1. Interior Painting Equipment
Professional home stagers prefer to have neutral walls to coordinate with the colorful accent pieces and décor items they bring to the job. In most cases, the homeowner will provide the paint themselves. But you need to be prepared with interior painting equipment to tackle the walls. By having certain items ready to go, you can get right to work faster and still allow time for the paint to dry.
As part of your home staging kit, it’s wise to keep the following painting tools on hand:
- Brushes
- Rollers
- Panting trays
- Painter’s tape
- Drop cloths
2. Repair Products
A well lived-in home is bound to have at least a few nicks, cracks, and creaks. Do a quick tour through the home and look for some of the most noticeable imperfections. Look for drywall holes, tears in sofa cushions and cracked silicone around the tubs and showers. Open all the doors and listen for any squeaky hinges that can distract buyers. To remedy some of these, be sure to have the following repair products in your kit:- Wall filling compound
- Furniture repair kit
- Multi-purpose scraper for removing paint
- Silicone material
- WD-40 for greasing noisy hinges
3. Cleaning Products
Maybe cleaning products aren’t the most exciting must-have items for professional home stagers, but they’re necessary. Potential buyers notice much more than we think when they’re examining their future dream home. It’s quite likely they’ll notice every dust bunny, window smudge and floor spot in the place. That’s why before you get to the staging part, you need to make the home sparkle and shine.
As part of your home-staging cleaning kit include the following products and tools:
- Wire brushes for cleaning around drains and along grout lines
- Window and glass cleaner for removing fingerprints and streaks
- Dusting cloths for ceiling fans, shelves, tabletops and other dusty surfaces
- Scent-free liquid cleaners for the floors, counters, sinks, and toilets
4. Storage Containers
When staging a home, it’s critical to eliminate distracting personal items that belong to the sellers. A professional home stager wants the buyers to have the freedom to imagine a life of possibilities in their new potential home. Photographs of family vacations, weddings or graduations only detract from their ability to visualize themselves in the home. Home stagers also need to remove personal knick-knacks, trophies or anything else that isn’t neutral to a buyer’s taste. That’s where storage containers come in handy. With the help of your clients, you can pack up most of their personal items and place them safely into storage containers. Hide the storage containers in the garage, crawlspace or other storage areas. This allows you to de-clutter the home and make room for your beautiful furnishings and décor items you plan to use for staging.5. Small Chairs and Loveseats
Expert home stagers are constantly on the hunt for the perfect versatile pieces to use in their clients’ homes. Small chairs and loveseats are great items to keep in stock to bring to any residential or commercial project. Of course, you’ll want to make sure whichever pieces you select are neutral and simple enough to work in any home. When you approach a home-staging project, look for any existing furniture pieces that stand out or detract from the setting. These include dark, heavy pieces, ornate furnishings or anything overly antique looking. Remove these items and add in your own smaller pieces. Light, contemporary chairs or loveseats work well. If the existing furniture is relatively neutral, then you can use your own pieces to fill in small, empty spaces. This is a great solution for nooks, corners and anywhere the layout presents awkward angles.6. Area and Throw Rugs
Area and throw rugs can help warm up a place, especially after you’ve emptied it of the owner’s possessions. Having 2-3 rugs on hand per project is great. However, the more you can acquire over time the better. If you’re starting out, invest in one area rug for the living room and one for the master bedroom. Many designers believe that you can build an entire room’s décor around a rug. Rugs are a great way to anchor a room’s style and build a color scheme around. Another approach to buying throw or area rugs for home staging is to keep them neutral for flexibility. Choose high-quality area rugs made with natural materials like silk or wool. Expert designers recommend investing in the best rug you can afford. Because your home-staging rug won’t get a lot of consistent, daily use, it will last you a long time. This means that you’ll be able to retain its value longer and sell it again for the highest amount possible.
7. Table and Floor Lamps
Lamps not only make a home look much more livable, but they can also act as interesting accent pieces to up the style of the home. A few different styles of lamps including floor lamps and table lamps are staple decorations needed to get started with home staging. Depending on the overall style of your home-staging décor, you may choose neutral and contemporary lamps. Or you may choose glass or crystal lamps, which are certain to add a touch of elegance to the scene. But lamps have another purpose in home staging: you can use lamps strategically to brighten up rooms. Proper lighting is a subtle yet effective tool that home stagers use to make a home feel warm and inviting. Not only does lots of light make a room feel warmer, but well-lit rooms also appear larger and more open. You can place a tall floor lamp or hanging shade in a dark corner to give the appearance of more usable space. No matter what type of lighting you choose, remember to keep all lamps and light fixtures clean – otherwise you risk highlighting dust particles.8. Picture Frames
As mentioned, removing family photos is an important part of the initial steps in home staging. You’ll need to make sure that you give the buyers an opportunity to picture themselves living in the home and creating their own memories. Bring along some elegant picture frames to use on bookshelves, tables, and mantles. If the existing picture frames match the overall theme you’re going for then you can keep the frames but replace your client's pictures with some neutral or less personal pictures. In some cases, you may be able to keep your client's photos in the frames, or even use them in your own frames. If your client’s photos are professional and tasteful, you may decide to make a judgment call and keep them.9. Mirrors and Wall Hangings
Your goal should always be to make a home feel more open and inviting. One way to do this is by using mirrors. You can choose a focal point in a room and angle the mirror towards that focal point, which creates an illusion of greater depth. Hanging mirrors in foyers, behind dining tables or on the walls along narrow hallways can create the sense of extra space. Empty walls make a home feel boring and cold. That’s why wall hangings are essential items for effective home staging. Black and white prints work well because they’re neutral and easily transferable from one home to the next. However, abstract prints or colorful nature scenes can be equally as appealing. They also help add color and dimension. No matter what you decide to hang on the wall, it’s important to consider the types of frames to use. Mirrors pop when set in substantial frames that accent against the wall and complement nearby furniture, so consider large, thicker frames to catch visitors’ eyes. When it comes to frames for wall hangings such as paintings, however, be careful to choose frames that are attractive yet subtle enough so as not to detract from the artwork.
10. Linens and Towels
You can instantly add an air of luxury and elegance to a space by using high-quality towels and linens. Use the bathroom as an opportunity to create value by paying attention to details. Choose white, fluffy bath towels with smaller hand towels layered over the top. Be sure to fold your towels in thirds to hide the edges. Nothing says luxury like crisp, white linens. In the bedrooms, particularly the master, use fresh, high-thread count linens. It’s an opportunity to create a welcoming and relaxing vibe that buyers are sure to notice. Another piece of advice is to have all towels and linens freshly washed. It’s a small but important detail that will make the home seem well looked after.11. Silk Flowers and Vases
A great home stager knows that properly staging a home is all about the details. There’s a fine balance between being staged and looking staged. Placing beautiful décor items throughout the home will help achieve this balance, as long as it’s not overdone. Silk flowers with beautiful glass or crystal vases or bowls are certainly home staging must haves. They make a great investment for home staging businesses because they come with minimal upfront costs, and will last forever as long as you properly care for them. You can easily use them from one project to the next, and they’re neutral enough that they can work in any home. It may even be worth your while to invest in a few different types of vases including metal, ceramic or wood vases. There are also countless types of silk flowers to use in these vessels, such as roses, orchids or magnolias. Display silk flowers in vases or bowls in kitchen window sills, on dining room tables, or on bathroom countertops for a pretty, fresh look.12. Candles and Candle Holders
Candles and candle holders are additional home staging items to have on hand. Candles provide you with lots of creative leeway since they come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. The holders themselves are also diverse and can act as beautiful décor pieces in certain places throughout the home. Candles can come in short tea light or votive styles or they can come in sets of pillars with staggering heights. You can display candles in clear or colored glass holders. Or you can place them neatly on a metal or glass tray. Candles look great when displayed on fireplace mantles, bookshelves, or bathroom countertops.