I was recently asked to perform a staging consultation on a home which sat on the market for some time. Usually I have a discussion with the owners before the home is put on the market, as part of the Conifer real estate REALTORS™ plan to prepare for marketing the home. This Conifer home for sale had been on the market for 4 months, with no action. There was no lack of showings but the feedback was wishy washy and no offers to buy.
The home had a beautiful sweeping driveway with a lovely detached garage, and plenty of decks and patios. It also had a huge addition built on to the back, approximately 24X20, with a hot tub and some book shelves and a piano in it. The house was on the market just a little over the average price in the area and was ripe for a price reduction.
The Seller and the agent decided before a price reduction to invite me over for a consultation to see if there were any necessary changes. As a stager I was able to provide helpful techniques such as removing some furniture, personal photos, throw rugs and de-cluttering we also discussed the addition.
We knew Buyers didn’t fully appreciate the addition. As a stager it is my job to take the confusion out of the home, so that the buyer can connect with the room or home. This is not done by deceiving the potential buyer, it is accomplished by staging the area as to the room’s possible uses. In this home, they had a Bar with excess furniture downstairs. By bringing up a sofa, coffee table from the bar and an extra chair we had removed from the living area, we were able to create a cozy family room, utilizing the bookshelves and bringing in a lamp we had also found that was not in use. A few accessories and voila, the room was transformed from echo-ee and confusing to something solid the buyer could connect with.
People sell their homes for different reasons. Whatever the reason, make sure that the price is right. In other words, don’t overprice your house with the intention of raising enough money to buy a car. Ensure that the price is fair to you and the buyer. A good price will get potential home buyers interested.
The hot tub was moveable, but I decided to keep it on the one end of the room with a sign on it that explained, “this hot tub could be relocated to the outdoors.”
The home had an offer within 2 weeks of staging this property, which was accepted, and everyone lived happily ever after.
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