Selling During COVID? Style Your Home Office
When COVID hit many companies began an impromptu experiment with working from home. Months later, many big companies told their employees that they can work from home indefinitely. As a result, there's been an increased demand for houses with home offices.
Here are our top home staging tips for home offices.
Declutter
Decluttering is one of the best staging tips for selling your home, and it's even more important when you're talking about a home office. If we're being real, most of us have several coffee cups out on our workstations, notes scattered everywhere, and probably a few paw patrol toys our "coworkers" insisted we hold on to. Make sure all of that stuff is put away, tidied up, and dusted off before your prospective buyer comes.
You also want to make sure you have any sensitive client papers locked away and that your computer is shut down or locked to protect your business information. Working from home isn't everyone's cup of tea so you want to work extra hard to make sure its a place where people feel like they can be productive.
Use a closed-door policy
The open office trend definitely doesn't translate to home offices. Your potential buyers are looking for a space where they can work without distractions. When the day is done, they want to be able to physically close a door and keep their work life away from their personal life.
Even if you prefer working from your screened-in porch or your couch, try to find a room with a door where you can set up a work station. This way it's easier for prospective buyers to visualize how they would set up their own work from home office.
Face a Window
No one wants to work all day facing the wall. Orient your desk so you can see out the window. Not only will it make you feel more relaxed during the day, it will help your potential buyers imagine feeling relaxed when they work.
Bring in Some Green
Plants make offices better. This is a fact. So it only makes sense to put some greenery into your home office space. Not only your plants make you feel better on a daily basis, they'll also help pull the look of your room together for your prospective buyer to admire.
Get the Smells Going
A nice smell can make a space feel so much more homey and relaxing. That's the reason why real estate agents have been known to bake cookies before an open house. You can make your office smell inviting by using a diffuser or a candle. Just be sure you blow out any flames before your prospective buyers come in!
Be smart about double duty
No one wants to picture working from home alongside a screaming infant or needy toddler. It's true that that's a reality for many of us, but if your prospective buyer sees your pack and play set up next to your computer it might give them an immediate negative reaction. If you want your space to do double duty, think about your dream day working from home. Maybe set up a coffee cart, a weight station, or a reading nook. Your prospective buyers can imagine their workday filled with short breaks to recharge, workout, or catch up on a book.
Consider a renovation
Forget tiny homes. Homes with a space for an office are in higher demand these days. If you have a basement or attic space that can serve as a home office, now might be the time to start considering a renovation.
Work from home is here to stay--at least for a little while--make sure you use it to your advantage when you're staging your home for sale!