Home Staging Blog

Wow!  Spring is here in full force! What a gorgeous day we had today!

And it seems that many people’s minds are turning to thoughts of selling and moving to a new home.  It is so exciting to see how many people are realizing the importance of Staging their homes as part of the home selling process! 

And for good reason. Many of homeowners have been checking out local Open Houses to see how their home compares to the other properties on the real estate market.  With a greater inventory than there has been in several years, it is plain to see that Staging a home to sell really makes a huge difference in attracting buyer’s offers.

So as you are out there checking out the competition, look around.  What makes one property show better than another?  You can have the same price, same location, same condition, but if the home is not properly Staged for selling, it is going to pale in comparison to the competition.  Professionally Stage your home to make it stand out above the rest!

Contact a Home Stager in your area.  You will find their experience and knowledge invaluable when preparing your home for sale.

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell

Every home has its own personality.  When you choose which home you are going to move into, you usually choose one that reflects your own lifestyle, your own personality, and once you do move in, you lovingly add your precious and personal touches that truly make it yours.

As the years roll by, your tastes change.  You add to your belongings (oftentimes gradually) and don’t always let go of some of the things that no longer fit.  What you end up with is items that may not work together or just too much of a good thing (or things).

When Staging your home, stand back and take a good hard look at your house.  Do the furnishings still reflect the style of the home?  Or when you take that look, do you see more of yourself and your things than you do the home? 

When Realtor Mike Bell, Prudential California, decided to sell a condo in Pasadena, he realized it was important to keep the furnishings in pace with the home itself.  After all, he wanted it to sell quickly.

This building is an historical landmark, has great original features and is in fabulous condition.  We Staged this home for him very simply and with respect to its style.  He sold this home for full list price in the first week. 

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell

An important point to remember when deciding to Stage your home to sell is that the focus is on appealing to the widest range of buyers and not to please your own personal taste.

On the other hand, Re-Design is all about finding an affordable way to create the home surroundings that reflect your taste, your style and your personality.

Home Stagers are professionally trained to know the difference.  When Staging your home to sell, don’t get stuck on design ideas you had in mind while you were planning to remain living in your home.  While they might have been fabulous plans that would be the perfect reflection of you, they may not be right for the majority of buyers.  Be prepared to let go of the plans you had for the home you are about to sell and focus on the plans you have for your new home.

When hiring a Home Stager to Re-Design, the goal is to create the atmosphere and surroundings that reflect you and your lifestyle affordably.  Oftentimes you can use many of the items you already own and just add a few new pieces to achieve your goals.  Or you may choose to create an entirely new look.  Bringing in a Stager who has a trained eye and experience in helping others will help you determine the best ways to achieve your goals.

So remember, remain focused, what are you trying to achieve with your Home Stager?  Are you Staging to sell or Staging to enhance your lifestyle and remain in your home to enjoy it? 

Please feel to comment - what are your primary goals when choosing a Home Stager?

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell

If you’re like me, your pet is a beloved part of your life.  They’re lovable, adorable and loyal through and through.  When Staging your home to sell and placing your home in the Real Estate market, remember to take special care of your pet’s needs.

 Once your home is placed on the market, Realtors and their clients will be coming and going in and out of your home.  It can be a stressful time for many homeowners and it can also be quite stressful for pets.  When Staging homes for sale, you often need to relocate some of the pet’s items so that your home shows its best.  You are also making your home more attractive to buyers who may not be pet lovers.  Make sure your pet is comfortable with the changes that have been made and know where their personal items are now located.

To ensure that you have most amount of buyers visiting your home, you need to make your home available to them.  Some buyers are afraid of animals.  Leaving notes on the door saying “don’t let cat out” will make people nervous.  And a dog barking and growling, no matter how small or cute it is or whether it is blocked into a room, is frightening and unnerving and definitely does not create an atmosphere that invites buyers to hang around and visualize themselves living there.

For the safety and well being of your pet, Buyers, Realtors and yourself, remove your pet from the home during showing hours.  Take them for a walk, have a friend pet-sit or consider hiring a pet-sitter until your  home is sold. 

Create an atmosphere that allows buyers to feel comfortable exploring your home and will keep your pet safe.

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell

Congratulations, you’ve decided to sell your home!  You have interviewed and chosen a Realtor that you trust and you are certain is going to work hard to get your home sold quickly and for the most money.  You’ve even started packing and have your home sparkling clean.  Why should you consult with a Home Stager?  After all, you love the way your home looks - why should you change things just because it is going on the market?

Because the way we live in our homes is vastly different from the way we market and sell our houses.

Cleaning and packing are perfect ways to prepare for Home Staging.  While your home may be exquisitely decorated and beautiful, that is not a guarantee that it is going to show its best to the Real Estate market.  Home Stagers are trained to see homes through buyer’s eyes.  Consulting with a Home Stager will help you see the little changes that can be made to ensure your home appeals to a wide variety of tastes. 

Real Estate Staging is different from decorating.  Many of the things you use and enjoy in your daily lives are best put away while showing your home.  Some seller’s go too far and end up with near vacant homes and rooms that do very little to impress buyers.  There is a fine line between too much and not enough when it comes to Staging to sell.  Real Estate Stagers will effectively and affordably help you get your home in the best showing condition.

Consult with a Home Stager in your area.  It is a great investment that will help you reap the most rewards from your home sale.

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell

If you are like most homeowners, the decision put your house up for sale, pack up your belongings and move to a new home is one that is given much thought and consideration.  But once you have come to that decision - what can you expect to happen next?

The obvious first step is to contact a local Realtor who understands your local market and will work hard to get your home sold quickly and for the most money.  But as any Realtor will tell you, there is more that needs to be done than putting up the for sale sign and entering your listing into the MLS.  The Realtor has a lot of work to do to effectively market your property, and there is a lot that you can do to put yourself in the best position possible to reap the greatest benefits from your home sale.

 Prepare yourself mentally and physically for your move.  Packing up and moving on can be an emotional and challenging experience.  Most people have a good amount of emotional attachment to their home.  There is even a name for this common experience, “Seller’s Remorse”.  Oftentimes, seller’s do not come to grip with the fact that they are actually going to move until they are in the midst of an Escrow.  Make the transition easier by being prepared early.

Start packing before your home begins to be shown to prospective buyers.  The act of packing up your belongings, deciding what you will keep, what you will give away and what you no longer have need for will make the idea of moving on real.  This is the first step in home staging.  You have packed up the items you can temporarily do without, your home is ready to be cleaned to a sparkle from top to bottom and now you can Stage your home so that buyers can walk in and see themselves living in their new home and you are already mentally moving out.

Living in a home that has been Staged to sell is not as difficult as it may seem.  Since you’ve already packed many items and your home is now shiny and fresh, there is a lot less maintenance than there was before.  Sure, you have your best towels on the towel racks (tied up with ribbon or artfully folded and placed), your beds are neatly made every day with those fresh accent pillows, and you don’t have all your favorite books, dvd’s/cd’s or those momentos from your favorite memories on display, but remember, your home is being marketed to sell to someone else.

So now that you have made the decision to sell your home, you have physically and mentally started the moving process, and your home has been properly Staged for sale, let your Realtor do their work in getting your home sold quickly.  And when Escrow closes, your move is going to be that much easier because you have done much of the preparation early!

Nickie, Get Staged 2 Sell