Home Staging Lighting Ideas to Enhance Your Home

You might think swapping out your living room furniture with modern alternatives, decluttering the closets, and decorating with colorful accessories will be the key to winning over potential buyers when selling your home. While all these things are important aspects of home staging, you might be surprised by one of the most powerful tools in a home stager’s arsenal — lighting!

Keep reading to learn why home staging lighting is integral to the staging process. We’ll also share our best tips and tricks for achieving the perfect blend of natural light sources and trendy light fixtures to impress potential buyers and, ultimately, to sell your home!

Why Is Lighting an Important Part of Home Staging?

If there is one thing you definitely want to get right when staging a home — it’s the lighting! Here are a few reasons why lighting is so important to impress buyers:

• Lighting helps to set the mood in a given space, whether creating a warm, cozy vibe in the living room or an invigorating, motivating atmosphere in the kitchen or office.
• Lighting can highlight valuable selling points in a home. For example, pendant lighting can accentuate a spacious kitchen island, a well-lit mirror can illuminate a dark bathroom, and a large picture window can frame a picturesque view of the front yard from the living room.
• The right lighting evokes an emotional response from the buyer. The right combination of bright, natural light and warm-toned lamps and light fixtures can make a house feel like a home by creating an inviting, welcoming environment.

Helpful Home Staging Lighting Tips From Professionals

1. Embrace Natural Light

Before going crazy installing light bulbs and fixtures — let in as much natural light as possible. Natural lighting is the best home lighting! Before showing your home to buyers, throw open the curtains, pull back the shades, and open the blinds to maximize natural light and make small spaces look bigger.

Also, try to schedule open houses and tours at the time of day when the lighting in your home’s living spaces is the warmest and most inviting. This might be early in the morning for east-facing homes while west-facing homes will have the ambient sunset glow in the evenings.

2. Maximize the Impact of Lighting with Layering

Most homes, especially older ones, struggle to achieve an adequate lighting level with builder-grade overhead lights. This is where the idea of “layering” — using different types of lights in various hues in one room — can help achieve the right lighting level in a warm, inviting way.

Instead of relying solely on recessed lighting to illuminate a space, consider adding lighting at different levels (layers) of the room, like table lamps, floor lamps, pendant lights, wall sconces, or a chandelier. These light fixtures will all work together to create visual interest and impress potential buyers.

3. Balance Lighting in Cozy Spaces and Working Spaces

To achieve proper lighting when home staging, it is essential to consider the room’s purpose.

Generally, warm, cozy living spaces meant for rest and relaxation, like the family room and bedrooms, are best enhanced by creating a soft, inviting glow with warm-toned light bulbs with a lower overall brightness level. On the other hand, in rooms where “doing” is the focus over “being,” like the kitchen, office, or bathrooms, a cooler-toned color temperature and higher level of lighting creates the ability to focus and clearly see the task at hand.

4. Install Task-Specific Lighting

Speaking of task-oriented spaces, installing specific task lighting in these types of rooms can be tremendously helpful and a huge upsell for potential buyers.

For example, consider adding under-the-cabinet lighting in the kitchen to illuminate kitchen countertops and food preparation spaces (even at night!) or bright lights around the mirrors or vanities in the bathrooms to transform a normally dark room into the perfect getting-ready space.

5. Replace Outdated Fixtures with Modern Alternatives

Choosing the right lighting fixtures will do more than illuminate your home — it will also help to accessorize it! Here are some ideas for enhancing your home with stylish (yet functional!) fixtures:

• Rustic industrial and barn lights are trending and are great light fixtures to consider when staging a home — particularly for modern farmhouses or country-style homes.
• Swapping out outdated lampshades with trendy alternatives is a great way to breathe life into an old table lamp. You can create contrast by using dark-colored shades against light-colored walls. The same principle of contrast applies to wall sconces and floor lamps, too.
• Trade your compound fluorescent lamp or traditional incandescent bulbs for Edison bulbs to add a classic, retro touch to any living space. Edison bulbs really make a statement when installed in overhead lighting fixtures, such as pendant lights in the kitchen.

6. Boost Curb Appeal with Outdoor Lighting

While it’s easy to get wrapped up in choosing the right overhead fixtures and floor lamps inside your home — don’t forget about exterior lighting!

Well-placed outdoor lighting serves many purposes. It can enhance your home’s architectural details, create a warm, welcoming entryway for guests, and improve its safety (which is a huge intangible selling point). Potential buyers will perceive a well-lit home at night as safer than a home without adequate outdoor lighting.

Draw Attention to Your Home’s Best Features with Proper Lighting and Professional Home Staging

Who says a light bulb can’t be an art form? Our team at THE STAGING COMPANY would love to help you prepare your home for sale with inviting furniture, attractive furnishings, and, of course, well-placed lighting to sell your home more quickly and for more money.

Contact us to get started with home staging in Texas or Florida!