The home staging process can be tricky, especially if you are undertaking it on your own. You want your home to look put-together, but not overdone. You also want it to have style, but not so much personality that it becomes unattractive to some buyers. This week CORT brings you home staging shortcuts for a home that is perfectly planned and inviting to buyers. None of these rules are hard-and-fast, of course, but they do make great guidelines when it comes to home staging. Choosing a Paint Color Scheme The trick to choosing paint colors for home staging is to aim for a universally appealing color scheme. Dramatic statements and dark walls, while great for individual tastes, might not make the best impression on potential buyers. Opt for light neutrals, like variations of white and light grey, to make every room into a space win which a buyer could envision his or her own décor. Arranging Your Furniture Whether you choose to use your own furniture or opt for furniture rental to outfit your home during the home staging process, the way you arrange it can be the difference between awkward and inviting. If you are choosing to buy or …
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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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When you are trying to sell your home, it is important to make it appear as spacious and inviting as possible. Rather than spending thousands of dollars on a professional home stager, many homeowners opt to stage their homes themselves. If you decide to go this route, here’s how to staging your home on the cheap. In order to make the space look as large as possible, you should remove all extraneous furniture. Using an online self-storage finder, you can find affordable local storage for these items. In all likelihood, your home will be off the market in a month or two, so self-storage should not be a considerable expenditure. If your furniture is not particularly appealing, you may want to rent some more attractive items from CORT furniture rental or purchase clearance furniture. Placing that dilapidated bed frame in self-storage and renting a more lavish bed for a couple months may be an extremely cost effective strategy in the long run. It is also a good idea to purchase flower baskets and generic cooking books for the bathrooms and kitchen, respectively. Also, scented candles and modest soap baskets can also add nice touches to bathrooms. No matter what, it’s vital that you …
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Building a great home staging portfolio goes beyond great room design. The right photograph of a beautiful room can make all the difference in selling a home and in selling yourself as a home staging expert. First, remember that the person looking at your portfolio is looking for staging that will sell. While fades, color washes and unusual angles may add to an artistic portfolio, a home staging portfolio needs to feature the simplicity, accessibility and potential of a space. Great home staging allows the buyer to envision themselves living in the home. Simple clean lines, neutral tones and engaging, well placed accents (in moderation) will allow this to happen. Over-styling, too much color and over-customization, on the other hand, is likely to turn a buyer off. Home staging photos should accentuate the simplicity of the room and its design. Here are some tips on how to achieve that winning home staging photo. Prepare well before taking your photo. Be sure that there is nothing that could clutter the visual field. While visual clutter certainly includes things like papers or extra accessories, it can also include a half-open blind or a large brown spot on a banana. In other words, …
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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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The difference between a house and a home is the life that goes on inside it. Whether you are a home staging expert or long time home owner, or have just arranged furniture rental for your first apartment, bringing the interior of your home to life is key. Plants and florals can provide just the touch needed to turn any interior space into a welcoming and vibrant home environment. Each plant brings a unique texture and quality to a room. A low tray filled with a subtle arrangement of moss and rocks placed on the surface of your furniture rental piece can bring a sense of serenity and peacefulness, while a palm can add lift and movement to a room. Plants can also substitute for art. If the mantel, staircase, or balcony lacks style, adding a climbing vine can transform these mundane features. Some designers use grass in a modern planter to bring a sleek, contemporary look to their furniture rental pieces. If work has you traveling and relying on furniture rental and quick home solutions, you may need something that requires comparatively less care. In that case, succulents are an excellent choice that many people overlook. Succulents do not …
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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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Quality home staging goes beyond the placement of furniture. Whether you are an expert home stager or you are simply interested in bringing the secrets of interior design to life in your own home, here are some tips for creating an environment that brings furnished housing to life with the language of love. The best interior designers advise us that a romantic decor appeals to the senses through color, layering and texture. Start with luxurious fabrics such as velvet, raw silk, satin or polished cotton. These fabrics can create a sense of timelessness—an visual escape from the outside world. Layering and textures create tones of warmth, intimacy and intrigue. For example, try layering a fur (or faux fur) throw on a raw silk fabric surface, or pair a pin-tucked bedspread with a diamond quilted velvet. Two different textures in the same or similar colors can also create a beautiful effect. Deep, rich colors can create a lush environment. Aside from the tried and true red hues, colors such plums and purples, chocolate browns, deep blues, and even metallic tones like copper can create a sense of romance as well. Check out our High Glam Pinterest board to see some great …
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With economists pointing to a buyer’s market in 2012, sellers are scrambling to make their homes more appealing and gain the edge. But you don’t necessarily need to do major renovations to make your home more attractive. In a buyer’s market, home staging can make all the difference in the sale of your home, and you can do home staging yourself by following a few simple guidelines. 1. Clean and depersonalize the space. When preparing your home, be sure to clean more rigorously than you ever cleaned before, including the exterior. Be sure that your grass is cut, trees and bushes are maintained and the overall appearance of your home’s exterior is appealing. On the inside, clean every surface and make sure that the house is impeccable. One way to approach this is to walk through your home and imagine that you are a potential home buyer. This may allow you to see things you did not see before. Remove all of your personal belongings and anything that represents your personal style. The home buyer needs to be able to imagine themselves living in your home. If your personal touch is everywhere, this may be more difficult. Also remove anything …
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When deciding on home furniture rental choices that will create a “Relaxing Ranch” atmosphere, consider the accents that can really bring out your interior design aesthetic and can be executed best in your rooms. Modern Ranch décor is characterized by open floor plans that combine tradition with comfort, and the ability to accomodate stately furniture. Hardwood panels and floors, brown leather, rustic metals, and nature-inspired colors are all integral to achieving a “Relaxing Ranch” look in your home. Another important quality of ranch inspired decor is creating warmth with design. Creating a more cozy environment will whittle the vast space down to a more humanistic scale. There are several ways you can achieve warmth with style. A few include: Fabric Texture is an important design quality. Choose tapestries, throws, pillows, and even rope to accent your home and to make more sterile environments more cozy. Make sure that metals are balances with softer textures. Table runners, woven trays, and placemats can make more contemporary home furniture rental furnishings appear more cozy. Color Taking cues from nature is a good idea when you would like to create a ranch inspired home. You can draw in elements of nature with color. Charcoal, …
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