Are you selling a house OR a home? There is a slight difference! Part 1

Before putting your house on the market, you should be thinking about WHAT you are actually trying to sell or even more importantly, what you should be trying to sell. Are you selling a house OR a home? There is a slight, but important difference!

After years of being a home stager and working with countless realtors and home sellers, I have come to know that home sellers and agents usually fall into two different groups. One group tries to sell houses and the other group tries to sell homes and the latter group, in my opinion,is more successful in reaching their sales goals. Why? Because selling homes is more than just s selling a house. Selling homes also means selling the life style of the house. This is where the emotional connections happens. 

Most home buyers in today’s market are savvy and have already have done their homework.  This might include researching different properties, comparing the basic details of the homes, and of course, viewing photos online (a big reason to stage the homes and have them professionally photographed). Also, they might even have driven by your house couple of times before deciding to actually come in to see the home for themselves.  This is why as home stagers we place so much emphasis on the importance of curb appeal and helping our clients get this part of their home presentation just right.

Selling a house is selling the physical aspects of the house like: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, open kitchen floor plan. But selling a home is selling the emotional aspects of a house. It means helping the potential home buyer to understand and feel how they can live in the house that you are selling. 

If you want to be successful in selling your property, put yourself in the second category and do your best to sell a home rather than just a house.  Once the home buyers get inside, you want to wow them and have them pay attention to all that is wonderful about your home.  You want them to be able to envision themselves living the good life there. When you stage and present your property as a home for living, you are selling not only a house but a lifestyle. This is when the SOLD sign goes up.