Bringing in Emotion to Your Online Listing

Most of the time I tell you what not to do when selling your home or listing.  Today I want to show you some ideas that demonstrate what "to do."  The best way to get someone interested in taking a look at your home is to grab them from the first moment they see your home online.  How do you do that?  You bring "emotion" in to your pictures and you show every benefit you can to highlight your home.

Home for sale in Charleston, SC by Debbie Fisher of Handsome Properties: In this home that I am showing you today, every shot showed something special.  In the all-white bathroom, above, they added fresh flowers for a jolt of color - these parrot tulips help to bring this room to life.  The shot would have been boring otherwise.

Show details:  Are you leaving some beautiful light fixtures to the buyer?  Show them.  Do you have any special architectural details, like these gilded moldings?  Show them!

Other Special, Unique Features:  Do you have a beautiful staircase?  Show it off.  Get a professional photographer to take aerial shots of special features as well.

Showcase extra spaces in your home:  Do you have a spot in your home where you could enjoy a little cup of tea by a window?  A place to cuddle up and read a book?  If you don't, you can always make a space for this - I always find a place in the homes I stage for a quiet, little moment.  Buyers will remember your home if you bring out its uniqueness.

Show elegance:  This fireplace mantle and screen are really lovely.  They help a buyer to remember your home.  Add details like this if you don't have them already (or ask me to help you to create them!)

Detail how much space you have:  If you'll notice in this picture, the dining table is not extended to the fullest and there's still a lot of negative space showing.  It shows the buyer you can fit a lot of people in your dining room - but you don't have to show every chair and every leaf of your dining table.  You want to show space - that's what buyers want!

Show every benefit:  Show richness (beautiful granite, wood floors), extra functionality (prep areas), extra storage and seating space.

Show views:  While this isn't waterfront, still there's a nice view and it shows the terrace that comes with the home.

Showcase every unique feature...take every opportunity to show the uniqueness of your home.  You will attract more buyers!

Good luck!  If you need any help bring out the uniqueness of your home or listing...call me at 631 793-1315.

Does Your Home Have a "Hook?" How to Make Yours Memorable

Just like a popular song that you recognize and remember easily, your home needs a "hook" - something that makes your home different, in a positive way, from the other houses in your area or price range. What's your home's "hook," the emotional tug that will have a buyer remembering your home fondly? Do you have one...or two...or three or more??

We added a memorable faux chandelier decal over the bed - with some black and white cameo plates.

If you don't have a memorable home - how will your buyers ever remember it? Think about adding something distinctive to the outside of your home. It could be a colorful bird house, a beautiful garden statue (not religious though) or two black urns holding some red geraniums. Inside you could have a stunning orchid on your entry table, a large colorful oil painting in your living room or a large bowl of red apples (with a note that says "take one!") on your counter in the kitchen.

Master Bedroom Before...not memorable

After...This bedroom will be remembered.

In the above example, the homeowner's Master Bedroom was tired looking and uninspiring. It just needed a little creativity to bring it to life.  The homeowner was a seamstress - so I put her to work to make a beautiful bedspread with some leftover fabric.  I switched the window treatment from over the window to over the bed.  I added a lovely mosaic mirror in the center and some bedside table lamps that were more proportionate. So, for very little money, we really changed the look and feel of this Master Bedroom.

In recent staging that we did, I added some great accessories to give a dining room a special look and feel that will help homebuyers remember it.

In this vacant home, we provided all the furnishings and accessories.  In this dining room, the floors were glossy (as opposed to the satin finish on the rest of the floors).  If my contractors had finished the floors, this would not have happened - but the real estate investor hired the company that made the mistake.

So, to counteract the glossiness, I added this beautiful bamboo area rug with typography on it.  It's memorable and it diverts a buyer's eye. I also added a lovely, tall birdcage with an orchid inside it - another memorable feature.  The sleek leather chairs give the room a younger vibe - that's who will most probably buy this home.The glass table does not take up much visual space in the room - so the rooms looks more spacious.

When your home goes on the market, it's no longer your home...it's a product.  And a product needs to be merchandized.  Staging is the act of merchanding a home for sale.  If you don't know how to make your home memorable, hire a home staging company like mine to help you.  Even a staging consultation (which is very budget-friendly) will help you get your home buyer-ready...and memorable...and SOLD!

My company also does e-staging.  What is that?  We will look at photos of your home and we'll give you our best staging ideas, tips and advice by email.  Call me at 631 793-1315 to learn more about this!

Artwork Can Help Give a Room Some Life

I have been sorely absent from my blog and I apologize.  Life takes over sometimes - and time just slips away. Today I just wanted to give you some ideas on how to give your home more zip and punch when it's on the market. 

A fresh, neutral paint job always helps a room...but after that you need to add some color back into the room to give it a lift.  Adding a colorful throw and pillows or perhaps a colorful rug can add some zing to the room. 

Above, this home in Seaford NY (that you've seen on this blog) has just sold. Without the colorful accents and artwork, this room would have looked very dull. The color gives it a lift - for very little money. 

The powder room above, in a $3.5 million home that sold in 3 weeks, gets a little facelift with a beautiful metallic plaster in a sage green on the walls, an inexpensive gold mirror...plus a beautiful piece of artwork framed in black.  Left plain white, as the builder had it, it looked uninspiring.  Small changes will give you more bang for your buck.

Here are some prints being offered right now (the offer expires in 2 days - so you'll have to act fast) from One King's Lane.  If you don't know about this online site, you should sign up HERE because they offer some great furniture, bedding, candles, mirrors, artwork and other home decor items at discount prices - especially wonderful at this gift-giving time of year.

This framed fish print, for only $79, would look great in a bathroom

Here's another - but slightly more expensive at $159 because of the beautiful frame

For $159, this would look beautiful in a Master Bath or Powder Room

This is a little pricier, at $269, but these antique bird prints would look wonderful

in a den, library or great room

This one I want for myself!  It would look great in a bath or a ladies' dressing room

Not as colorful - but so elegant for $139!  Shells are a great accent for any home.

Another shell print for $139

Add this pair of fish prints in a man's office, den or library - at $139 each.

So sign up and try the One Kings Lane site out - I know that you will find some wonderful items there.  Whether for staging or for your own home or as gifts, the site offers some great deals on a daily basis. I buy my staging items there - as well as for my own home.

If you need some help staging your home or listing, give me a call.  Whether it's vacant - or it's been on the market for a long time with no success...I can help you.  Give me a call at 631 793-1315.