8 Tips for Staging a Yard

by Karen F. Cormier, REALTOR & Accredited Staging Professional

In a recent post, I briefly mentioned tips for staging your yard, plant flowers near the walk-way, mow the lawn, and pick up old or stray toys. Because first impressions really do matter, I thought I’d give a few more tips on how to best present your yard when you are staging your home.

• 1.      Mailbox – if you have a cute flag or decoration on your mailbox, take it down. Sure you may like puppies but a small flag hanging off of your mailbox with a picture of a puppy saying “Welcome” may not appeal to everyone.  This goes for house flags or cute decorations as well.
• 2.      Invest in your lawn – if you have weeds, either hire a lawn service or apply weed killer yourself. Dandelions are pretty but not when they are in the middle of your lawn and of course, crabgrass is always a big turnoff. Likewise, a good dose of fertilizer followed by adequate watering can bring some inviting green life back into a lackluster lawn.
• 3.      Trim – Take a good look at the shrubbery in your yard, does it overpower? Like a haircut long overdue, have you waited too long and now it’s nothing but annoying? If you can trim the bushes in your yard do it, if you’re not sure how to, then hire a service. Likewise inspect your walkways and garden edges, make the boundaries clean and crisp.
• 4.      Rake – too often we neglect to rake certain areas of our yards; it might be near the woods, or behind a structure. Get out the rakes (have the kids help) and finally clean up those eyesores to your otherwise magnificent yard.
• 5.      Take a look at your gardens – consider planting some pretty annuals or some plant cover that will fill in holes. Remove all of those little garden statues (or at least reduce the number) and store them to use in your new home.
• 6.      Make it appealing – consider placing some outdoor furniture by a particularly shady and inviting tree. A hammock  in a quiet corner of a yard (you might even want to leave a book out there to really make a point) would make anyone yearn for your yard.
• 7.      Corral the toys – while I’m not saying to take down the swing set or grass over the sandbox, you should make an effort to corral children’s toys. Line bikes up (better yet, keep them in the garage) and make sure that all outdoor toys have a home (box) to live in when not in use. Get rid of the toys that are no longer used or that your kids have outgrown.
• 8.      Spiders – finally, with a critical eye, look around your yard for spider webs. Remove them from corners of equipment, furniture, and even fences or gates. I kid you not here, with so many people afraid of spiders, why even take the chance that a large web might turn someone off? 
• If you have questions or need additional information about your next staging project, please call Karen at 603-620-5002 or email her at kcormier@kw.com. Visit her website at www.kfcormierstagedhomes.com today. A Staged Home Is A Sold Home!