Top 3 Things to Avoid When Presenting Your London Home For Sale

Jacob Littorin with this edition's guest, professional property stager Dilly Orme.

Hi 👋

When you sell your London home, do you want the most amount of money for it? While considering your timeline, the answer is likely to be a yes. That's why it's key to present your property smartly when selling it. Why?

In this article, I'm diving into my learnings on the topic, and my guest is professional property stager Dilly Orme. With a career stretching over 35 years, Dilly will share her view on the topic.

Dilly Orme and the London period home she staged. Background photo: David Parmiter.

Dilly, what are the top 3 things to avoid when presenting your London home for sale?

1. Clutter

The first thing to do when preparing your house for sale is to remove as much unnecessary paraphernalia as possible to enable you to present your property simply and clearly.

Before Dilly's staging. Notice the cable on the floor - an example of clutter to remove. Photo: Dilly Orme.

After Dilly's staging. Notice the game of chess being played and how lighter the room is with the change of carpet. Photo: David Parmiter.

"It's important to understand the significance of staging. When a property is presented at its best it is more appealing which increases its value." - Dilly Orme.

2. Personal Affects

Try to depersonalise your property as much as possible, removing items such as family photographs and highly unique pieces, like artwork.

However, if an artwork is particularly integral to the existing scheme making a statement within the space, with the rest of the existing decor built around it, then leave it in place.

3. Clashing Aesthetics

When presenting your property for sale, be true to the existing aesthetic. For example, if funds are limited, and a move needs to be imminent, not allowing time or money for any improvements, be true to what is already instated.

Pare back what is already there and only embellish with brought-in items if they are definitely in keeping with the existing aesthetic.

This is where you will benefit from the advice of a professional stager such as myself who can source appropriate accessories, which can also be used to bring a room together, such as cushions and rugs.

Dilly's staging of a London period home. Photos: David Parmiter.

How I work in a home preparing it for sale

The idea of home staging is to present an existing property at its best. I combine my wide experience, both interior styling a range of real homes in different aesthetics for mainstream interior magazines, and presenting brands in their ideal setting.

The property in this instance is the product that needs to be shown off to full effect. If the property is a newly built show home, I would first consider the overall aesthetic of the building. For example, if it is ultra-modern, it would be furnished and accessorised accordingly, expressing an overall contemporary look that also appeals to a wide taste, so the potential buyer can imagine themselves living there.

In sharp contrast, I have been asked for support presenting a family home where the elderly owner has gone into a care home. In this instance the budget was minimal, so I went through the house with the family firstly removing unnecessary items and restyling what was there to show it off at its best.

The only new item that was required was a doormat, and after being on the market for 6 months previously, it sold within a week after my visit and then being rephotographed.

I offer an initial consultation meeting by the hour, or I can stage a whole property from scratch. I also offer a settling-in service helping buyers or renters setting up their new homes.

Website: dillyorme.co.uk Email: dilly.orme@me.com Instagram: @dillyorme

Jacob Littorin, aspiring Personal Estate Agent in Islington - and I mean London! Background photo: Jacob Littorin.

When writing this, I was reminded of three specific learnings on the topic, which are takeaways from Sell It Like Serhant, a sales training community where I have been a member since 2019.

1. Not Bothering About the Presentation

The buyer you seek, and you hope will offer the most amount of money, will be the actual buyer of your property, correct? To maximise the buyer’s perceived value of your property it should speak to them.

What made you buy the property in the first place? Chances are that the buyer will be in a similar stage of life (for instance starting a family). Together with your personal estate agent, it’s a great idea to specify the five possible buyer personas and keep them in mind.

Although you might be living in the property during the viewings, think of it as no longer being your home, but instead being the home of these five ideal buyers.

Like, would you buy a cake if it didn’t look delicious? Perhaps you would pick another cake. Why should a buyer offer on your 4-bedroom property if there is another 4-bedroom nearby that looks like their future home, that speaks to them? Avoid not bothering about the presentation of your property.

It should speak to the ideal buyer. London home staged by Dilly Orme. Photo: David Parmiter.

2. Unspecific Presentation

The little things can stand out. What is a home if it is dull? Be guided by the five specific buyer personas. As it is their future home - make the presentation specific for them.

Specific - what is it? It’s this: a bedroom table is not just a table - it’s a drawing table. The dining table is not just a place to eat - it’s for a dinner party. Take a board game and set it up on the sofa table. Take out wine glasses, plates, cutlery, and make the dining table beautiful. Put flowers in a vase. You’re not cluttering, you’re specifying use cases. It looks neat and homey - it tells a story.

Know this: facts tell, while stories sell. A nice kitchen can only go so far, but perhaps the buyer likes to cook or to entertain. Then there's space for you to cut vegetables, along with space for your drinks and hors d’oeuvres. This sort of storytelling sells the kitchen.

The buyer entering the door should not have to think - it should be like a movie unfolding in front of them. Have you ever gone to the cinema and had to imagine the movie you watched? No. It is similar when viewing a property. If the buyer has to use a lot of brain energy to imagine living in the property then even the best agent will have difficulties selling it for the highest price.

It can frankly be difficult to imagine a pool if there is no water in the basin. Take out your playing cards (literally) and tell a story in your property. Help buyers to envision their future home. Avoid making your presentation unspecific.

Specify and tell a story to help buyers to envision their future life in the property. Entry hall staged by Dilly Orme. Photo: David Parmiter.

3. Uninteresting Experience

You have decided to present your property for the five ideal buyers. You have the flowers, the board game.. the lifestyle is set up. Now, start to consider the viewing experience together with your personal estate agent.

Do you know the feeling of entering a home that is just so nicely infused with a lovely scent? For instance, the smell of newly baked cinnamon rolls (great for a Swede like me). Flower Maid (formed in Chiswick in 2011) lists scented candles, reed diffusers, and potpourri (not an outdated thing).

The best potpourri is a homemade mix of fruit, spices, and herbs in a pot that you keep simmering away on the stove for hours. Infuse your home with the fresh smell of Spring with lemons, rosemary, and vanilla extract.

This is such a fun and easy way to make your home stand out in the crowd. Keep a pot ready for your personal estate agent to heat up during viewings. Afterward, you’ll arrive home to a home fragrance so fresh you might even change your mind about selling.

A lovely scent creates feelings and memories like none of your other senses. Fact is, if there is your 3-bedroom property along with multiple others for sale in the catchment area of the William Tyndale Primary School in Islington, what will make buyers remember your property?

The answer is the presentation and the experience at the viewing. Not only will the home fragrance make it pleasing, but your personal estate agent is there to make it an enjoyable, memorable experience. It should be fun to buy property. Perhaps they get to taste a cinnamon roll or two. Avoid making your property uninteresting for buyers.

Thank you for reading, and thank you Dilly for being my first guest! 💜 The next edition is out on the 12th of February on the topic of surveying.