2016 has been a year of making decisions for me. Big decisions. Whether in our personal lives, at work, or in buying and selling homes, the best decisions are made with both emotion and logic. Yet, as much as we would like to think that our decisions are always rational, it is our gut that often leads the way.
 

According to Janet Crawford, neuroscience expert and CEO of Cascadance Inc., “Without emotion, we are biologically incapable of making decisions. Logic is often the last step in the process.”
 

This rings true for me in terms of making decisions in my personal life and in my business. I also see the dynamic at play with my clients.
 

In my work as a professional home stager in Calgary, I approach every staging project with emotion and logic in mind. What I know from experience is that, when potential buyers are making decisions about which home they will buy, it is emotion that ultimately triggers a sale.
 

So, while I stage properties with logic in terms of designating clear room functions and highlighting features so potential buyers can check off the boxes on their must-have and wish lists, what I am focussing on in selecting staging furniture, art, and accessories is the emotion that I want to invoke in the buyers.
 

I stage to appeal to their desired lifestyle and how they want to feel in the space they will call home.
 

Making decisions on the home front has also been guided by emotion and grounded in logic. Most recently, I became engaged to the man I love and who I have shared my life (and home) with for several years.
 

We also decided to sell our condo in our beloved Sunnyside neighbourhood in order to move up the property ladder. And, despite the fact that our condo has been sold, we are taking our time to find our next home based on what feels right.
 

That gut feeling telling us that “this is the one.”
 

It’s the same way that many home buyers are approaching their search. Even with large financial decisions like buying and selling real estate, emotions factor in significantly. For sellers, understanding this decision making “truth” is extremely powerful.
 

If you are planning to sell your Calgary house or condo and want help making decisions about how to appeal to the emotions of your potential buyer so you can sell faster, I invite you to find out more and contact me, Jen Campbell at Set Your Stage, where we get proven results for our clients.
 

Your house is officially ready for sale. It has been professionally staged to make the best possible first impression. Real estate photos have been taken. Now the viewings have started. How do you keep your listing presentable? Here are my tips for sellers who are living in a staged home.
 

Selling a house can be stressful. Professional staging can help it sell faster, but it can still feel too long for sellers who continue to live in their home while it’s listed. Especially for sellers who have kids, keeping your home like the stager intended can be quite a challenge.
 

So what do you do when your realtor calls for a short notice showing when you’re living in a staged home? Don’t panic. Be prepared.
 

I wrote about the value of having an open house box. Here are some more tips:
 

Kitchen: In the short term, consider changing your eating habits to avoid cooking anything that creates odours. Sure, you can try to eliminate the odours, but it’s simpler to avoid creating them in the first place, especially if you have an open concept space.
 

Bathroom: In your daily life, you love your own private bathroom. But for your own sanity in keeping the bathrooms clean, tidy and moisture free for viewings, consider sharing one main bathroom for use by everyone while your home is listed.
 

Bedroom: You’ve gotta make those beds, put away clothes, and clear off the night stands. Consider designating extra bedrooms “off limits” while your house is for sale. You can even encourage kids to “camp out” together in one room in the short-term to reduce the last minute scramble.
 

Bins, cabinets and containers: Make these your best friends while selling. You will have already de-cluttered, donated, and perhaps sent some items to storage in the process of staging to sell. But for those everyday items like toys, shoes, important papers, etc., have a system in place to quickly hide them away.
 

Living in a staged home for sale is not the most convenient lifestyle choice. That said, it is possible to ease the stress with preparation while you keep your listing show-worthy.
 

Want more of our home staging tips? Stay in touch. Follow Set Your Stage on Twitter.
 

Want to catch buyers’ attention? Focus on how your home greets them as soon as they walk in the door.
 

The entryway of a home for sale should feel welcoming and offer a hint of what’s to come in the rest of the property. Let’s say, it sets the stage.
 

To do so, the entryway should address two key factors to catch buyers’ attention: function plus feeling.
 

Function:

• When a person walks in the door, where will they put keys, loose change, and mail? And what about shoes, bags, and coats? Is there adequate lighting to see properly? A way to do a last minute make-up or clothing check?

 

Feeling:

• What does the entryway say? Is this a clean, bright, and happy home? Is it dated and in need of work? What kinds of people belong here? Do you feel invited to come in and stay a while?

In order to catch buyers’ attention in both function and feeling, professional staging makes use of colours, décor, art, textures, mirrors, furniture, and a focal point. Together, and in harmony with how the rest of the listing is staged, these tools can work together to create an atmosphere that quickly appeals to potential buyers.
 

Despite the fact that it may be quite small, the entryway is no less important than any other room. A simple clean, declutter, and coat of paint won’t maximize the benefit you can gain as a seller by properly staging the entrance to make an impact. If you need a bit of guidance with this, ask for it!
 

Don’t overlook the power of staging an entryway to catch buyers’ attention and create your listing’s best first impression. Want more of our home staging tips? Stay in touch. Follow Set Your Stage on Twitter.
 

At Set Your Stage in Calgary, we love using area rugs for our house and condo staging jobs. While you may choose to decorate your own home with an ornate or multi-coloured rug that you love, when it comes to staging your property to sell, we recommend that you swap it out for something neutral.
 

When potential buyers view your listing for the first time, they have a lot to look at. A lot to distract them.
 

Staging helps to ensure that their eyes are drawn to the features you want to highlight. But when you place a “busy” area rug in a room, it has the potential to become a focal point in itself, and therefore a distraction from the important elements that you want buyers to notice~ and remember.
 

That’s why we keep area rugs neutral when we stage our clients’ homes.
 

As you can see in the examples of our professionally staged living rooms, neutral area rugs serve the purpose of grounding and unifying the space, making it feel more comfortable. But they don’t compete for attention. Instead, the neutral area rugs quietly fade away into the bigger story of the room.
 

That allows fireplaces and windows for natural lighting, features that buyers are looking for, to become the focal points.
 

So keep your area rugs neutral for staging and add pops of colour and texture in art and accessories to highlight key features.
 

For more examples of the power and impact of staging, take a look at the Set Your Stage Facebook albums featuring many before and after photos of the various homes and condos that we’ve successfully staged to sell. Let our experienced team stage YOUR home for potential buyers in your Calgary neighbourhood!