Entering the real estate market can be overwhelming. Most of us are behind the curve when it comes to knowing what buyers want. We might know we have a viable property, but we are probably unsure of how to make it sing an irresistible siren’s song to buyers. This is why the relatively new industry around property styling for sale is so vital today.
Marketing a piece of real estate requires knowledge about the market in general and the buyers in particular. Knowing all there is to know about buyers is a tall order. It’s particularly difficult to gather, then digest, all the information about buyers when one also has a ‘real job’ and a family making demands upon our energy and enthusiasm.
Where does one begin? One of the attributes home-buyers seek in the homes they see is the quality of looking as if the property were made for them. The other major hope in a potential buyer’s mind is that the property will be ready to move into almost instantly. Almost no buyer today wants to buy a fixer-upper. The 21st century home buyer wants it all and wants it now.
So how on earth should a property seller go about divining the needs and wants of buyers they don’t even know? Smart sellers depend on professionals who make the study of buyers their stock in trade. Enter the professional home stylist.
Those who make their living preparing properties to sell have the task of seriously studying those who will buy houses in the Sydney area in the near future. They undertake this learning process through countless studies, surveys, and even focus groups in order to unlock the secrets of what makes the buyer happy. (That happiness is critical since we know that big buying decisions, like the purchase of a house, are made in the part of the brain where emotion reigns.)
When we know how a certain colour impacts people in a certain income bracket – and, yes, there are commonalities in every niche of buyers – then we are able to use that colour in compelling ways. If this sounds like psychological rather than real estate information, make no mistake. These building blocks fit snuggly together in the construction of a real estate sale.
Buyers say that the feelings of security and safety a house gives them are two of the most important factors in housing choices. That’s because safety and security are two of the primal needs of human beings. A house that offers these two emotions is a house that will sell quickly. The best news is, getting to those ‘feelings’ is a cinch if you happen to spend your time and resources researching such matters.
We’re not talking about doors and windows that lock here. Although those things are important, the feelings we’re looking for here go deeper. We seek to find the trigger that makes buyers literally fall in love with the house they are looking at. We’re looking for the ‘happily ever after’ button – that sense of home that gives us shelter on any number of levels.
Now more than ever, people who live and work in our increasingly stressful world need a safe place to decompress at the end of the day. Sometimes we hear this need described as cocooning. Folks who must battle traffic, work-related competition, and face unpleasant world news on every front actually need a physical and emotional holiday when they come home.
When we do our jobs well, buyers know in a heartbeat that they are ‘home at last’. Statistically, that determination is made in very short order. Home shoppers discard a house quickly when it fails to WOW them. On the flip-side, when they see a house that strikes the comfort chord with them, they know it in a matter of 15 seconds or less.
If this year is the year you will sell your house, we invite you to call upon us at Urban Chic Property Styling to help you with the preparations. We’ve been successfully styling property for sale in and around Sydney for decades. We know the buyers and we understand what music houses make that compels buyers to buy. Bring our expertise to bear on your home sale and reap the rewards. You’ll be happy you did.
