Selling your home is a mammoth task, and there are a million things to consider. One crucial factor which should not be overlooked is the lighting.
The experts at Smart Lighting Industries have put together a guide on why lighting is so important when selling your house and how to create the best lighting possible to showcase your home.
Creating an inviting and welcoming environment for potential buyers to allow them to picture themselves in your home is absolutely crucial. As virtual home tours are becoming far more commonplace, good lighting has never been more important.
Make the most of Natural Lighting
If you are lucky enough to have an abundance of natural lighting throughout your home, then you should make the most of it and arrange for any viewings, virtual tours or photography to take place at peak times.
You have probably arranged your home to suit the lighting without realising it, but if you notice there are some areas which are slightly more gloomy a great way to present these areas to buyers is to dress them in a ‘cosy’ way.
Placing a comfy chair, a reading light and a blanket in a less well-lit area will ensure no one is going to miss the bright lights, but rather enjoy the fact that there are little pockets in your home to retreat to and relax.
It is also a great idea to make the most of any bright lighting you might have by enhancing it with mirrors, lighter furnishings and even turning on artificial lighting as well.
Adding artificial lighting
The addition of smart lighting in a home will also increase the appeal to buyers, if you can walk them through your home (even virtually) and show off how easy to control the lighting is this will really add to the wow factor of your home, especially if they haven’t got smart lighting in their current home.
It’s also important to think about the sort of artificial lighting you are adding. It is essential to follow the manufacturer’s specification of the light bulb to get the best results from any bulb.
Some new evolution series LED bulbs can provide more than 160 lumens per watt, which makes them great options for gloomy spaces.
Achieving a natural light look in a dark room
Use as many linear lights as possible. Light position is an essential factor, and a combination of angles and directions will help achieve the best natural light effect, especially in rooms which might not get natural sunlight throughout the day.
There are a number of important things to consider when tackling the issue of lighting a room, especially because there are so many different types of lighting options available, it’s not just a matter of ‘more light’ but ‘what sort of light’.
We spoke to Mike Fitzgerald, Executive Chairman at Coulters Property, to find out how lighting can impact the value of your home.
How important a factor do you believe lighting is when it comes to selling homes?
With one of the main attributes that buyers look for in a property being light, along with sizes of rooms and general condition, lighting is extremely important to consider when selling your property. ‘White’ lightbulbs, as opposed to ‘warm’ lightbulbs are always recommended, as are open shades. Opening all blinds and curtains while turning on all lights is always a good idea for both your photoshoot and each viewing. Finally, there is always the trick of arranging your viewings as the optimum time of the day for maximum natural sunlight, if at all possible.
Is investing in good quality lighting worthwhile for homeowners looking to sell?
Yes, the difference that good lighting can make to your sale will almost always far exceed the cost of investing in improving the amount and type of light within your property.
Do you find poor quality lighting to make a house harder to sell?
It is difficult to quantify how much good or bad lighting can make a sale as if someone doesn’t enquire due to poor lighting we are unable to ask the question directly of them. There is however the feedback that can be obtained from buyers and it is not uncommon to receive feedback in relation to light. I don’t believe that this in itself is enough to put anyone off and I am therefore not convinced properties become harder to sell but good light would certainly always help.
How much of an impact does good natural lighting, such as south-facing windows, have on price and ease of selling?
Price will not be affected by natural light or the direction in which a property faces but this will almost certainly impact saleability. South-facing gardens or generally bright properties could well be the difference of buyers choosing your property over others on their shortlist.
Anything additional to add about how lighting can impact selling your home?
Virtual tours are becoming more and more popular with buyers and for some buyers are the first port of call to work out compatibility, before arranging an in-person viewing. The same rules should therefore apply to virtual tours, in that they should be arranged to be carried out at the best time of the day for natural sunlight. If you have a south-facing garden, why not take the virtual tour through the property and out into the garden too.
There are a huge number of ways you can use lighting to improve the selling appeal of your home. While bad lighting might not stop someone who is able to see the potential in your home, good lighting will make a huge difference in how attractive your property is to buyers.
Showcase any natural lighting that your home gets and where this isn’t possible, supplement with high quality and strategically placed artificial lighting.
The team at Smart Lighting Industries are highly experienced and are able to advise on innovative home lighting, offering high-quality lighting that will add value to your property when you come to sell it.