How this ancient Chinese art may help you find the right buyer
So, you’re ready to sell your home and you want to attract the perfect buyer; a buyer who understands the beauty of your residence and won’t hesitate to purchase it for what it’s worth. One great way to attract the right kind of prospects to your home is to make sure it looks aesthetically pleasing, balanced, and just has that special energy that gets folks excited.
The perfect way to stage your home? A little Feng Shui. Check out these elements of the design philosophy to prep it beautifully:
What is Feng Shui?
For those who are unfamiliar with it, Feng Shui, which literally translates to “wind and water” is the ancient Chinese art of placement. For over 3,000 years, people have used it in an attempt to enhance the flow of chi, or spiritual energy, in their homes, gardens, buildings, and businesses. However, the elements of placement that are essential to the art are much older; many believe that some of these principles have been present in human dwellings up to 28,000 years old.
The goal of Feng Shui is to create harmonious environments which will attract health, wealth, and happiness to the owners, inhabitants, and visitors
Feng Shui Outside
One of the best ways to create good Feng Shui in your home is to plant a beautiful garden. Planting flowers, especially in the front of your home, is believed to attract good energy, and it will definitely attract potential buyers. Make sure to remove dead or dying plants or grass, as well as to replace unattractive yard surfaces such as dirt and areas covered in weeds with pallets of grass, fresh mulch, or gravel.
The Front Door
The front door is the first impression of your home and needs to be treated as such. Trash cans, waste, or trees obstructing your door should be removed or placed elsewhere. Plants, mulch, and garden elements should all help create a clear path to this area, helping to welcome visitors.
Practitioners of Feng Shui believe that the color of your front door is also essential to create good energy. Recommended colors coordinate with the direction that your door faces:
- East: Earthy, woodland colors like green or brown are recommended
- Southeast: Green and brown are still recommended, but a blue is also an option, as it’s believed to bring in the energy of money and wealth into your home
- South: Red is the only color considered suitable, as the south is the direction of fire in Feng Shui
- Southwest: Earthy, sandy colors like light browns, light oranges, light yellows, and beiges are best
- West: Metallic door colors like gray and white will work
- North: Water element colors like black and blue are advised
- Northeast: Brown, earthy colors are suitable
The Main Entry
According to the principles of Feng Shui, it’s essential for energy to flow through your home from the entrance, so it’s important for the front of your home to be welcoming and uncluttered. Ask yourself several questions about this area:
- As you enter your home, is the entrance obstructed by large furniture?
- Are there mirrors which are said to “reflect the energy” back toward the front door?
- Is there a staircase very close to or facing the front door?
If you see any of these Feng Shui faux pas, you can take steps to change them. If furniture obstructs the front door or crowds the entrance, move it further away or another part of the home. Mirrors that face the front door can be hung on different parts of the wall. And if a staircase is very close to the entryway, practitioners of Feng Shui place flowers or beautiful art nearby to ostensibly “ground the energy” in the area.
Bedrooms, kitchen, and bathrooms
The three main Feng Shui energy centers in the home are considered the bedrooms, kitchen, and bathrooms, so it’s especially important that these areas look both harmonious and presentable.
Bedrooms
To achieve optimal Feng Shui, it’s highly recommended to remove televisions, computers, exercise equipment, and other electronics from the bedroom area. To increase air quality, open windows (if the weather allows it,) and consider purchasing an air-purifier. Plants in the bedroom are also a no-no unless the bedroom is large and plants are placed far from the bed.
Beds should be approachable from both sides, should have bedside tables on both sides, and you should avoid having your bed directly in line with the door.
Kitchens
It’s important to have proper lighting in the kitchen, so you may want to add some more illumination. The cooking area should also be clean and spacious, so remove clutter and unused kitchen appliances from the area. Bowls of fresh flowers or fruits are also recommended to bring “energy” to the kitchen.
Bathrooms
A bathroom can be a big source of “energy leakage” according to Feng Shui philosophy, so it’s important to add elements to boost and retain it in the area. Energy-adding elements can include mirrors, wood, candles, and metal. Soft music and calming scents can also be helpful when it comes to Feng Shui bathroom staging.
Whether or not you believe in the spiritual underpinning of Feng Shui or not, these principles have influenced home and building design for thousands of years, and incorporating them into your staging may help make your residence beautiful to prospective buyers. There’s no doubt that the elements of this philosophy create a visually spacious, pleasant aesthetic. And who knows? All that positive energy might make the sale.
If you’re thinking about selling your home and looking for additional tips on how to stage it to make it move fast, contact Dante Disabato today.
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