Set Your Stage

Online Curb Appeal

February 20, 2013 (posted by Jennifer Campbell, Home Staging Calgary)

People are busy, so it makes sense that they view your listing online first before deciding whether it’s worth seeing. Your virtual image (more than words) is the property’s first impression – and there may be no second chance. Get your ‘online curb appeal’ right with guidance from a professional home stager.

Searches on mobile devices are soaring and pictures are one of the first methods used to narrow choices. According to a recent study, “Nine in 10 home buyers today rely on the internet as one of their primary research sources, and 52 percent turn to the web as their first step.” That means your property’s online curb appeal has to be spot on if you want to make the shortlist for viewing.

Here are some virtual curb appeal tips to consider:

Clean, tidy and well-kept are the only options
Think like a photographer; consider camera angles, sightlines, lighting, vignettes
Create a focal point in every core room
Highlight key features; architecture, views, landscaping
Create an inviting feeling that suits the potential buyer’s desired lifestyle

After: The faux cedars in the black containers add a welcoming touch beside the front entry. Photos taken at dawn or dusk will look brighter and cheerier than during a sunny day.

After: This space is now a great place to entertain company.

After: This stylish bedroom is the perfect retreat for any homeowner.

That’s a tall order for most sellers. It’s one of the reasons why people hire a professional stager – they want to start out with their best foot forward in presenting their listing to potential buyers. Spending the money up front is more cost effective than spending it after there has been little interest in your property and the list price has been reduced.

Quality photos leave a lasting impression in a buyer’s mind. Take advantage of my Promote Your Property Package, which includes DSLR photos taken by a professional photographer with your virtual curb appeal in mind. Let’s work together to get your property SOLD!

Read a previous post ‘Capture Buyers with Your Photos’. Contact Jen for more details.

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Dark Feature Walls

February 16, 2013 (posted by Jennifer Campbell, Home Staging Calgary)

Staging your home for sale doesn’t mean that you have to keep everything boring builder’s beige. In fact, being a bit bold with your colour choices can make your property stand out from the competition and get sold. This is especially true for newer condos or townhouses where all listings start to look the same.

Help the potential buyer remember your property – avoid the same cookie cutter look as your competition.

Before: Living room before home staging.

To be successful with a bold colour choice, you must know your buyer. Once you do, choose a feature wall and paint a bold colour on that wall only. The key to success in this technique is to keep the surrounding walls light and neutral.

It’s about creating balance.

After: This open concept living & dining room is the perfect space for entertaining or relaxing.

In the photos you can see that the dark feature wall is the longest wall, surrounded by light walls and the door. The dark blue wall serves to ground the space and welcome you in.

Balanced with light furniture, white lamp shades, and a light rug, the room doesn’t feel dark at all. It has some character.

After: This open concept living & dining room is the perfect space for entertaining or relaxing.

Large artwork and soft, colourful pillows add the feminine touch to balance the more masculine feel of the dark blue.

The cozy feel created in the room is balanced with modern touches in the furniture and accessories.

If you don’t have a natural feature like a fireplace that you want to highlight, create a feature with colour. Balance cozy with modern, light with dark, and masculine with feminine. Be bold and stand out from the competition to get sold.

For more staging help, check out the rest of my site, or contact me. I’m here to help people get their homes sold faster! (After a long listing, the property in the photos sold one day after I staged it!)

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Renovate, Renew & Refresh

February 14, 2013 (posted by Jennifer Campbell, Home Staging Calgary)

Home is where the heart is, so there’s no better spot to resuscitate your space than at the Calgary Home + Garden Show. Purchase your tickets now and save $4 on regular adult admission with promo code: HEART. Love is in the air!

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How to Deal with Dated Flooring When Selling

February 10, 2013 (posted by Jennifer Campbell, Home Staging Calgary)

Flooring covers so much space that it can’t be avoided when staging your home for sale. Take an unbiased look at what you have and make it easy for the buyer. If you have dated flooring, you must address it – by updating or through staging.

A potential buyer will definitely consider flooring, asking:

Can I live with it as is?
If not, what needs to be done so I can live with it in the short term?
How much work? Cost?
Is it a total gut job?

Before: Kitchen before staging.

Your job as the seller is to stop them after the first question – because they know it works for them as is. The more a potential buyer worries about something as significant as flooring, the longer it will take to sell your property, and the lower the offer will be.

Notice the dated black and white pattern tile in this property that I recently staged. It’s not everyone’s ideal choice.

After: The green pears and green Perrier water bottles help to
showcase an active healthy lifestyle in this kitchen.

But through staging, we made it work. Most importantly, it’s in great condition and it’s sparkling clean.

Light walls, bright lighting, and staged kitchen countertops keep the buyer’s eyes focused upwards and away from the floor.

Contemporary dark furniture feels grounded by the black in the tiles. Furniture placement draws the eyes to the gorgeous windows, natural light and views outside.

After: The perfect space to read the morning paper and
enjoy your coffee.

Strategic camera angles by a professional photographer make it look funky, not old.

It works for two reasons. There’s nothing wrong with the flooring (disrepair, grime) to draw the buyer’s attention to it. And, by highlighting other areas, the buyer’s attention is drawn away from the floor. Dated flooring becomes a non-issue.

Mission accomplished. The potential buyer walks away feeling that, “I don’t love the floor, but I can live with it”. This house sold within two weeks after I staged it.

Contact me for home staging services in the Calgary area.

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Online Curb Appeal

Dark Feature Walls

Renovate, Renew & Refresh

How to Deal with Dated Flooring When Selling

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