Cygnus Real Estate will work with you to professionally stage your Denver home when you list with us as an added value benefit. This service is optional but it can really prove to be helpful in a down real estate market. Talk to us about staging your Denver home today.

Typically, a potential buyer has made up their mind ten seconds after they step in the front door. They were already forming an opinion as they pulled into your driveway! To achieve the greatest possible outcome, a home should always be presented at its best the first time around. Cygnus Real Estate has the people and experience to give your home an effective makeover.

Home staging is the act of preparing a private residence prior to going up for sale in the real estate marketplace. The goal of staging is to sell a home quickly, and for the most money possible by attracting the highest amount of potential buyers. Staging focuses on improving a property to make it appeal to the largest number of buyers by transforming it into a welcoming, appealing, and attractive product for sale. Many people believe that staging raises the value of a property by way of reducing the home's flaws, depersonalizing, decluttering, cleaning, improving condition items, and landscaping. For vacant homes, rental furniture is used to create a living space the buyer could "see" themselves in. Properly executed staging leads the eye to attractive features while minimizing flaws.

A well-staged room invites buyers in and helps them see past the sellers’ possessions to the layout and square footage. Staging also helps draw buyers’ eyes to the best feature of the room, such as French doors or a fireplace.

U.S. research states that home staging can reduce a listing's time on the market by half, and could fetch as much as 10-15% more than an empty home or a home not properly staged

Techniques

Many techniques are used to stage a property. De-cluttering, depersonalizing, updating old or unattractive fixtures, painting, furniture rearrangement, rental furniture and accessorizing are just some of the changes used to make a home more inviting to potential buyers.

Since a typical home buyer decides if they are attracted to a home or not in the first 8 seconds of seeing it[citation needed], curb appeal is generally viewed as a vital aspect of the staging process. Therefore, curb appeal, the practice of improving a home’s exterior appeal, is used alongside interior improvements.

It has been shown that homes containing furniture and accessories sell more quickly than vacant homes, because the potential buyers realize what can actually be done with the place. They may realize that the room is actually a lot larger than it would look without furnishings. Rental of furniture and decorative accessories is a common solution when selling brand new properties that have never been occupied, or those where homeowners have already vacated the property.

Spaciousness and light often determine the success of a staged home. Typically, the larger a room appears, the better it will seem to homebuyers. Dark, tight spaces create a poor impression and may prevent the home from selling. Furniture layouts should create an impression of openness and comfort. Non-essential items should be removed to minimize crowding and clutter. Opening curtains and blinds to let in natural light and turning on interior and exterior lights at nighttime are also common staging techniques.

One school of thought suggests that wall treatments and flooring are most appealing when presented in neutral colors and subtle patterns. Paint colors should be neutral whenever possible, as bright or bold colors and strong patterns detract from the universal appeal of a space. This rule, however, does not always hold true, particularly in the luxury home market, where unique fixtures and bold finishes—such as stained concrete flooring, deeply colored textured paints and artisan fixtures—are often considered highly desirable.

Religious items, personal photos, awards, certificates and cultural items are often removed to downplay the presence of current homeowners. This helps potential homebuyers to not only feel more at ease during viewings, but allows them to focus on the property itself while also imagining their own belongings in the space.