Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Original poster

Staging a house to appear suitable for a young family

41 replies

Thaerta · 17/10/2022 16:55

Will be marketing my house next year - 4 bed detached in a great catchment area for all levels of schooling. Large garden.

Our DCs are adults and have homes are their own so it's time to downsize.

House is nice enough but doesn't really reflect it's potential for a growing family. I know viewers can use their imagination but is there anything I can do to make it appear more child friendly? How should I stage it?

OP posts:
userwants2no · 17/10/2022 17:06
  • Low maintenance garden with room to kick a ball safely so no ponds for example.
  • Plenty of storage
  • Floors that are practical and easy to clean
  • Family friendly kitchen
  • Single beds in smaller rooms or cot
  • Non gendered paint in rooms (no blue or pink)
  • No family pics but neutral, nature and home themed photos are ok
  • Show that the bathroom is roomy enough for a family. It should have a bath.
  • Refresh your memory about ofsted ratings in your catchment and what is there for families just in case you end up showing people. I know they could do their research but so many people are shockingly lazy.

For me I would be looking at good size, good storage, easy to clean and maintain, safe location and good layout that makes sense.

Eupraxia · 17/10/2022 17:15

You should be able to buy a second hand cot from Facebook or similar for £20. Maybe even free. Trip round the charity shops with £20 in your pocket to buy a few baby toys snd a couple of baby grows to drape over the cot sides. Then Voilà you have a nursery.

If you have downstairs space, similarly source a beanbag, some cushions and kids books (all from charity shops if you can't borrow) - make a Reading Corner

If you know any young families - borrow a football goal and football for your garden.

sevenbyseven · 17/10/2022 17:23

What does it look like at the moment? Are all the bedrooms used as bedrooms? I don't think house buyers need "props" to imagine it as a family home personally.

mondaytosunday · 17/10/2022 17:55

I don't think you need to stage it. But have bedrooms as bedrooms (if one is a study for example make it back in to a bedroom). Make sure your kitchen table is clear of stuff. Declutter.

GoldenGorilla · 17/10/2022 18:19

Make sure the estate agent describes it as a family home and tells people that you’ve raised your kids there.

i didn’t need to see props really, but hearing that other families had been happy there for years probably did influence me.

Original poster
Thaerta · 17/10/2022 18:25

sevenbyseven Currently it's fairly minimalist; adult but nothing that would be viewed as unsafe.

GoldenGorilla good point about reminding estate agent that I've raised a family here.

What's your view on putting two single beds into one of the bedrooms rather than a a double?

OP posts:
mrsed1987 · 17/10/2022 18:44

I think it's pretty pointless if I'm honest. We have just moved to a 4 bed and they had no children. We didn't need to see a cotbed in a room to know it would be fine for our son.

HSMLPS · 17/10/2022 18:50

A few years ago we purchased our family home. All bedrooms had double beds in them. In relation to staging the main thing that sold it to us what that all the walls had been pained a neutral colour, so we didn’t need to decorate straight away.

WaddleAway · 17/10/2022 18:54

Why would you need to? We are a family of 5. Our house was bought almost entirely on the basis of the floor plan. How the rooms were ‘staged’ made no difference, I just needed to know that the rooms and the layout were right for us.

ThatDreamSheep · 17/10/2022 19:04

I would make sure the rooms are defined, so the dining room can clearly show space for a table and the living room isn't cluttered, sofas and also floor space.

Thinkbiglittleone · 17/10/2022 19:10

I would put a couple of bedroom back, 1 office is fine.
And a defined dinning room.

I don't think you need to start staging your house, buyers will be able to see the dimension on the floor plan (assuming you are not the devil and have put one on Blush) so they can work out their own needs.

TheMagicDeckchair · 17/10/2022 19:50

I don’t mind a couple of family photos, as long as they’re not invasive. We viewed one house recently and there was a family photo with the 3 children. We have 3 children too and it made me think that we could live there too (if it wasn’t so expensive).

When we bought our house, the couple were child free and the house was decorated tastefully, very clean and tidy and staged nicely. I think those are the most important things.

Bimblybomeyelash · 17/10/2022 19:54

It’s a 4 bed home, with a garden, so
it going to appeal to a family. I’d only worry about ‘prepping’ if your house is cluttered and the rooms are small. But as long as there is obvious space for a dining table, and some obvious place for the kids put their toys and to play, I really wouldn’t worry about changing out the beds etc.

fleurdelee · 17/10/2022 19:57

One of my clients is a staging company and it does make a difference to how quickly a house sells and how good the photos look.

As a personal anecdote I was buying a house when pregnant with dc1 from a couple whose family had grown up there and I was minded that they had made such a tidy profit over the years....🤨

Mariposa123 · 17/10/2022 20:02

Don’t buy a cot, but do make sure all bedrooms are shown as bedrooms.

Yes to making sure you have a bath.

Make sure there’s nothing quirky that could be unsafe for children. Our house had a weirdly low hand rail on the stairs (by design!) when we lived that needed sorting asap with our toddler. I suspect that may have put other buyers off.

Stripedbag101 · 17/10/2022 23:12

why are you so certain it will be bought by a couple with small children?

my parents develop property and the last four homes have been bought by either singles or retired couples: they were all four beds.

i am single and last year bought a beautiful four bed with a large garden beside a great school. The previous owner was also single with no kids.

I always have a chuckle when I see ideal for family! It’s like a 1950s ideal of who buys houses.

yes keep the decor neutral, declarer; show each bedroom can fit a bed, keep the garden tidy and low maintenance: but don’t buy a cot for an imaginary baby or a dog bed for the cocker spaniel you assume a buyer will have.

Stripedbag101 · 17/10/2022 23:14

declutter that should be.

Snugglemonkey · 17/10/2022 23:20

I wouldn't go buying anything for staging purposes. We have just bought and I agree with the pp who said they mostly were swayed by the floor plan. That drove us too. We wanted a layout that worked and outdoor space for DC. The viewing part was about clearing up questions we had and checking the space would work as we imagined from the plans. I didn't care about decor or staging, as I have had ideas about how I would like to decorate for a long time.

Stripedbag101 · 17/10/2022 23:22

GoldenGorilla · 17/10/2022 18:19

Make sure the estate agent describes it as a family home and tells people that you’ve raised your kids there.

i didn’t need to see props really, but hearing that other families had been happy there for years probably did influence me.

i do find this odd. Why would the estate agent need to tell people that it is possible to raise children in a four bedroom home?

surely every house is a family home? Are people really do stupid that they need to be told that a four bedroom house is large enough to accommodate more than one person?

I have bought three houses in my life - I look at the address, the number of bedrooms and the photos. If I like these three rings I make an appointment to view.

I don’t read the estate agents description to tell me who they are marketing it towards or whether someone with children has lived there before. I doubt anybody does in this day and age.

DoodlePug · 17/10/2022 23:33

You only need staging if it's not obvious that you can use a room for its desired function so often a good idea to put a single bed plus drawers plus wardrobe in your smallest room if they do indeed fit.

I think it's gardens and access that most often let potential family homes down. The garden needs to be mostly level, safe with plenty of room to play. I guess if you want to stage a slide or swings would be useful and could be in use during viewings. Also good, safe fencing, good parking and no steps.

Original poster
Thaerta · 17/10/2022 23:37

Stripedbag101
why are you so certain it will be bought by a couple with small children?

Not certain but it's in the precious catchment area for sought after schools.

OP posts:
threegoodthings · 17/10/2022 23:41

If it's in a sought after catchment area then surely you don't need to do anything. If it's the right price it will sell.

I can't believe the suggestion of buying a cot and toys to stage a nursery...are buyers really that stupid they can't imagine how a house could be used?

Spinstdu · 17/10/2022 23:46

Make sure there are toys on the floor in every room and lots of crumbs in the kitchen/dining room 😁

LibertyLily · 18/10/2022 03:53

threegoodthings · 17/10/2022 23:41

If it's in a sought after catchment area then surely you don't need to do anything. If it's the right price it will sell.

I can't believe the suggestion of buying a cot and toys to stage a nursery...are buyers really that stupid they can't imagine how a house could be used?

Me neither - buying 'props' such as cots/beanbags and setting up a reading corner sounds frankly ridiculous to me!

We once sold a house with two upstairs bedrooms (one with large en-suite bathroom) plus five reception rooms (in addition to a kitchen, conservatory, shower room and a further cloakroom) on the ground floor. Apart from a Futon in one of the ground floor rooms, all the others were neither used as, nor staged as bedrooms when we sold (our one DS was at university so it was just me and DH there most of the time).

The people we sold to had three DC and went on to have a further three in a fairly short period of time. They planned to use several of the ground floor rooms as bedrooms and were perfectly able to see past our multiple sofas, bookcases etc!

Original poster
Thaerta · 18/10/2022 07:04

Your comments have made me realise that I need to do very little in the way of staging. I already have a good product to sell which ticks all the boxes.

Much appreciate you all taking the time to respond.

OP posts:
Swipe left for the next trending thread