The process of depersonalizing a home isn\u2019t easy, but here\u2019s why removing personal items and photos matters, and how the simple act can help you sell your home faster. That way, you can get right into making your next residence just as special.<\/p>\n Remember how excited you were when you found this home of yours? How you could envision yourself in the breakfast nook with your cup of coffee, or how you couldn\u2019t wait to throw a game night in the living room?<\/p>\n You want homebuyers to come into the space and feel that same sense of excitement, which can be hard to stoke when a house is so specifically tailored to someone else\u2019s personal tastes and life. In this sense, depersonalization<\/a> serves a few key purposes:<\/p>\n When you keep personal photos up, it can create a mental roadblock for some potential homebuyers. Photos of faces naturally pull people in and pique curiosity \u2014 it\u2019s human nature. And when a buyer sees personal photography in the home, they\u2019ll be reminded that someone else lives here, distracting them from imagining their<\/i> life unfolding in this house.<\/p>\n Stauter can\u2019t recall how many times she\u2019s been in homes with buyers who get distracted by family photos. Oftentimes, she says, buyers will walk up the photo and try to figure out if they knew the person. \u201cWhen I ask them something about the house later, they\u2019ll say, \u2018Oh I don\u2019t remember that,\u2019 because all they remember is that the house might\u2019ve belonged to someone they went to high school with,\u201d Stauter says.<\/p>\n Most of us don\u2019t even realize how much stuff we have until we start going through it. When a home is staged and showing-ready, most rooms should be close to bare. The sparse items that remain should serve only to suggest the room\u2019s purpose.<\/p>\n Think of it like a puzzle: How can I convey the proper use of a room with the least possible number of furnishings and decorations? In the home office, for example, all you really need is a desk, a lamp, and a chair. Everything else \u2014 the stress ball, the paperweights, the reference books \u2014\u00a0are on the chopping block.<\/p>\n The simple act of decluttering<\/a> will pay, literally. According to HomeLight\u2019s research<\/a>, the act of decluttering can add an additional $2,500 in resale value.<\/p>\n It might sound strange, but the purpose of staging a home isn\u2019t to fill it with interesting objects and photos, echoes Madison, Wisconsin agent Matt Kornstedt<\/a>. He elaborates:<\/p>\n \u201cYou want buyers to be looking at the house versus looking at belongings. They have to be able to see themselves in this space, and if all your personal things are up, the home will be overshadowed.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cIn most cases, I prefer that photos be taken down,\u201d Stauter says. However, if sellers have a well-placed gallery wall or simple frames, she recommends they cover the personalized pictures in the frames with depersonalized imagery, like black and white shots of cities, flowers, or landscapes.<\/p>\n \u201cAs soon as they\u2019re done showing the home, they can just take the printed images out and take their personal frames photos to the next place,\u201d Stauter explains.<\/p>\n Another exception could be any portraits or images that don\u2019t focus on faces. That could mean an artfully shot silhouette or posed portrait where the subject is looking away. \u201cWhen you look at certain photos and images, you kind of pass them by,\u201d says Kornstedt, and that should be the ultimate goal with any imagery still left in your home.<\/p>\n A staged home shouldn\u2019t feel vacant, so you should consider some small touches, including art, that make the space feel lived-in, yet clean.<\/p>\n Try your hand at a simple DIY art project<\/a> to display during staging. Stick to subjects like still lifes, nature, geometric shapes, simple silhouettes of people. Paintings of people, religious iconography, or controversial subject matter is a no-go, advises home staging agency MHM Professional Staging<\/a>.<\/p>\n If DIY is out of the question, Society6<\/a> has a full range of minimal and tasteful abstract art \u2014 some of which include digital images which can be purchased and downloaded for printing instantly.<\/p>\n Staging a house to feel homey<\/a> means adding little touches to make a clean and empty space feel less sterile. That could mean:<\/p>\n In addition to the minimal staging in each room, these simple touches can make each space feel just a touch homier, without making the house feel lived-in.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll want to carefully pack away and store those precious photos to keep them out of harm\u2019s way during the move. Here are some ideas for how to do that:<\/p>\n Family photos are so meaningful, but for a buyer, seeing them everywhere will only make them feel like they\u2019ve intruded on someone else\u2019s space. So substitute family portraits for abstract art (or bare wall space), and clear out rooms for simple staging. With decluttering and depersonalization, you help make your house feel like home \u2014 for someone else.<\/p>\n Header Image Source: (OndroM \/ Shutterstock)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The process of depersonalizing a home isn\u2019t easy, but here\u2019s why removing personal items and photos matters, and how this simple act can help you sell your home faster.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":99,"featured_media":18687,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[320,233],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-add-value","category-preparing-to-sell"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/should-you-take-down-pictures-when-selling-your-home-staging-666x381.png\")
<\/a>Why depersonalization matters<\/h2>\n
Remove distractions<\/h3>\n
Clear clutter<\/h3>\n
Are there any exceptions?<\/h2>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/should-you-take-down-pictures-when-selling-your-home-bowl-666x381.png\")
<\/a>But now my home feels bare!<\/h2>\n
Neutral wall art<\/h3>\n
Homey items<\/h3>\n
\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/should-you-take-down-pictures-when-selling-your-home-box-666x381.png\")
<\/a>Keep your photos safe and organized<\/h2>\n
\n
\nUnless the image is professionally matted and framed, you\u2019ll want to take the picture out of its home during the move. This will keep the photo safe in the event the frame cracks or shatters and damages the photo during transport.<\/li>\n
\nYou might already have these acid-free clear sheet protectors<\/a> lying around the house, and they\u2019ll be perfect to store your photos in. Carefully slide an image into the protector individually. If you don\u2019t have protectors, acid-free envelopes work in a pinch as well, as long as the image fits in them.<\/li>\n
\n<\/b>Once you have the photos individually wrapped, you can store them lying flat in an old shoebox. Make sure you\u2019re not overstuffing the box or cramming photos in the box that are too big or wide \u2014 this will warp and damage the photographs.<\/li>\n
\nOnce the photos are ready for storage, try to keep them in a cool, temperature-controlled location. Place the box high above the ground<\/a> on a shelf or wire rack to prevent water damage.<\/li>\n
\nBefore removing the photos from their frames, take a picture of them with your smartphone so you can remember which photos match which frame. Additionally, place a Post-It on the back of the photo and the frame with matching numbers so they can be reunited post-move.<\/li>\n
\nIf these are the only copies you have of certain images, make sure to preserve them in the event they may be lost or damaged in the move. Costco offers affordable digitizing services<\/a>, or go the DIY route with a flatbed scanner<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n