Sometimes it takes more than a sprawling lawn, white picket fence and a remodeled bathroom complete with spa to sell a home.

In fact, it may take a lot more like staging. Staging is getting a home ready – be it by bringing in newer furniture and/or colorful accessories – to make it look more appealing to a potential buyer.

And apparently it’s a concept that works.

In one study conducted by the National Association of Realtors, staging can help to move along the sale at a faster pace. The report revealed that 49 percent of surveyed Realtors who work with buyers think staging has a positive effect on the buyer’s view of the home.

Additionally, it added that Realtors on the buyer side believe staging can make an impact; 81 percent said staging helps buyers visualize the property as a future home, while 46 percent said it makes prospective buyers more willing to explore a home seen online.

Another 45 percent said a home decorated to a buyer’s tastes positively impacts its value.

From the seller’s side, a majority of Realtors said they use staging as a tool in at least some instances.  About a third of Realtors (34 percent) said they use staging on all homes, while 13 percent tend to stage only those homes difficult to sell, and another 4 percent will do so only for higher priced homes. The median cost spent on staging a home is $675.

Think Positively

Sure, selling your home can certainly be stressful but it can also be rather fun if you open up your mind. For instance, think about the best ways to get the home ready to make it look just right — inside and outside ­—rather than dreading the task.

Here are a few simple tips on how to stage your home to help sell it a whole lot faster that you can do by yourself should you decide against letting a Realtor do it.

Tips for Staging

  • Buy Furniture Coasters. Go get yourself some furniture coasters to help move furniture around so you don’t over exert yourself. Coasters can help you move sofas, tables, chairs, and all other furniture types with a breeze. Available at hardware stores and home goods stores.
  • Quick Touch-Ups. Touch-up markers are great for a quick touch-up on table scratches, cabinet chips, wood floors, and other notable and unsightly marks on furniture, etc. Available at hardware stores and home goods stores.
  • Wire Brushes. Buy an inexpensive set of small wire brushes. If you have hard water, it can often leave behind ugly calcium deposits. Showers, bathroom and kitchen fixtures, and sinks can become coated with a white film or sometimes even a turquoise caked material due to hard water. Use small wire brushes to clean up drains and other areas of the home that have been plagued with calcium and deposit leftovers. Buy sets at hardware stores.
  • Tool Box. Have a good set of tools including a hammer, screwdrivers, an all-purpose tool, tape measure, nails and general screws. You never know when something is going to break at the last minute and will need a quick repair.
  • Add flowers in vases, bake cookies to make the home smell good, dust, place a few plants outside, and arrange patio furniture on decks all in the effort to make the home looked more lived in.

Staging a home to look its best can help when it comes time to put your home on the market. With a few quick repairs, and some added personal touches like those listed, your home may be sold before you know it.