers were not discouraged from seeing the partial view, but we made sure to close the window blinds after they looked so when the next person comes in, and as the current potential buyer leaves, both see and remember the best of the condo and that is what sticks with them.  Not a partial brick wall and a partially obstructed view.

• 7. Use Mirrors and Open Doors.

  City life can feel claustrophobic and condos aren’t always the largest spaces.  By changing out some artwork for mirrors, you can help people feel like there is more space and they are less closed in.  The same goes for doors.  Keep them open, even the bathroom doors, can open the flow of the room.  But make sure to turn on the lights.  When the traces of light come in and out, you make the space appear to have more flow which can create a feeling like there is more room than there actually is.

• 6. Prevent the appearance of sloped, curved or slanted floors.

  It’s a bit awkward, even if there are zero foundation issues, to see floors which look or feel slanted and sloped.  I was walking through a condo with a real estate agent a couple months ago and notice the floors appear to travel down at an angle, but they actually weren’t.  By placing a large area rug at an angle, a couch not against the wall, and creating a sitting area that was not following the lines of the walls we got rid of the effect making the space feel more comfortable for potential buyers.

• 5. Do Not Overpower the Space.

  Condos and some houses have very limited space.  If the furniture and artwork you use to stage the rooms take away from the actual area, insteading of bringing the buyers eyes to the room itself, the deal could fall through.  Use decor and furniture to complement the area, not the other way around.

• 4. Use artwork and interesting items to hide flaws.

  No property is perfect.  Some units or rooms have flaws that can be easily fixed once the home is purchased like a scratch in a floor or broken piece of molding.  There is nothing wrong with adding something that has visual appeal to distract from these temporary and easy-to-repair flaws like an interesting lamp or conversation piece.  Just make sure it doesn’t also distract from the selling points like we mention in the tip above.

• 3. Use the Weather Outside to Create a Welcoming Atmosphere.

  If it is raining outside or chilly, provide hand warmers, paper towels to dry the visitors wet face or hands with, and some hot cocoa at the entrance to the unit.  If it’s sunny, place cold bottles of water, iced tea or lemonade with a bucket of ice, or other cool and refreshing consumables at the entrance.  If it is spring or fall and allergies are bad, have small packets of tissues the visitors can take with them that also have your business card.  By doing this you help to create a happy and welcoming feeling for the potential shopper as they enter their new home.  As they consider and remember what they saw, they’ll remember how warm and inviting it was from the time they entered to the time they leave.

• 2.  Remove Any Signs of Pets.

  From photographs on the walls to pet beds on the floor, pull them out.  This isn’t just about allergies, it is about potential buyers assuming there are pet smells even when there aren’t.  Our minds and senses play a lot of games with us.  If the potential buyer is not an animal lover, they could assume there is a smell that actually isn’t there and that could kill the deal.

• 1.  Bake Cookies.

  You can bring your own batter, or simply buy premade and sliced from the store.  Once you get to the condo, bake the cookies.  Not only does this create a pleasing smell, but it may help to drive a warm, happy and cozy feeling to a potential buyer.  Much like the pets creating fake smells, and city life feeling busy and claustrophobic, a warm childhood memory and the pleasant smell of a freshly baked cookie creates a lasting feel as the person leaves and could help to tip the scales into your listings favor when they make a decision on which home to buy.

Staging a condo is an art form.  You have limited space and you’re competing against a ton of other properties.  Instead of simply throwing in decor with mass appeal, think about how you can create a welcoming and happy experience that causes the potential buyer to feel at home.  By doing this you may be able to convert more lookers into full offers.