It matters not if you are selling your home or are looking for some simple ideas to make your kitchen more livable, the time to tidy up and stage your kitchen is right now. Nothing is more comfortable to cook in than a well organized kitchen makes a world of difference.
When potential buyers come to your home to consider it for themselves the kitchen is one of the most influential aspects of any home. Consider these 8 tips for your home and even if you are not in the market to sell, it will make it a much more pleasing experience for you as a homeowner...
1. Organize Your Pantry - We are all guilty of having that ziplock bag of mustard packages and those tiny jellies. It is time to pare down and eliminate old and expired things in your pantry. If you have 5 cans of peas and don't really like them, donate them to your local food pantry. If your shelves are jam packed with stuff, eliminate as much as you can so that there is open space on each shelf. If they are brimming with food and other pantry items, prospective buyers will think that there is simply not enough room and the gut reaction is that this house just won't work for them...
2. Stage The Sink - Nobody wants to walk into a kitchen and see a filthy goopy sponge and an off brand soap. Take the time to replace the sponge, purchase a cute sponge tray and transfer your liquid soap into a glass or ceramic dispenser. This will give the sink area a much cleaner look and appearance. Take it one step further for added pizazz by displaying these everyday items on a cute little tray.
3. Set Out Fresh Fruit - Any seasonal fruit will add color and freshness to you any kitchen in a flash. Simple rules to consider are to display them in a clean crisp white or other solid bowl or a wire basket. Ensure that all fruit is of the same variety (i.e. lemons, pineapples, peaches) and that you replace the fruit very regularly to ensure that the everything is fresh and ripe.
4. Display Your Nicest Cookbooks - There are always the recipe books that are handed down through the generations and have the worn edges and beat up appearance to match. These go into cabinet. The nice ones are the ones that we are talking about here. Find sharp beautiful books that reflect the personality of the kitchen and stack a few nicely in the corner. If you have but one special one, lay it out open to your favorite recipe and let that be a centerpiece to your island.
5. Fresh Cut Flowers - Nothing brings beauty to a room than more beauty. Select those with fabulous color punch such as black-eyed susans or lilies. You don't need to spend a fortune even on the vase, use an old mason jar and watch the room light up.
6. Windows - Take down any and all window treatments. Wash and detail the windows and the sills. You want as much light to come flooding through as possible. Buyers will appreciate the loads of natural light and you will love the benefit of extra light when cooking for you and yours.
7. One Word: Clean - This is an easy one and also a very difficult one. We live in our homes and as time passes, there are changes so subtle that we hardly notice them. However, the grout behind the cooktop may have, after years of use, become "darker" than the grout throughout the rest of the kitchen from grease and other factors. A solid deep cleaning is vital to a spectacular kitchen and most of the time, it is the cleaning of what we don't see that makes the biggest impact.
8. Declutter - Having a thousand small appliances in your way when cooking is very frustrating. Put in the cabinets or pantry (or better yet, eliminate) duplicate items such as toasters vs toaster oven. Having too much on the counters is distracting and reduces workspace and can, again, lead to prospective buyers thinking that there is simply not enough space in the kitchen to make it their dream home.
Stay tuned as down the road, we will continue with the "Staging" series bringing you more useful tips and ideas. In the mean time, don't forget to visit us at our partner company where professional staging for homeowners and sellers at www.GraceTheHome.com and schedule an appointment.
Finally, when you are ready to buy or sell real property, let us know as we are professional real estate practitioners in the San Antonio area however if you are not in the area, we are members of one of the largest networks in the country and we will be happy to introduce you to a specialist in your area.