The Uninvited Stager Series

Today I found a home online that could have looked so much better - if only some care had been taken before the shots were taken.  I guess because I am a designer and artist as well, I look for the emotionality of a shot and in this house...there were none.  If you want to attract a buyer, you have to hit them in the heart.  You only have a few seconds to really get to them - so don't waste a single online photo.

Let's talk about this living room. It is so unappealing to me. The furnishings are so boring - and what's the deal with all the throws thrown so neatly over each chair and sofa?  I may be politically incorrect about this - but, to me, a man decorated this shot.  Whenever I stage a home for a male realtor, they always rearrange the way I place a throw on a sofa.  I do it in an artistic, casual way and they always change to look like the above picture.  Awful!  Anyway, this room would have looked better without as much furniture. Also, the draperies do not do anything for this room. They actually make the room appear less tall.  The orange wall color (being a warm tone) actually shortens this room as warm hues "advance" a room.  I would change that color.

There's too much information in this shot.  A potential buyer doesn't need to know the relationship of the rooms to one another. Also, the crosses should have been removed for this picture.  No one has to know the religious affiliation of the seller.

I don't know the purpose of this photo.  If the realtor wants to show the closet as an "extra" benefit of this home...at least make the closet appealing to the viewer.

The kitchen is the most important room to feature in an online lsiting.  No care was really taken for this shot.  Things were not put away and we don't need to see the bulletin board and the clock (a nice picture in this spot would have helped). Also, the paint color on the dining area wall shortens the space.  It would have looked more spacious and longer if a cooler and lighter paint color had been used.

You can see that this is a nice, open kitchen...but some of the clutter on the refrigerator and above the cabinet and the microwave on the countertop (and, again, the bulletin board and the clock) make it less appealing.

There's too much clutter in the dining area - the chest and the stereo equipment should not be there.  The china cabinet is too cluttered (inside and on top) and it should be be placed in the middle of the room - not at the end.

Way too much clutter!  Very unappealing shot.  Enough said.

The unappealing nature of this home continues in this office/kids's area/catchall room.  Each room should have a specific function, so that the buyer knows what kind of room it is.

Always open the shower curtain.  It will make the room seem larger.  There's too much clutter on the counter - personal effects and toiletries should be put away. A different shower curtain, some artwork and a nicer rug would have improved this bath tremendously.

Finally...to add insult to injury, the deck and the backyard make me want to call one of those HGTV shows where they make over someone's backyard.  This place needs an intervention!

So, this home really shows a buyer that they should offer a lower price because there's a lot to do to make this home nice. I wish them good luck - because that is what they need! 

Don't leave your home's online marketing to luck and chance. If you want to avoid these homeseller mistakes before you put your home on the market, call me at 631 793-1315.