Getting a client ready to stage their home is a lot of work. First you have to help them see the advantage of staging their home. Then you have to help them plan to stage their home.

In order to help a client see the advantage of staging their home, the Realtor® needs to have a plan themselves. Create a notebook that has before and after pictures in it of homes that you have staged or have seen staged. Having something visual always gets the creative juices flowing. Beside the pictures you can also have the price that the seller was able to sell the home. This can be a major influence for the seller to be on board for the staging.

The planning part will come naturally after they have seen the possibilities of staging. Take the seller from room to room with a notebook in hand. Make a list of all the rooms, itemized the furniture and accessories in the room. Then start minimizing what is in each area. Less is more now days. And when there is less clutter the buyer sees the house for what is it and what it can become.

Now let’s get to the nitty gritty of staging. The effort that you the Realtor® express to your seller will pay big dividends at the time of the sell. Your seller will have to get down and get dirty sometimes but they will thank you in the end.

So let’s look at your steps of staging.

1. Make an Entrance
Did you know that people form an opinion of a room, business or event in the first 15 seconds of entering!! That is not much time to give the “WOW” factor. Look at the landscaping and front door to make sure that it can make that type of impression. Paint the door, weed the landscape and if necessary plant new plants.

2. Conquer the Clutter
This is one of the major items that take some time. If there are open shelves, get them organized. Get the piles eliminated. Make sure to have boxes to pack items into and label them. It may mean reserving a storage unit.

3. More is Less
Sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees. The same holds true for a room. Many times the furniture is lined up against the wall or there is so much furniture that you can’t even walk around it. When staging almost half of the furniture that the seller has will be removed. The ultimate goal is to see the room not the furniture.

4. Float the Room
This may take some doing. Think of a figure eight or the letter H and pull the furniture away from the wall. Place it on an area rug to finish the look. It will open the room up and make it appear larger.

5. Mix it Up
This is where you can think outside the box. If a piece of furniture has been in the same place for years, put it somewhere else. Move a lamp or rug to the other side of the room. It will make a difference.

6. Rediscover “Lost” Space
This is the time to look at room or closet that has been used as storage and make it into what ever you want. Turn a closet into an office, a room of nothing into a guest room or that basement into a game room. Get imaginative.

7. Let the Sunshine
Now this can be exciting. Imagine all this light coming into a room. It can really change the look of a room. Take down those heavy drapes and replace them with light and airy curtains. If you have a privacy issue, simple roman shades could be a great answer. But a bright room always looks larger. If the windows are narrow, extend the rods past the window so the curtain hangs past the window on the wall. This will make the window appear larger also.

8. Light the Way
Lighting is imperative next to a reading area or a corner. Once again light makes an area look larger. It can also give the idea of a place to relax and read or have a cup of coffee.

9. Splash with Color
If you don’t want to paint or don’t need to paint you can always add an item of color. Pick up a throw of a rich red and place it on the end of the bed. To help carry the eye place a few pretty red pillows on the bed also. If red is not in your color scheme pick a color that is and have fun with it. Do the same in the living room and even the kitchen with pillows and towels.

10. Paint it Black
White light walls are always a winner but don’t forget about the opposite. Black can make the furniture and displays really pop. Think of changing out the picture frames to all black and see what a difference that can make in the hall.

11. Make Art Sing
We are so bad to hang pictures in a liner manner. Break up the line. Hang art and pictures in a stair step manner or in an arch. It can really set off the guest bed or the credenza in the office.

12. Accessorize with Pizzazz
Now that the furniture is placed and the clutter is gone, let’s bring in some great eye catching accessories. Bring out that cut glass bowl and insert items of same color, texture and shape. Place the arrangement on the coffee table with some artful books. What a dramatic display it can be.

13. Bring the Outdoors In
Fresh flowers or greenery always makes a statement. Be mindful though of too strong smelling flowers. Can’t wrong with what you are comfortable with having in your home yourself.

With the pointers of staging, you as the Realtor® will look like an expert and the Seller will have a wonderful home to sell. It will take some work and dedication but the end result will be a satisfied client that will make you the talk of the town.

Patriot Professionals
Melissa Dougherty-Owner
Melissa@PatriotProfessionals.com
www.PatriotProfessionals.com
256-851-2941

This entry was posted on Friday, April 20th, 2007 at 12:41 pm and is filed under Blogroll, Real Estate Agents & Clients. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.