Differences between "Chaos and Calm" when selling a home

Selling a home and retaining an "as-is" presence, because you like how you live, will only hinder your ability to get a home buyer to fall in love with your home and sell it quickly, let alone a real estate agent interested in showing it at all.

In this home the home owners followed our advice to replace the pet damaged furniture, de-clutter and move their many projects and excess furniture out of the living room. We recommended painting a neutral palette on the walls and kiva fireplace, replacement of the tattered rug and furnishings, and other outdated items. In staging and styling the room conversation is encouraged, purpose and connection is provided and incredible views just outside the windows are highlighted. Upon completion the room felt larger and more spacious, home buyers lingered and were able to envision themselves living in this home.

Staging a home and transforming it can speak volumes as it highlights the architectural features and by updating the furnishings and decor it matches the home value. Home buyers expect a home to reflect the appropriate living conditions and decor reflected of the listing price. The decision to not stage a home and leaving it in the original condition will not only turn buyers away but the loss of a potential sale at a high asking price greatly diminishes.

For more before and after examples, visit www.homestagingsantafe.com

Before and After Home Staging

Keeping it Clean - Small Home Office at home

This newly staged home (recently renovated and for sale) has the perfect live/work situation for someone who wants a small home office, within a commercial/residential neighbor close to downtown Santa Fe. Creating a space to work and receive clients with less than 100 square feet is manageable. Keep the room and furnishings simple by storing all the supporting documentation, office supplies and printer, etc. in the closet. Clients will appreciate how uncluttered and clean the office is and both parties can focus on business rather than being distracted by an untidy office.

To view more about this home or additional projects in our portfolio visit www.homestagingsantafe.com.

Century Old Home Staged with Contemporary Twist

A former Santa Fe Governor residence, more than a century old,  receives an interior facelift with contemporary furnishings through home staging and design in Santa Fe, NM.

The majority of homes in Santa Fe are Adobe or Territorial style, however this one is truly unique with original stone walls, basement, deep seated windows, and guest rooms upstairs boasts an unusual design in Dutch Colonial architecture.

It would have been easy to prepare this home as a typical home staging project by using furnishings that reflected an older period. However, we chose to step it up and move away from the ordinary or expected by bringing this home into the present and upgrade it to project the lifestyle of an upscale buyer. Using a palette of grays, cream and champagne, plus incorporating glass, silver and reflective surfaces this home showcases an elegance which is warm, comfortable and affordable, one that is sure to attract a home buyer with discerning tastes.

Each room is uniquely styled to take advantage of showcasing the architectural features, critically important when selling a home. We chose to have the upstairs guest rooms remain true to the original design, however focusing on the needs of a present day buyer and staged it to showcase the unlimited possibilities. The master bedroom, bath and adjoining studio/office space received a much needed facelift before putting it on the market.

As a home stager, offering full-service project management, we helped the seller by preparing the home for sale by removing the excessive furnishings, plus enormous eclectic decor, painted the interiors and exterior, identified and updated neglected areas and then prepared the home using our home staging techniques. Our crew worked diligently to maintain the characteristics of this historic home.

615 Webber Street is within blocks of the Roundhouse and Santa Fe plaza and is approximately 2000 sq ft and includes a 500 sq ft detached casita, which is equally as warm and comfortable, plus can be used as a rental. To see more of this home on MLS201503782 with Francie Miles at Barker Realty.  To receive more information on home staging in Santa Fe contact us on our site at www.homestagingsantafe.com.

Living Room with stone fireplace

Entry looking into Living Room with wrought iron hand rail

Original wallpapered bathroom with claw foot bathtub

Master Bedroom with hard wood flooring

Back view of 615 Webber Street from casita

Side view of 615 Webber Street

 

Staging Homes Makes a Difference!

Having a home sell during a slow time of the year is reason to celebrate. This staged home provided buyer's with the perspective of how they could arrange, decorate and live in this home. Happy to say that the owner and selling agent of Aspen Compound received an offer during the holidays and history was made!

Staging a home is the #1 tool to helping a seller get a home sold quicker and at times for higher price than those not staged. Whether someone lives in the home or is vacant setting the stage for a buyer to fall in love with the home takes a trained professional home stager to know exactly how to present the home in the best possible fashion.

This homeowner understood the benefits of staging and preparing the home to sell and is now celebrating the good news!

Holiday Trimmings and Selling a Home

A conundrum is upon us...how does one style and stage a home for sale and keep traditions alive while celebrating the holidays? With Thanksgiving on our doorstep and Christmas just around the corner decorating a home is on everyone's mind, well that is after we've shopped all those great Black Friday savings!

Home buyers are well aware that sellers will decorate their home, during a selling period, for the holidays, but just how much should the seller decorate is the big question!

Everyone has a different approach on how much holiday spirit they use to decorate their homes. In some cases it may be too much of a good thing while your occupied listing is on the market. Paring down may be the answer as well as considering these questions:

• Can a potential buyer see the beauty of the floor plan?
• Are the characteristics of the home showing through?
• Will potential buyers be able to envision living in this home through all the trimmings?
• Does the home look like a retail shop with trimming galore?

If you've answered yes to any of these, then we need to talk! It's great to show the spirit of the season, but this year may be the one to trim back on some of the trimmings while your house is on the market. Showcasing the home as a comfortable, warm and inviting place is important, as well as being able to see the beauty of the floor plan, and with a few trimmings this holiday season it may just be the trick to get it SOLD!

If there's any uncertainty or hesitation, contact me. I can help your listing look its best, with a phone consultation or in person, even while you are home during the holiday season.

Perhaps you have a vacant home that is screaming for attention? Home staging may just be the answer it needs to feel like home and sell quickly. I can help here too.

Photo credit - www.westernlivingmagazine.com

The Wrong Wall Color and Other Common Decorating Mistakes

Have you made a decorating mistake that made you scratch your head wondering what possessed you to do it? This great article from Elle Decor addresses those 10 Home Decorating Mistakes Everybody Makes, you're not alone!

It's great to do a little window shopping and splurge when it comes to decorating our home, but if we don't really consider how _______ (fill in the blank) is going to work in our real life environment it can get us into trouble. While these mistakes are easy to do there are ways to remedy the errors of our decisions. Should you find you need help fixing the wrong or would like to avoid making a costly mistake while decorating your home, contact me I can help.
 
1) The Looks-Great, Feels-Uncomfortable Piece Of Furniture
The decor world equivalent of the Stiletto heel: Beautiful, but oh-so-impractical. It ultimately taught you that no matter how good-looking something is, if you can't sit/walk/relax on it, it's not for you.

2) The Overly-Trendy Piece
It looked amazing in the store window. And in the magazine. But in your house? It clashed with your favorite pieces and looked strange. Since then you only focus on trends that feel like you.

3) The Wall Color You Didn't Test...And It Promptly Looked Completely Off
There's nothing like painting an entire room moss green....before realizing that with your lighting and wall texture, it looks nothing like it did in the can. [It's always wise to] paint a swatch before any further commitments.

4) The "Dream Lifestyle" Purchase
The oversized table when you never actually entertain. Or the wall-sized TV when really all you want to do in your living room is read. After this, you buy for the lifestyle you have, not the one you think you might have one day.
5) The Quick Fix
Maybe at the time you were more fixated on spending on vacation rather than a new chair. But when your cheap chair broke a year later, you learned they weren't kidding when they say "Buy the best, only cry once."

6) The Too-Complicated Organization System
"Bills go in the green folder, unopened mail in the blue drawer, casual stationery on the top shelf...or is it top shelf stationery on the top shelf?" If it was too hard to remember, it was probably the time for you to downgrade. We applaud you for doing what's right for you.

7) The Un-Researched Flora
Similar to the too-trendy piece, this plant looked great somewhere else...but floundered in your home. Now you take stock of the lighting and space conditions you have to offer before heading to the nursery.

8) The Disastrous DIY
"But it looked so great on Pinterest..." And now you know if you're not crafty, it's time to go to the experts.

9) The Cliché Art
It got you used to the idea of having something special on your wall, but made you realize how important it is to make that piece meaningful.

10) The Ambitiously White Item
You didn't weigh all the things you love (chocolate, red wine) against this one purchase. But now you know not to even try...or if you're the type who doesn't mind being extra-careful (or spending the extra time cleaning.)

Trained in Interior Design and Home Staging, I apply design principles and staging techniques to achieve the perfect balance and look, either room-by-room or for the entire home. With the holidays approaching maybe it's time to get a little help in sprucing up your home or fixing the wrong before family and friends drop in. Let me know how I can help you.

Via ElleDecor.com