5 Simple Ways to Stage the Exterior of Your Home Before an Open House

By Real Estate August 24, 2017

5 Simple Ways to Stage the Exterior of Your Home Before an Open House

If you’re selling your home, chances are good you’re familiar with the concept of staging your home. Real estate agents recommend your home look its best to prospective buyers, and home staging is a great way to ensure you receive top dollar.

Did you know you should stage the exterior of your home, too? Failing to update the look of your home’s exterior can cause buyers to get a bad first impression when they initially arrive to view your home. Whether your target is luxury homebuyers or you are selling your starter home, staging the exterior will have a major impact on the sale of your home. If you want to put exterior home staging to work, here are five elements you should consider tweaking.

Clean Your Exterior Windows and Screens
Nothing says poor maintenance like dirty windows and window screens. If your windows are caked with dust or muck from the last rainstorm, open house visitors are going to wonder what other maintenance jobs you haven’t attended to. Don’t give visitors the opportunity to question whether your home has been properly maintained or not; clean those windows and screens before hosting an open house.

Refresh Your Gardens and Walkways
Just like dirty windows are a real estate faux pas, so are unkempt flower beds. Weeds and overgrown bushes tell visitors you can’t be bothered with the small stuff. Spend a day removing weeds and trimming flowers, or hire a professional landscaper to refresh your gardens. It is amazing what a refreshed garden can do to your home’s curb appeal.

Refresh Your Home’s Siding
No, you don’t have to replace your home’s siding prior to an open house. A quick power wash could be all it takes to remove years of dust and grime. You can attempt this task yourself, but it might be worth your while to hire a professional—some homeowners have been known to damage their home’s siding by using too forceful a water stream.

Update/Clean Door Fixtures and House Address Signage
Something as simple as a new door knob or address signage can give your home a refreshed look. You needn’t spring for a new door; just update the face plate and/or door knob. Purchase new address numbers from the local hardware store and you’ll have tweaked the look of your home’s exterior in just a few minutes.

Clean Patio Furniture
Whether you have chairs on your front veranda or a dining set on your back deck, tired patio furniture can cost you big dollars when it comes time to negotiate with a potential homebuyer. Dilapidated patio furniture instantly gives a bad impression and can cause potential homebuyers to request replacement furniture as part of their deal. Spruce up your existing furniture with a quick power wash, or replace it if it is beyond cleaning.

Simple tweaks to the exterior of your home can have a big impact on your home’s final selling price. By spending just a few days improving the look of the outside of your home, you can increase the amount buyers are willing to offer and make your home the cleanest real estate listing on the block. Will you be trying these exterior home staging tricks when you list your home for sale?

 

About the Author
Greg DiGiorgio, Arlington MA Realtor

Greg DiGiorgio is a highly reviewed Arlington MA Realtor who is a dedicated, passionate, and market-savvy professional who puts his clients’ satisfaction before all else. His attention to detail, superior people skills, broad knowledge of the real estate industry as a whole, and his pure determination to indulge his clients with first class service sets him apart. In addition to Greg being an Accredited Buyers Representative-ABR, he understands the power of creative, well-organized and highly effective marketing and offers customized marketing plans that maximize property exposure to the most qualified buyers. He has appeared several times on Fox 25 News where he was interviewed on current market trends and conditions. A real estate transaction is really about managing people, their desires and their finances. It is an intricate and consequential negotiation.


Greg understands that it is important to secure not only the most able buyer, but also to the one that is most likely to close the deal. When so much is at stake, Greg is the one you want to represent you. His fair yet aggressive negotiating style and protectiveness of his clients’ best interests and ultimately, their assets, has gained his respect with colleagues and clients alike.


Greg also knows that every transaction represents the most important purchase or sale a person can make, and he takes every precaution to ensure that communication is impeccable with all parties involved from beginning to end. Whether it’s patiently guiding first time buyers through this exciting process or following through with clients’ needs long after the transaction is over, Greg’s warm, caring yet efficient business style will turn you into a client for life.


Driven


Greg grew up in the Greater Boston area and has a deep appreciation for the North East way of life. He attended The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing, with a concentration in Marketing Research. Greg’s professional background is rooted in the technology sales & marketing. As a result, he learned to adapt to many different people and situations quickly and competitively. The insight that he has gained from many years of involvement in bringing all components of a transaction together smoothly has granted him a unique perspective and approach to the real estate industry. His enthusiasm and tenacity has allowed him to emerge as one of Greater Boston’s finest Realtors, and one of the highest reviewed amongst Arlington MA Realtors!


My Goal


My goal is to provide the best experience possible to my clients while helping them achieve their real estate goals. My streamline systems and use of technology ensure a smooth ride along the way. Whether it’s a first-time buyer, a seller, or investor, I strive to gain lifelong clients and friends by providing them with a fun, relaxing, but yet educational experience throughout the entire process.


Objectives for my Buyer Clients


Counsel session to determine wants & needsSchedule times to view properties

Run comparable analysis report for subject property

Help negotiate terms of the offer

Provided options for home inspectors

Help negotiate & finalize terms of Purchase & Sale Agreement

Assist in finalizing finances with Mortgage Broker

Handle any other paperwork and/or tasks including meeting mortgage commitment deadlines to making sure the transaction closes on time.

I keep an open door policy with all my clients even after the sale should they have any questions, or need help with any of their real estate needs. The closing of a real estate transaction is not the end, but just the beginning of a relationship.


Objectives for my Seller Clients


Listen carefully to make sure your goals and objectives are clearly understood

Explain the home selling process thoroughly

Discuss agency relationship

Price your home accurately

Stage your home for sale

Plan & implement a proven & innovative marketing plan

Work diligently to sell your home quickly and efficiently

Follow up with open house leads & showing brokers to obtain feedback

Work hard to ensure that each step of the transaction is running smoothly

To ensure that all smoke & carbon monoxide detectors are installed and working correctly, and to obtain certificate from town/city

To obtain final payoff for city/town water bill

“Most Importantly to communicate with you consistently and efficiently throughout the entire home selling process”

Certifications and Recognitions


Winner of Leading Edge Real Estate’s Outstanding Creative Marketing Award. Certified Residential Specialist (CRS)

Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR)

Member of the Institute of Luxury Home Marketing (ILHM)

Licensed Massachusetts Real Estate Broker

Member of Greater Boston Real Estate Board (GBREB)

Member of National Association of REALTORS (NAR)

Zoning & Building Codes Certificate

Residential New Construction Certificate

Title V Certificate