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Staging: Low Cost, No Cost Ideas Being creative with what you’ve got can sometimes be difficult. Use the following as a guideline to get your creative juices flowing. But, don’t stop here! There is a tremendous amount of possibility for creativity when preparing your home for the market! Bring the outside in with strategically placed seashells in the bathroom. Add alternating black beans and rice to a sectioned serving platter for a festive centerpiece. Add a twisted throw rug across your kitchen table to create a fun dinnertime look. When staging your dining room table, place colorful napkins in glasses for a flowery effect. When using a sports theme in a child’s room, use a hockey stick, fishing rod, etc for a curtain rod if you don’t have one. Create a bed in a converted bedroom by using an air mattress propped up on cardboard boxes. Stage a group of candles or vases in a fireplace instead of the usual wood – much cleaner and a surprisingly dramatic effect. Instead of displaying shampoo bottles in the shower, add a few decorative stones and a candle where your shampoo usually sits. Add a tin ice bucket with a bottle of wine, glass, and a towel to the dining room corner. Stage a kitchen counter - a breakfast tray, wine bottle, grapes, and a glass makes a perfect setting. ©2007 ERA Franchise Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Each office is independently owned and operated except offices owned and operated by NRT Incorporated. ERA ® is a registered trademark.“Staging speeds up sales in a sluggish market, and can bump up prices 2% to 10% in a moderate market.” -Wall Street Journal, April 30, 2004
Successful Staging Tips Home staging has been around for over 20 years, but is quickly becoming a standard in the real estate industry as the first critical step in marketing your home. It is about highlighting the home’s strengths and weaknesses in order to appeal to the largest possible pool of buyers by utilizing a series of proven techniques. Utilize the following while staging your home to achieve the positive emotion necessary to attract as many buyers as possible. “Less is more.” Make this your mantra as you walk around viewing your home objectively. Stage items in groups of 3 with a high, medium and a low level Don’t make one side of the room too heavy. Give objects room to breathe. Paint is the lowest investment with the highest rate of return. Keep your color palette neutral. Hang pictures and artwork at the average woman’s eye level (centered at about 60” high) Get rid of any item that does not serve the purpose of updating your home Watch the traffic flow by moving furniture in towards the center of the room. This allows foot traffic to flow freely through the space. Set your dining room/kitchen table with just plates and glasses, allowing the buyer to envision cozy dinners with their loved ones. Add fresh fruit as a decorative touch. This makes a space appear friendly, appealing, and inviting. Use candles for warmth and relaxation. Placing new, unlit candles gives the room a cozy and relaxing feel. Use a light scent such as vanilla or lavender. Suggest leisure with magazines. Avoid overly specific and controversial titles. Use general interest magazines, a maximum of three. Imply comfort using a casual throw. These soft touches are needed to balance out the space and prevent it from feeling stark or cold. Tie up bathroom towels with raffia or roll them up and place them in a basket. Place an open cookbook next to a bowl of fruit or fresh herbs in your kitchen. This will imply that the kitchen is indeed, the heart of your home. Beware of odors – pets, smoking, cooking, strong perfume – all of these smells can be offensive to a potential buyer. Let there be light! __ Add as much light to your home as you can – preferably natural light –to make it feel “cheery”. __ Add small reading lamps behind a chair in the corner to give it some illumination. __ Take down dark or heavy drapery and replace with coverings that allow the light to filter through. ©2007 ERA Franchise Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Each office is independently owned and operated except offices owned and operated by NRT Incorporated. ERA ® is a registered trademark. |
| ERA Gallo & DeCroce, Inc. · 113 Parsippany Road · Parsippany, NJ 07054 · phone: 973-887-1560 | |||||||
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