I have said it before and I will say it again: Staging is NOT decorating! Staging is a strategic marketing plan to highlight the very best features in your home, so that buyers can see the house, not your stuff! Remember that you are moving.... you don't need to keep everything out, some items are best stored away early, so that people can better see your house! So get a POD or a storage unit and get your clutter out!
Staging doesn't need to cost a fortune, but it is part of marketing your home effectively. I like to think of staging as getting ready for the day- you wouldn't go to work in the morning in your pajamas and slippers - no... you get cleaned up and ready for a professional day. Your house needs to do the same thing - it needs to put on its best 'selling' outfit!
Your house should feel homey, neutral and move-in ready!
Good luck and happy selling!
to contact me direct please go to my website: http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/ or send email to: shannon@LightBrightandAiry.com
Showing posts with label paso robles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label paso robles. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Expect more!!
In this down market everyone has excuses for homes not selling and homes declining values! But this is the time we need to all dig deep and expect more from ourselves and our professionals! Realtors need to be helping you with what they do best... Marketing!
They need to be helping you
They need to be helping you
- Stage your home so it looks great
- Get great photos taken
- Do virtual tours
- Make great flyers
- Give your house a great internet presence
Gone are the days of homes selling above asking price in hours. We are into the time when houses take months to sell, but the ones that look great and are marketed effectively ARE still selling. Make your sales team work for you, after all you are paying them thousands of dollars to sell your house! Make sure you get your money's worth!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Home Staging on a tight budget
I hear a lot these days that home staging is too expensive and my house doesn't warrant the expense!
Let me first dispel the first part of that myth: home staging costs too much. If you use the right stager, it can be done on a VERY tight budget. Maybe as little as $100 if you have some good stuff to work with. Of course you can always spend $5,000, but in many cases that isn't necessary. YOU set the ground rules and the budget, and a smart home stager can work within your budget, as well as prioritize for you the most important places to spend those dollars.
The second part of the myth: my house doesn't warrant the expense of home staging. If you look at the simple math of letting your home sit on the market for 2 or 3 extra months and make 1 or 2 more price reductions, you have probably already lost $10,000 with those 2 options alone. Most price reductions in most markets around the country today are going to be at least $5,000 and even 1 extra month of mortgage to pay will probably run at least $1,000. As compared to maybe $500 worth of home staging for a furnished home and about $1,000-1,500 for a vacant home. That is not even taking into consideration that if your home is looking its best, buyers will probably ask for less money off and fewer repairs than if you list the home in its current state.
Great home stagers have lots of tricks up their sleeve about how to make your home look great with a few easy trade secrets that can really help your home look its best! Plus home staging is now a tax write off, just like realtor fees, it is considered part of the expense of selling your home! I urge you to at least call a home stager and get a quote before you list your home, most stagers should give you a quote free of charge, no strings attached. So why not see if having a professional make your home look its best is a possibility for you?
Let me first dispel the first part of that myth: home staging costs too much. If you use the right stager, it can be done on a VERY tight budget. Maybe as little as $100 if you have some good stuff to work with. Of course you can always spend $5,000, but in many cases that isn't necessary. YOU set the ground rules and the budget, and a smart home stager can work within your budget, as well as prioritize for you the most important places to spend those dollars.
The second part of the myth: my house doesn't warrant the expense of home staging. If you look at the simple math of letting your home sit on the market for 2 or 3 extra months and make 1 or 2 more price reductions, you have probably already lost $10,000 with those 2 options alone. Most price reductions in most markets around the country today are going to be at least $5,000 and even 1 extra month of mortgage to pay will probably run at least $1,000. As compared to maybe $500 worth of home staging for a furnished home and about $1,000-1,500 for a vacant home. That is not even taking into consideration that if your home is looking its best, buyers will probably ask for less money off and fewer repairs than if you list the home in its current state.
Great home stagers have lots of tricks up their sleeve about how to make your home look great with a few easy trade secrets that can really help your home look its best! Plus home staging is now a tax write off, just like realtor fees, it is considered part of the expense of selling your home! I urge you to at least call a home stager and get a quote before you list your home, most stagers should give you a quote free of charge, no strings attached. So why not see if having a professional make your home look its best is a possibility for you?
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Guest Blogging!
I have been asked to be a guest blogger for a real estate blogger that lives in my area. So for my debut next Monday, check out his blog link! http://www.slocountyhomes.com/real_estate_weblog.htm
I will be sharing my real estate and staging insight now with my readers as well as with his! I hope you will check out his blog too! He has been blogging about the local real estate market since 2003! Who knew there were blogs in 2003?
I will be blogging there every other Monday!
I will be sharing my real estate and staging insight now with my readers as well as with his! I hope you will check out his blog too! He has been blogging about the local real estate market since 2003! Who knew there were blogs in 2003?
I will be blogging there every other Monday!
Friday, July 18, 2008
Top 10 Reasons to hire a home stager
- You want it to sell quickly!
- You want it to sell for top dollar!
- You want your house to look great before the Realtors see it.
- Your nose doesn't work well in your own home and you want it to smell nice before it hits the market
- You want someone to do the cleaning for you.
- Their are lots of unfinished decorating projects you don't have time to finish.
- Your house has lots of tiny boo boos that buyers will hate.
- Your house is decorated very personally and you love it and hate to change it.
- You have to move out right away and don't have time to worry about it.
And # 10. You only have one chance to make a great first impression on buyers and you want your house to stand out from the crowd!
For help in Templeton, Paso Robles, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo or the rest of the Central Coast please call Light, Bright and Airy Home Staging and visit our website @ http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/
Monday, July 7, 2008
Staging for Living
So many people these days fall into the trap of over spending on remodels and over personalizing their construction decisions because it seems like the thing to do at the time. I am here to tell you - in order to have a fighting chance at getting that remodeling money back when you sell - make choices that will hold value and think of budget saving choices everyday!
I watch too many remodeling shows and see too many displays at home improvement stores that seem to express that everyone should spend at least $15,000 remodeling their kitchen. I am not sure where all those statistics come from, but in a declining market $15,000 is a lot of money to spend out of pocket on any house, even the very best neighborhoods should check all of the numbers before spending that kind of money.
Here are some easy steps to insure success:
1. Evaluate!!! Check the values in you neighborhood before you start any home improvement project. There are lots of places to estimate home values these days, 2 good options are local Realtors and zillow.com. Make sure that your updated value after the price of your remodel is still at least 10% more than you owe plus what you have spent!!
2. Check the neighbors! Look at the houses in your neighborhood, is yours already the nicest? If that is the case then spend very cautiously! If yours has room for improvement to catch up to the neighborhood, you have a little more room to spend, but in today's market, spend cautiously.
3. Paint!!! Remember that paint is something that many home owners can do themselves and it can make big changes without much expense.
4. Do-it-yourself... If you can. But keep in mind that if you don't have the time, patience or know how to make it look professionally done, you might be wasting your time and money. You can really save on labor costs by doing some of the hard work yourself, but a poorly done remodel is worse than an outdated house!
5. Always get at least 3 quotes!! And always get referrals from happy customers!! You are the only one who will keep your budget in mind! Most contractors get paid a percentage of how much you spend, so keep in mind that the more you spend, the more they make. They have a vested interest in getting you to spend top dollar, whether its right for you and your home or not.
6. Stick to your budget! Most importantly make a realistic budget from the beginning! Make sure budget at least 10% over what you expect to spend, because there are always items that will come up that were not accounted for. That doesn't mean find something on the first day to spend that extra money on because its in the budget!!
7. Neutral, timeless choices are best! Keep the materials and colors modest and timeless. Don't spend over the top or on ultra personal touches unless money is NO object and you know that you are for sure going to live there for a VERY long time. Odds are high that your job could change or you will need to move for some reason and ultra custom touches cost a fortune and don't always help you on the resale. Too custom can narrow your marketability when selling or become a sticking point that buyers see as an expense because they will need to change it out.
Good luck with your property remodeling on a budget! If you would like to contact us for more info or specific questions or to view photo examples of remodeling on a budget please visit our website @ http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/ or if you live in our area: Paso Robles, Templeton, Atascadero or San Luis Obispo county please feel free to have us out for an evaluation of your project.
I watch too many remodeling shows and see too many displays at home improvement stores that seem to express that everyone should spend at least $15,000 remodeling their kitchen. I am not sure where all those statistics come from, but in a declining market $15,000 is a lot of money to spend out of pocket on any house, even the very best neighborhoods should check all of the numbers before spending that kind of money.
Here are some easy steps to insure success:
1. Evaluate!!! Check the values in you neighborhood before you start any home improvement project. There are lots of places to estimate home values these days, 2 good options are local Realtors and zillow.com. Make sure that your updated value after the price of your remodel is still at least 10% more than you owe plus what you have spent!!
2. Check the neighbors! Look at the houses in your neighborhood, is yours already the nicest? If that is the case then spend very cautiously! If yours has room for improvement to catch up to the neighborhood, you have a little more room to spend, but in today's market, spend cautiously.
3. Paint!!! Remember that paint is something that many home owners can do themselves and it can make big changes without much expense.
4. Do-it-yourself... If you can. But keep in mind that if you don't have the time, patience or know how to make it look professionally done, you might be wasting your time and money. You can really save on labor costs by doing some of the hard work yourself, but a poorly done remodel is worse than an outdated house!
5. Always get at least 3 quotes!! And always get referrals from happy customers!! You are the only one who will keep your budget in mind! Most contractors get paid a percentage of how much you spend, so keep in mind that the more you spend, the more they make. They have a vested interest in getting you to spend top dollar, whether its right for you and your home or not.
6. Stick to your budget! Most importantly make a realistic budget from the beginning! Make sure budget at least 10% over what you expect to spend, because there are always items that will come up that were not accounted for. That doesn't mean find something on the first day to spend that extra money on because its in the budget!!
7. Neutral, timeless choices are best! Keep the materials and colors modest and timeless. Don't spend over the top or on ultra personal touches unless money is NO object and you know that you are for sure going to live there for a VERY long time. Odds are high that your job could change or you will need to move for some reason and ultra custom touches cost a fortune and don't always help you on the resale. Too custom can narrow your marketability when selling or become a sticking point that buyers see as an expense because they will need to change it out.
Good luck with your property remodeling on a budget! If you would like to contact us for more info or specific questions or to view photo examples of remodeling on a budget please visit our website @ http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/ or if you live in our area: Paso Robles, Templeton, Atascadero or San Luis Obispo county please feel free to have us out for an evaluation of your project.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
recent observations
Great News! I am headed to a trade show to pick up some new staging fun in Las Vegas! Hopefully that means lots of new ideas and lots of great savings I can pass on! This is a one of a kind home decorating show unique to Las Vegas, so keep your fingers crossed that we will come home with lots of great new resources and ideas!
Staging your house to sell or redecorating to keep, both require you to be budget conscious and go for a timeless appeal. There are so many great ways to maximize the house you live in and love without breaking the bank, let us take the time to show you how!
Here are some quick tips from recent observations!
-Wallpaper is out!
-Things that sparkle (counter tops and mirrors with gold flecks) are out!
-Colored coke bottle glass window panels are out!
Some easy cheats:
-remove wallpaper and paint with neutral colors: tans and browns, whites, blues and greens.
-new counter tops transform a kitchen or bath, you can even leave the shower enclosure outdated to save money, but fix the counter tops!
-coke bottle glass can be removed and replaced with smooth painted wood, glass or plexi-glass panels, all for a more modern look, for very inexpensive!
-Another great idea to obscure an unsightly cupboard with a glass insert is to frost the glass to hide the contents. Easily done with roll on or spray on window frost.
For local help in our area of the Central Coast of California please contact us through our website: http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/ or everywhere else you can get our insight through a virtual staging service from http://www.staginginabox.com/ Good luck to you in making the most of your home!
Your house only gets one chance to make a strong first impression on buyers! Make the most of it!
Staging your house to sell or redecorating to keep, both require you to be budget conscious and go for a timeless appeal. There are so many great ways to maximize the house you live in and love without breaking the bank, let us take the time to show you how!
Here are some quick tips from recent observations!
-Wallpaper is out!
-Things that sparkle (counter tops and mirrors with gold flecks) are out!
-Colored coke bottle glass window panels are out!
Some easy cheats:
-remove wallpaper and paint with neutral colors: tans and browns, whites, blues and greens.
-new counter tops transform a kitchen or bath, you can even leave the shower enclosure outdated to save money, but fix the counter tops!
-coke bottle glass can be removed and replaced with smooth painted wood, glass or plexi-glass panels, all for a more modern look, for very inexpensive!
-Another great idea to obscure an unsightly cupboard with a glass insert is to frost the glass to hide the contents. Easily done with roll on or spray on window frost.
For local help in our area of the Central Coast of California please contact us through our website: http://www.lightbrightandairy.com/ or everywhere else you can get our insight through a virtual staging service from http://www.staginginabox.com/ Good luck to you in making the most of your home!
Your house only gets one chance to make a strong first impression on buyers! Make the most of it!
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