Yes, you can stage your own home.

Yes, you can stage your own home.

Staging your home can have a dramatic impact on its marketability and ultimately, its sales price.

Many prospective home sellers believe staging a home requires the services of a high priced consultant or industry guru.

Yet in most cases, a seller can do a perfectly good job of staging his or her own home.

Staging consists of just three steps:

De-clutter. Time to throw out or donate that sweatshirt you haven’t worn since college. And those CD’s you haven’t played since the Clinton Administration need to go too.

De-personalize. I’m not saying purge the entire house, but leaving just a few photos or personal items will imbue the property with a more neutral feel, which helps the prospective buyer visualize living in the house.

Cleaning. It may seem obvious but many sellers overlook this simple step. A thorough cleaning of the entire house can work wonders.

Follow these three simple steps and put your listing ahead of the pack.