In today’s competitive market, many sellers are pulling out all the stops when it comes to positioning their home above the competition. Not only are they upgrading certain areas and amping up the curb appeal, many are hiring stagers to come in and rearrange their home so that it’s in tip-top shape.

While the new arrangement put in place by the stager was conceived to attract buyers to your home, it can be difficult for sellers to adapt, especially if they continue to live in the house months after a home is originally staged.

Not only do sellers need to get used to the new furniture and décor, they must also try to keep their home looking at its best and in the staged light. That means no rearranging things or coming in the door and leaving your stuff on the counter, keeping the drapes closed or moving furniture to different rooms. To give your home the best shot at selling, you need to keep the space as close to its initial staged look as possible for any buyers who may be coming by to see.

One of the easiest ways to live in a staged home is to declare some rooms off-limits to the family. That extra bedroom probably doesn’t need to be slept in, and unless you have a big get-together, plan to eat your meals at the kitchen table so that the staged place settings can be left intact in the dining room. If you have multiple bathrooms, try to keep people out of one if possible. In the end, the less people you have going in and out of these rooms the better, since you’ll have less to do when it’s time to show the property again.

While living in a staged home may be stressful, it’s also a great time to start packing. If your stager had you put things in the garage, or out of site somewhere else, start packing them up now. Go through your closets as well and pack up any clothes you won’t be needing this season. You may also want to get a cheap storage unit so you have a place for anything that’s being packed ahead of your home selling.

To be sure you’re presenting your home in its best light each and every time, consider taking pictures of the rooms within your home as soon as they are staged so you know exactly how they’re supposed to look. If you move a pillow off a couch or have added items to the bathroom counters, be sure to take the time to change the appearance of the room back to the way it looked in the picture.

And when a showing comes up, have a plan in place so that everyone knows what they need to do to get the home back in picture perfect shape.

Living in a staged home isn’t easy—you almost have to think of it as staying in someone else’s home for a while—but with a plan in place and some attention to detail, you can successfully live in the space until it sells.

For more information about staging, contact our office today.