If you talk to anyone in the real estate business about selling homes, they’ll probably be quick to tell you that putting your home on the market in the winter is a lost cause, no matter how much home staging you do. They’ll claim that the lack of daytime and chilly weather will put a hamper on any prospective homeowner’s desire to buy. However, according to a recent statistic from Redfin, homes sell an average of nine days faster during the colder months than they do during the summer. Although there might be fewer buyers out there willing to drudge through the sleet and snow, the ones who are looking at houses during the winter season are much more serious. This, coupled with a few home staging tips we’ve listed down below can help ensure your home gets taken off the market this winter. Accessible Exterior Make sure prospective buyers are able to safely and easily get to your front door. Keep your sidewalks and driveway clear of snow and ice. If you live in an area with little to no snowfall, keep the lawn raked and clear of fallen leaves and debris. Turn The Heat Up The first interior …
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Home staging for the exterior of a home is, of course, all about curb appeal. You want potential buyers to stop and come in, and making the exterior of the house pleasant and engaging will draw more people to do just that. Start at the Curb One way to start home staging is by literally stand at the curb and pretending you are a buyer. Make a list of anything that appears distracting or less than appealing. Your list will likely include things like edging the lawn, trimming trees, raking, pruning bushes, minor repairs and cleaning exterior surfaces. Notice everything from the condition of the mail box and house number to anthills and bare patches of grass. Plan to handle these items first. Unless you have done it recently, pressure washing the exterior is a home staging must. This brings a fresh, clean look to the house and prepares surfaces for a new layer of paint. Have windows professionally cleaned and paint doors and trim if necessary. Move to the Sides and Back of the House Repeat the same process on the back and sides of the house. Remove any old play equipment or unused fixtures or features such as …
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The hot summer months will have many of us inside at peak times of the day, lounging with a good book and an cold glass of iced tea. If you are a home stager, chances are, you’ll be reading about interior design or home staging tips. That’s because (let’s face it) home staging experts are a bit obsessed with making homes look welcoming and easy to embrace. Just for you, we have compiled a list of summer reading that should keep you inspired for years to come. If you haven’t already read her books, Barbara Jennings, a very successful home stager, has written some important books on the subject. Staging Portfolio Secrets is an excellent book about learning how to create a powerful portfolio that will both showcase your talents and have clients trust you and your work. Another of her books, Home Staging for Profit, covers every aspect of starting and growing a successful home staging business. Home stagers often have very little time to work with. Sometimes you only have a week or less to ready a house for buyers. You’re sure to appreciate Speed Decorating, by Jill Vegas. Transform any home at top speed through Jill’s useful …
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Home staging professionals appreciate the value of a well-placed picture. How and where you hang your photos and paintings can make or break your decor. Whether you are a designer, home staging expert or simply love to decorate your space, knowing the tricks and tips for hanging pictures can make your life a whole lot more fun. When deciding how many and which paintings and photos to hang, its important to consider the size of the wall. On a small wall, too many pictures can look cluttered (a home staging don’t). Conversely, a small picture on a large wall can look silly and incomplete. If you have a large space to fill, but only have smaller piece of art, try arranging the pictures in groups. If you don’t have enough pictures to accomplish this, try filling in space with mirrors or even an empty picture frame for a creative twist. Try to select pictures that work well together visually, taking into consideration color, style and theme. While there are no hard and fast rules about this, hanging a brightly-colored sports photograph next to a pastel still life would almost certainly create a sense of discord. Home staging experts know that …
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You may have heard the saying, “strategy wins wars.” In the battle for peace of mind in a life that attracts clutter, nowhere is this more relevant than in the home office. Today we are going beyond furnished housing to ask the question, “What is it that makes clutter so challenging in the home office?” Answering this question will also help us create a strategic approach to clutter that will ultimately help you win the war. That’s the focus of this third furniture blog in our series on managing clutter. We bring things with us. If you notice, we tend to carry things absent-mindedly from room to room, and then set them down where they don’t belong. As a result, our rooms collect objects that appear out of place. Unfortunately, no matter how beautifully our homes are furnished, housing uncontained clutter can create an unwelcome and chaotic environment. One approach to resolving this matter is to have a holding-zone for items that don’t belong. A small table near the doorway can serve this purpose. When you are in the office and notice that an object is out of place, move it to the holding zone. When you leave the room, take …
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One of the advantages of renting furnished housing includes the experience and expertise of a highly qualified staff to help you make design choices that best fit your budget and your space. Choosing the right furniture for the space can go a long way in making a living area feel open and inviting. But when it comes to controlling clutter, its up to the homeowner to make choices about how to utilize a space. This article begins a series of blogs on how to manage clutter. This week, we will be focusing on living areas. Home staging experts understand the importance of a living area that is free of clutter. That’s because people who are looking for a home want to imagine themselves living there. In a similar way, keeping your living area free of clutter will also free up sense of imagination and focus, and even your creative energy. So here’s a few tips you can borrow from the home staging experts. Create a place where each item belongs. This may seem like an obvious point, but it’s easy for objects in the home to float around from place to place, adding to clutter. Finding a place for each …
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Feng Shui is an ancient system of Chinese aesthetics that has been popularized in the last few decades, and has become increasingly popular for home staging. The discipline of Feng Shui focuses on the balance and movement of energy throughout a business or home. Feng Shui is a complex, multifaceted discipline that requires years of training to master. In ancient China, Feng Shui was used to determine the orientation of a dwelling to maximize something akin to auspiciousness — meaning favorable, or lending itself to future success. So, an auspicious environment brings forth future success. Today, Western use of Feng Shui is mostly limited to interior decorating. Western practitioners have received criticism for misunderstanding and misusing the complexity of Feng Shui. But the principles of simplicity and energy movement allow for a common-sense approach to decorating and home staging. Two of the Feng Shui concepts that are perhaps the easiest for novices to embrace are the principles of Qi (pronounced “chee” in English) and Polarity. Qi is the energy or “life force” in an environment and how it flows through that environment. The factors affecting the quality and movement of Qi are many. Polarity refers to the male (yang) and …
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The goal of home staging is to make it appeal to the widest number of people, while remaining welcoming and attractive. Ultimately, you want potential buyers to imagine themselves living in the home. Statistically, furnished housing is easier to sell. But furnishings often reflect very specific personal tastes. Owners will often rely on home furniture rental when their own pieces are especially distinctive in color or style. In addition to furniture rental, another way to add interest and ambiance is through wall treatments. In this area, both wallpaper and paint have their advantages. Here at CORT, we know that these choices are important. Here are some things to think about as you consider your options. Choosing textured wallpaper can add style and interest while staying within a neutral color palate. Though paint can be textured to achieve similar results, the variety of textures and patterns available in wallpaper far exceed that of paint. These include the use of grasses and other natural materials. Although, in most cases, distinctive colors and patterns may not be the best choice, they can enhance the look of a period home. A wide variety of vintage wallpapers exist for just that purpose. While wallpaper offers …
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We’re back this week with more great do-it-yourself home staging tips on the furniture blog. Even if hiring a professional stager is not an option in your budget, there are plenty of techniques you can and should take care of on your own. You don’t need to have a brilliant eye for design to handle these basics of staging a home to sell. Don’t underestimate the power of a clean, de-cluttered, de-personalized home that looks streamlined and modern to potential buyers. There are no do-overs when it comes to first impressions, so make it count by showcasing your home’s best features and potential. CORT is lucky to be considered a friend of professional home stagers, because they count on us for great home staging furniture. This relationship means we enjoy access to expert tips and information. We recently invited our stager friends on Twitter to share some cool home staging tips for us to share on the furniture blog. We’ll share a couple of those today, and want to remind readers that we’re still accepting submissions! Tell us your favorite staging idea or about a recent success story, and you may see your tale featured in a future furniture blog …
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It’s no secret that CORT and our furniture blog team love the home staging industry. Top stagers nationwide depend on rental furniture from CORT to help make clients’ homes as modern and appealing as possible. So we’re of the opinion that when you want to sell your home quickly and for the best price, you should seek the expertise of a professional home stager to whip your property into shape. Call us biased, but we’ve seen major results from these efforts— stagers are closely familiar with current market conditions and interior decorating trends. That being said, if your budget is too tight to hire a stager, there are several easy, inexpensive techniques you can do yourself with an investment of time and effort. Staged homes spend 89 percent less time on the market, so follow some of these proven strategies even if you can’t go all out by hiring a professional or getting lots of home staging furniture. Kate Hart, an expert stager with the Real Estate Staging Association, compared it to getting your home ready for a blind date. You’ve only got one first impression, so make the most of it by showcasing the property’s best selling features. Start …
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