Pam Stewart Ross Design

ALAN - STAGING HIS CONDO TO SELL
Alan is selling his condo and needs to get it ready to list with a real estate agent. Staging is often overlooked when listing a property for sale. People are hesitate to spend the money and hire a stager when they are selling; but staging will help you get the best price possible - either through a higher offer or a shorter closing.

It's good advice to hire a professional stager, but not always necessary - YOU can do a lot of the work yourself and your real estate agent will be happy to advise you of what needs to be done too.

The most important thing to remember is to DECLUTTER and CLEAN! 

• Pack away tchotchkes, family photos and personal items.
• Clean the floors, windows, baseboards, kitchen and bathrooms
• Clean out and organize all the closets

People looking at your property need to feel they can move in right away, so you don't want them thinking they have to clean this, or fix that. If your closets are jammed packed they will think there is not enough storage space. Always keep room in your closets, cupboards and drawers so you can add more. It is hard for buyers to visualize a space, so it is best to show it exactly how it CAN be - not how it is!

The front entrance is the first room potential buyers see and therefore needs to be clean and free of clutter to project a positive first impression.

BEFORE: The mat was stained and clutter was on the floor.

AFTER: We moved the recycle box and cooler to the garage, stored the shoes in the closet and replaced the mat to make it feel fresh and clean.

The kitchen and bathrooms are the most important rooms in the home and need to be spotless. Clean the appliances and fixtures, organize the cupboards and drawers, repair any caulking or loose door handles, and replace burnt out light bulbs.  

In the kitchen, clean the back-splash, polish the faucet and keep the counter-top free of clutter.

In the bathroom, put away the shampoo bottles, replace the shower curtain  liner and hang some fresh towels.

Alan's guest bedroom needed a fresh look. We updated the bedding and added some art. Do NOT hang your pictures too high - a common mistake.Generally, art should be hung 58" from the floor to the center of the piece - there are exceptions.  

BEFORE: The room seemed dark and gloomy.

AFTER: The room is brighter with just a few changes. When showing the property turn on all the lights and open all the blinds and curtains.

Each room should have a purpose - what is it used for? A spare bedroom can end up being used as a home office or a dumping ground with stuff all over the floor and closets overflowing. It is best to define the space for a single purpose.

Alan uses a bedroom as a music room which is clearly defined; but it can easily be turned into a bedroom, a nursery or a home office depending on what the buyer needs.

The following pictures are from the listing, they show each room at its best, so buyers can visualize living there.

A property that is cleaned, staged and ready to sell will see a lot of action from interested buyers. In this case, there were 10 scheduled showings on the first day after it was listed and multiple offers are expected.

Update: Alan had 13 offers and sold for over asking price.

Comment from Client ...

I always dreaded selling my place because I thought it would be a lot of work to get it ready to sell.  Pam Stewart Ross Design made the process entirely painless!  She picked the right furniture and put them in the right places.  She was able to work with the materials at hand to frugally bring out the best in all the rooms.

Alan