24/7 Wall St.

We’ve all heard about the benefits of “staging” a home when you want to sell it. The idea is to show the house off in the most attractive way possible.

Adding cut flowers or plants, removing personal photos, and adding a mirror to make a room look bigger are among the usual tricks. But there are also some less well-known ways to enhance the living space in your home.

And these can make a big difference in how quickly you get an offer on the property. According to the National Association of Realtors website, Realtor.com, many sellers are now hiring professional home stagers to add instant appeal to a home because the pros can cut the number of days the house is on the market by up to 40.

Here are 13 tricks professional stagers employ that can speed the sale of your home.

1. Never leave a room empty.
2. Think hard about furniture placement.
3. Use the “Rule of Three” (or fives or sevens) when grouping items because odd numbers are more visually appealing.
4. Highlight focal points like fireplaces.
5. Create cozy spaces that encourage conversation.
6. Don’t use too many rugs to break up a space.
7. Use consistent colors to make rooms flow.
8. Use mirrors to create the illusion of space.
9. Hang curtain rods near the ceiling rather than right above the window to give the illusion of added height.
10. Find a style that works and stick with it.
11. Eliminate the dresser.
12. Stash the TV, unless it is a wall-mounted flat screen and not in the bedroom.
13. Let light in.

For more details on why these professional tricks work, see the Realtor.com story.