Staging Your Home to Sell: Using Plants Effectively
The main categories of plants used in home decorating are: live, silk, and dried. Only live and realistic-silk should be considered when staging your home to sell.
The only kind of plant you want in your home right now is a healthy, full, bushy plant. Any that are sickly, dying, or wimpy need to go because they send a warning to buyers. That warning is: “If they can’t take care of a plant they probably did not take care of this home.”
When it comes to artificial flowers, here is more excellent advice from the authors:
If your silk floral arrangements are more than two or three years old, it is time to throw them away. Dried arrangements must be tossed – no exceptions. Fresh equals new for buyers. Dried equals old and dusty. What do you want buyers to associate with your home?
Use artificial plants (sparingly) when:
- They add drama, warmth, color, or visual interest that enhances the décor / home
- The plants are new (less than 3 years old)
- There is little, or no, natural light
- The home is vacant and there will be no one visiting regularly enough to attend to plants
In lieu of a chandelier, this silk centerpiece adds color while defining and anchoring the dining area of this 750 square-foot vacant co-op staging.
Don’t use artificial plants if:
- They are full of dust, and can’t be cleaned
- They are dried (read “dead”)
- The colors are dated or unrealistic (i.e.: blue roses)
The purpose of staging is to enhance a space without distracting buyers with items that appear out of place. These types of distractions need to be replaced or removed. Done right, buyers will look past the decoration and see the home’s structure.
Fresh, new silk floral arrangement is used in place of art to add drama, color and visual interest to this vacant home staging.
I agree with you there, plants can add beauty to the condo you are selling! I will also try that when I plan to sell my condo.
-pia-