From recent freezing temperatures, warmer weather is just around the corner, and here are some quick ways to create spring curb appeal, whether you are selling or dwelling.
While shopping over the weekend for fresh, new spring curb appeal accessories for my new listings, I went into Home Goods to see what they were featuring this spring.
First of all, I love the feeling I get when I walk into Home Goods. They know how to get you in the mood to shop. It’s the same trick I use for all of my new listings. Home Goods and I both know we’ve got a short time to grab the buyer while they are present and either they’ll buy or they’ll move on. I call it the 10 second rule. It’s based on grabbing the buyer within 10 seconds of entering a house.
Home Goods is bright, full of happy music, and the colors throughout the store are outstanding. Furthermore, it’s such a pick-me-up and an incredible feeling. I love their bright cheery dishes, pillows, springtime furniture and outdoor cushions. It makes me want to buy everything in the store and give my own home a spring makeover.
I also love Home Goods for doormats and front door wreaths. They are bright, colorful, and full of life. The spring season is the best time for a change. It’s like starting over new again. In addition, you get a new lease on life and your home deserves this as much as anything. For that very reason, you will reap the benefits from your spring curb appeal makeover.
How to be the favorite house on the block
This week while working on a couple of houses, I thought about what would make us stand out from the other neighbors? What were some quick ways to create spring curb appeal?
Both houses had substantial front porches so I decided with the new season and the energy in the air, I wanted to focus on the porch and really hone in on the spring curb appeal to draw people inside.
As a result, at one of the houses, I added a new spring doormat, a fresh wreath and added new outdoor pillows to the homeowner’s glider. Adding large, colorful planters to each side of the front door was a plus.
Here are 5 quick ways to create spring curb appeal
Paint your front door
Add an expensive pot or planters filled with colorful flowers next to the front door
Find a pretty new wreath and hang it on the door
Get some new, large house numbers
Change out your mailbox (if it’s on the house) or paint it to match the color of your door
Do these 5 things to create your spring curb appeal and while the buyer’s agent is busy getting the key out of the lock box, the buyers are quickly falling in love with your house.
We had a cold winter in Kansas City. The spring real estate market is here and creating the model home look starts with your curb appeal. Zing your home into spring in no time with our help. Call or text (913) 515-3250 to schedule your home styling appointment.
Whether you realize it or not, there is the best red carpet look for your home. After all, the whole purpose of home staging is for your home to stand out from your competition.
Just like the stars walking the red carpet at the Grammys, it’s a process for the stars to look that way. From choosing the right gown and accessories, to their hair, make-up, and nails, they will tell you it takes a village to create their red carpet look.
First of all, the stars know they will be judged and the consensus will either be good, outstanding, or bad. It’s the same when selling your home. You, too, have one chance to make a first impression. If you knock it out of the park, you may sell your home for more money than you imagined. And if you don’t?
The best red carpet look for your home
The best red carpet look for your home comes from using a professional home staging stylist. It only makes sense when your home’s reputation is on the line. A star wouldn’t walk the red carpet without her team behind her. When selling your home, your money is on the line. The faster your house sells, the more money you will make. Your professional home stager or stylist will be responsible to create the best red carpet look for your home. And when the buyers fall in love, it’s money in the bank from there!
What’s the alternative? Sell your house as it is and see what that gets you. I call that selling by default…you get what you get. Your money comes down to the Realtor you hire. They might sell a lot of houses but at what price? And how fast does it happen?
There are a lot of skills necessary to sell houses for top dollar. Likewise, the number one skill agents don’t have is home staging. And yet many agents will attempt to stage your home themselves. Why? All the extras in real estate cost money. Many agents don’t want to spend money to make money. They probably had a bad experience of spending their own money on a home they didn’t get sold.
On the other hand, some agents will bring their home stager in for an hour-long home staging consultation. That is not home staging. That’s advising you on what to do. That’s like a hair stylist telling you what style will look good on you versus doing it. And have you ever had a bad hairstylist? Case closed.
The art of home staging
Perhaps unknown to the average Realtor, above all else, there is an art to home staging. After all, there’s a whole giant industry based around it. It’s so much more than clearing the countertops. It’s creating your best first impression look, so buyers are drawn into your home, sweeping them off their feet, causing them to fall in love with it, to the point they have to have it, and will gladly pay you extra money to get it.
That’s what I do as your home stylist. You can declutter and put your family photos away but you need a professional stylist to create the best red carpet look for your home that will sweep your buyers off their feet. Your job is to find that person with the right broom.
Remember, the way you live in your home and the way you sell your house are two different ways. Consequently, selling your home is a beauty pageant and a competition. You need to be ready. There will always be another house that looks better than yours if you don’t create your best red carpet look for your home. I’ve seen your competition and I’m in it to win it. Game on!
Want to know your home’s current, local value, not some computer-generated Zestimate? Click here!
If you’re thinking of selling your home, allow me to create your best red carpet look. Call me at (913) 515-3250 or contact me here to schedule your FREE home selling consultation and let’s see if what I do will work for you!
Here is one easy home staging secret I use on all of my listings before they come on the market. We stage occupied homes so we work with what you have in your house. I won’t lie, sometimes it’s easy and sometimes it’s not. But regardless, I always tell people their house will look better for selling than it did when we arrived.
I always say, selling your home is simple, it’s just not easy. After all, buyers will make a decision about your house within 10 seconds of opening the front door. So as a home stager, first impressions are critical for me. I will walk your house over and over making sure everything is “just right.” I call it the Goldilocks Effect.
Another Happy Seller
As my Happy Seller, Gayle Krieger said, “selling your home is a mindset.”
“We were looking for a Realtor that had experience and also did home staging. Our daughter found Melinda on the internet. I contacted Melinda initially to visit with us and look at our house to see what improvements we needed to do for selling our home.
From our first visit, we knew Melinda was the Realtor for us. She gave us some recommendations for improvements to do. The first thing was to get a mindset that we are selling a house, not our home. When we were ready to list we called Melinda. She staged our home and told us she would sell it the first weekend. My husband was not a believer in being able to accomplish that. We sold for over the asking price the first weekend! He is now a believer!
Melinda was very prompt in answering emails, texts, and phone calls. We were moving out of state. Melinda called Realtors in our new location and interviewed them. She found us a great Realtor to buy our next home. We really appreciated that. We highly recommend Melinda.”
My easy home staging secret
Does your house have the Goldilocks effect? Gayle and Jerry’s house did have the Goldilocks effect before I staged it. While I didn’t have to do much, I brought in some accessories to freshen up their look by staging and styling their home to create their best model home look for the buyers.
Their dining room was right inside the front door and was lacking a little style that was necessary for selling. I rearranged the dining room and added some trendy accessories to their dining room table and china cabinet to make things pop.
I also stopped by the garden center on the way to their house and picked out a perfect arrangement that was “just right” to dress up their front porch.
Needless to say, when their house came on the market, everything was “just right.”
It’s about an eye for style
People always tell me I’m very stylish. My reply is, “if I can’t style myself, how can I style your home?” It’s all in the presentation – arranging and accessorizing your home until it’s “just right.” By focusing on your home, getting it “just right” and having a marketing plan that works, I’m able to sell my homes within 3 days of coming on the market. That creates very Happy Sellers!
While I know I can’t help everyone, the sellers I have helped have had great success. It starts with their mindset and my ability to create their Goldilocks effect – making sure everything is “just right.” Remember, you have one chance to make a first impression when selling your home in Overland Park. Is your house “just right?”
If you are ready to create your Goldilocks effect when selling your home in Overland Park, call me at (913) 515-3250 or contact me here. Home staging is one small expense you’ll have when selling that will increase your bottom line. If you list your home with us, we will stage your home for FREE!
If you are selling your Overland Park home anytime soon, you definitely need some home staging magic – especially in this real estate market!
Honestly, it never ceases to amaze me that many Overland Park Realtors just don’t get it. Certainly, it’s not like home staging is a new concept – it was “created” in 1973 by a lady who knew occupied houses could look better when selling. For that reason, I flew to Chicago in 2006 and worked with her one-on-one, and became an Accredited Home Staging Stylist. That was a very long time ago. Where has everyone been?
Buyers only see what they see
After showing several houses over the past weekend, I just sometimes have to laugh. I’m truly embarrassed. “OMG – let’s go. Another house no one cares about. This isn’t going to get any better.”
Because you have a house that doesn’t show well, you want my feedback after showing your listing? Come on now!
Selling a house is simple but it’s not easy. Prepare, List, Sell is my formula for home staging magic. It works over and over again for those home sellers who get it and for agents who want my help.
Here are my 5 best tips if you are selling your home in Overland Park or Olathe or anywhere:
Home Staging Magic
Have a plan – first of all, what are you trying to accomplish? If you don’t know, start over. You’ve got to have a plan. We don’t need more inventory, we need more GOOD inventory.
Be ready to sell – another issue is most sellers aren’t ready to sell. If your house is filled to the gills with stuff you can’t seem to part with, that doesn’t tell me as an agent that you’re going to be moving anytime soon. My buyers want to close in 30 days. Can you possibly be out? Probably not.
Prepare your home to sell – would you just roll out of bed and show up and run a 5K? Of course not. It takes preparation. There’s a whole list of questions you need to answer. Selling your house is the same thing. You’ve got to prepare. And it’s hard work. But it’s got to be done.
Pick up your stuff. In all honesty, nobody wants to see your collections, family photos, piles of papers, or anything else for that matter. Buyers are trying to see themselves living there and yet you are preventing them from doing that. They are easily distracted by your own stuff.
Step up to the plate and be ready. Selling your house is an event to me…it’s called Showtime. There’s no dress rehearsal, no guessing. If your agent isn’t sure and needs the approval and feedback from the entire office, get a different Realtor.
Above all else, you want buyers to go ga-ga over your house, fight to get it and make ridiculous offers. Don’t know how to do that? Hire a Realtor who has a clue and is producing the results you want. Consequently, you don’t want a Realtor who has 30 listings. That just means their houses aren’t selling. I’m not knocking my competition. I’m only educating you on getting your home sold.
You are not only wasting your time, but you’re also wasting my time and my client’s time when your house isn’t spot-on and ready to be sold. Plus the worst part is you are giving away your hard-earned equity. All of my sellers tell me they want MORE MONEY! I get that. Why don’t you realize that your days on the market are only taking away from your own hard-earned money?
The way you live in your home is your business,
the way you sell your house is my business!
Melinda Bartling
Ready to get started with some home staging magic?
Finally, selling your house is simple, it’s just not easy. Furthermore, my home staging services are FREE to my sellers and my sellers consistently sell faster and get more money than they were expecting. I’ve never had a seller tell me they wanted less money. My services are the solution to all of their home-selling problems.
If you are an Overland Park or Olathe home seller and need help getting your house ready to sell, call or text me at (913) 515-3250 or contact me here. Let me create some home staging magic for you!
Check out today’s new listings either below or in the sidebar. Call or text me at (913) 515-3250 to see inside one of these homes. I AM NEVER TOO BUSY to show you a house. Real estate is my main hustle after 35 years! Everything else I do is bells and whistles to enhance your experience!
If you are thinking of selling your home anytime soon, here are some staging tips for your outdoor space. Especially since Covid, outdoor spaces are trending bigger than ever and are an added feature that every homebuyer wants.
Today’s home buyers want that extension of outdoor living and are willing to pay extra money for it! Whether you are selling or dwelling, when it comes to creating a fun, outdoor space for your home in Overland Park, there are loads of options for you to try.
Staging tips for your outdoor space
Whether you have a deck, patio, or neither, start with what you have and create a fun outdoor space from there. If all you have is a yard, you could create a new fire pit area in your backyard. Build out your firepit and get a few cool Adirondack chairs in a fun color.
Maybe you have a deck or patio and already have some outdoor furniture. More staging tips for your outdoor space would be to buy some new, colorful cushions and pillows. Add an outdoor umbrella, some party lights and voila! Be sure to include an eating table for outdoor dining. Whether you have a green thumb or not, buy some plants to add to the ambiance.
Create your outdoor space now
Enjoy your outdoor space and your buyers will be able to see themselves living in your home. Everyone wants a special place to hang out and taking it outdoors is the right thing to do. It not only extends your living space, being outdoors is good for your mind, body, and spirit.
Having a fun spot to enjoy a nice glass of wine at the end of the day and to hang out with friends and family is what everyone wants.
Now is the perfect time to create your best outdoor space. Let your backyard be an extension of your home. After all, home is where your story begins and if you don’t have a story, you can definitely create one. If you need help creating an outdoor space you’ll love spending time in, call me direct at (913) 515-3250 or contact us here!
Home Staging for baby boomers is about creating the best look your house has to offer so buyers fall in love when they open the front door. Most of the younger generations understand the concept of home staging – they’ve seen shows on HGTV and they realize that the way you live in a home and the way you sell a house are two different ways.
But what do you do if you are a boomer selling your lovely home after all these years? Does home staging really make a difference in a hot seller’s market? Yes it does and now more than ever.
You see, in order to get buyers interested in your home, you’ve got to step up to the plate and turn your home into a hot commodity. You must get your buyers emotionally involved. They won’t buy your house until then.
Here are my top 7 home staging for baby boomers tips
Your home may need a new coat of paint to freshen things up.
Make sure there is absolutely NO wallpaper lurking around your home.
Remove the collections or “treasures” as one of my clients lovingly referred to her stuff. Buyers don’t want to see your years of accumulation. Put away those “grandma” things – doilies, etc.
Pack up the photos of family members and friends from the tables and remove them from your walls. Today’s young buyers want to add fresh new photos of their own families.
Renew your main living areas with some colorful throw pillows, hardback books, and trendy accessories.
Do the same with the master bedroom and master bath. Add some new bedding in the way of a bed in a bag if necessary. Make the bed the focal point of the room and bring the décor up to today’s standards. Buy some new fluffy towels for the master bath and add some new accessories.
De-odorize the house with some seasonal scents – no matter what the season. Make the house smell delicious.
Today’s buyers don’t want to buy grandma’s house
Years ago, I had a listing that I showed to a young couple looking for their first house. After walking through I asked them what they thought. They said it reminded them of their grandma’s house and they would never buy a house like that.
After the showing, I shared that conversation with my seller and she asked me when she “got old.” First of all, I replied that she just hadn’t bought any new things lately. For that reason, she decided to buy some new things for her new house and use them to update her home that was for sale.
We went shopping and she bought a new kitchen table and chairs, a new couch for the living room and a few new accessories. It was part of our home staging for baby boomers plan that truly worked!
The house sold immediately after changing things up. I believe her new look definitely added a freshness to her older house that appealed to her younger home buyers.
It comes down to 1st impressions
Remember, it’s all about first impressions when selling your Overland Park home. Selling your home starts with the 10-second rule. If your buyers think of your house as their grandma’s, it’s probably going to take some time to get an offer.
Start with the above home staging for boomers tips and dress your home up ready to impress those picky buyers. As I always say, give the buyers what they want and they will buy your house faster and will pay more money for it every time.
If you want to know exactly what you need to do to prepare your home for the Overland Park real estate market so it sells faster and for more money, call or text me direct at (913) 515-3250.
When you are thinking of selling your home, there are so many home staging pet peeves that are made by sellers and their real estate agents that really bother me.
First of all, probably my biggest pet peeve is not hiring a professional home stager. It’s the same as not hiring a professional photographer. Why shouldn’t you have every opportunity to speak with a professional home stager who can not only advise you but also help you? Many agents advise their sellers on what to do when staging their homes. Sure, there are certain things about staging that everyone knows about – like decluttering and depersonalizing. But I find sellers want and need more help than that. After all, home staging shouldn’t be taken for granted or left to chance. For those very reasons, be sure to request a home staging consultation, at the very least, from your agent. You want to create the best Model Home Look for your house.
Our home staging process
At Melinda Bartling Real Estate and Home Staging, we use our sister company, Overland Park Home Staging for every listing we take. We believe home staging is the determining factor for the results you get when selling your Overland Park home.
We will meet with you and do a complete walk-through and walk around of your home. This is part of our Home Staging Consultation. The actual Home Staging occurs once you’ve done your punch list of our recommendations. We will tweak every inch of your home before your Professional Photo Shoot.
When it comes to selling your home, you must remember…it’s not about you anymore. You have decided to sell your home and move on. It’s time to put on your buyer’s hat and make some serious money. Everything you do from here on is marketing. You are setting yourself up to sell your house for some ridiculous amount of money while you can. Take advantage of it.
My other home staging pet peeves
The hardest conversation I always have is about dead animals mounted on the walls. I call them home staging don’ts or no-no’s. Unfortunately, all dead animals must be removed from the house. Furthermore, I find that a lot of agents don’t know how to have the right conversations with their sellers so they just overlook certain things that really should be addressed.
Home staging consultation case study
Years ago, I received a call from a lady that had been unable to sell her home. She hired me for a home staging consultation to see what she needed to do to get her house sold.
When I got to the house, I immediately noticed a number of things that needed to be changed to attract the most buyers. It’s all part of my 10 Second Rule and the fact that buyers will make a decision about your house within 10 seconds of opening the front door.
As soon as I entered this home, I saw several things that probably prevented the house from selling.
They had bright blue tile and countertops in the kitchen
The rooms were stuffed full of furniture
The arrangement of their furniture was wrong for selling the house
Finally, I went to the finished lower level and there it was!!! My jaw dropped.
There was an entire room full of mounted heads with brass nameplates next to each one. There must have been at least 25 dead animals in that room. (I wish I had a photo but I don’t). I asked if there was a photo of this on the internet. She honestly didn’t know – which was another problem in itself. I looked at her and said not every woman likes those things and they had to come down.
While we were downstairs, her husband returned home. She gave him the bad news and his response was, “If I have to take them down, we’re not moving.” He stormed out of the house. She apologized to me and said he was angry long before I got there. LOL!
Months later, after they had changed out the blue in their kitchen and removed all of his trophies from the house, the house sold. But in the interim, how much money did they lose with being on the market for almost 9 months? It was a terrific house but it wasn’t staged to sell.
Are you serious about selling your home?
This is just one example of this situation. I see it at least once a week in homes in all price ranges. There are all specimens…bears, wolves, fish, deer, moose heads, stuffed roosters, etc. I actually saw a full-size standing bear wearing a designer scarf one time.
If you’re serious about selling your home, prepare your house to sell before it comes on the market. It’s your money when selling your house. It’s the largest investment you’ll ever have and you’re giving away your hard-earned equity.
If you want to know my other home staging pet peeves that will cost you money when selling your home, call me at (913) 515-3250 or contact me here.
Smudging your home is an ancient spiritual practice and ritual that we use to cleanse a home, rid it of negativity and prepare it for its new occupants. Above all, it’s an actual sage burning ceremony that works for sellers or buyers depending on their specific needs.
Who is home smudging designed for?
At Fresh Juju, we know our home smudging services can be for sellers who want to rid their home of negative energy, buyers who want to know that the home they bought will be filled with positive energy or residents who want to remove bad vibes from their homes.
The very first smudging I did was in 2008 when I listed a home where a murder with a chain saw had been committed. Needless to say, it was a gruesome situation. Even though a couple of years had passed since the incident, I learned about smudging because I was having bad feelings just being in the home. I studied the practice of smudging and took it upon myself to perform a smudging ceremony once a week while the home was on the market.
Other reasons sellers smudge:
There was a break-up or divorce
One of the occupants went through a long illness
Someone passed away in the house
A dramatic event occurred at the house
Turbulence in the family
The house was the scene of a crime
The home had been vacant for a while and had stale energy
Buyers love the art of home smudging for similar reasons:
Smudging helps to purify and redirect the energy in the home
It’s a natural disinfectant
Removes any negative vibrations, pains, fears, anxieties, and uncertainties that could be lingering in a home
Sage is known to boost your mood, improve memory, focus and help with insomnia
Smudging is a quick and easy fix to prepare the home for new buyers. Furthermore, they can move in knowing all negativity has been released and the environment is filled with positivity, love, and light.
Our process of smudging your home
We prefer to smudge the home after the sellers have vacated and before the buyers move in. An unoccupied home is a perfect backdrop to rid a home of any previous negative energy. But either way, occupied or not, we can smudge your home to your satisfaction.
There are as many different ways to perform a Smudging Ceremony as well as different products to use. We prefer using white sage as our main tool for the ceremony. Our intentions are always set first. Then we ask why we are there and what you want to specifically accomplish with the home smudging. The final preparation step is to always smudge ourselves first before we smudge the house.
The art of smudging can be done with your hands or with a feather. We use a feather to direct the smoke from the sage to clear the space. In our Smudging Ceremony, we say different prayers to rid the house of evil spirits. We will get very specific with the prayers if we know “the story” of the house. We go room to room as we smudge. The process is slow and mindful and each smudging ceremony usually takes about 1 hour.
Will one home smudging do the trick?
That depends. As previously stated, I smudged a house once a week for about a month back in 2008. We’ve had buyers purchase a home where the previous owners had been battling through a divorce for the past couple of years.
With this type of negative energy flowing throughout the house for so long, we would recommend at least 2 smudging ceremonies. The 1st should be once the house is vacant before the buyers move in and the 2nd one about a week after moving in.
Those 2 smudgings will remove any negativity from the house as well as the new owner’s things. Furthermore, that will clear the air of the occupied space by the previous occupants and allow the buyer’s possessions to go through a good smudging as well.
Is smudging your home right for you?
While smudging your home may seem a bit weird and confusing to many people, it’s merely a way to remove bad juju from a home and replace it with light, love, and joy. Especially when buying a home, you never know what went on behind those closed doors. You may discover the previous residents were horrible people who did terrible things.
Smudging is a sacred, religious and spiritual practice to many Native American tribes. For that very reason, we have high regard and respect for the process. We believe smudging works to rid a home of its demons.
You can start off life in your new home with a clean slate knowing the bad energy has been moved out of the house to make way for your positivity, love, and light. It’s a small price to pay for a large investment and a fresh start!
Personal smudging ceremony
Due to the recent chaos with Covid and unrest in the world, we offer our Personal Smudging Ceremony to rid negativity from your mind, body, and spirit. Much like a home smudging, the purpose of the ritual is to allow the smoke from the white sage to carry off all negativity, fears, and attachments and be replaced with light, love, and joy.
We use White Sage, which is a natural healer for your mind, body, and spirit. Furthermore, its leaves are rich in compounds that work to turn on your brain activity, raise your mood, reduce stress, and relieve pain. It’s even been proven to be a solution for insomnia!
The smoke from the sage cleanses everything it touches and has direct communication with our Creator. With your intentions and goals for healing, combined with our Ceremonial Prayer Ritual, you will start a daily practice of reciting your personal affirmations to deepen what we created.
Our most requested service
Our most requested ceremony is smudging the home and one of the residents. On average, about 8 out of 10 personal smudging ceremonies that we perform are centered around health-related issues. Whether it’s a recent diagnosis or surgery, our clients understand the importance of removing all the bad juju from their homes as well as their spirits. In addition, as everyone knows, having the right positive attitude is the most important attribute for healing.
If you or a loved one has encountered ill health, unmanageable stress, anxiety from a break-up, insomnia, or just negativity in general, a Personal Smudging Ceremony can work for you, too!
Get the combo!
Our Combo Personal and Home Smudging Ceremony is the best deal! Likewise, it will remove the contaminated demonic forces, stale or negative energies, fear, sadness, uncertainty or anxiety about the future, or just plain bad spirits that may be lingering in your environment and your mind.
We work with your intentions to promote new beginnings, purify the mind, body, and spirit, and transform all energy from negative to positive.
#1 Best Offer – Combo Personal and Home Smudging Ceremony – $175 – $275 (over 3,000 sf)
Each extra Personal Smudging Ceremony is $75 if performed while we are there.
ATTENTION REALTORS – ask about our Preferred Realtor Program that can save you $$$ on your next Home Smudging Ceremony. It makes a great housewarming gift for your favorite buyers!
How do I order a personal or home smudging?
Schedule your personal or home smudging by calling or texting (913) 515-3250 or contact Melinda here. For more information, check out our Smudging website at FreshJuju.com.
Home staging for occupied homes is a concept that was created in 1973 by a woman named Barb Schwarz. The whole idea behind the concept was it was designed for homes that people lived in that didn’t show well. After all, what home shows well as it is? Every home needs a little extra something to help bring out its best.
My mantra has always been…
“The way you live in your home is your business but the way you sell your house is my business”
Melinda Bartling
Home staging and the Red Carpet look
Just like celebrities on the Red Carpet who spend hours and sometimes days or months preparing for an event, your home should go through the same detailing process. After all, people always detail their cars before selling them. Don’t you think your home deserves a little sprucing up?
Home buying is not only very personal, it’s extremely emotional. It’s a known fact that home buyers will make a decision about your home within 10 seconds of opening your front door. They either “feel” your house or they don’t. If your house doesn’t speak to them and if they don’t feel themselves living there, they will move on.
Well-prepared and well-staged homes not only show better they sell for more money! You do want more money, don’t you? So, get busy and create your best Red Carpet look for your home.
Home Staging for occupied homes versus vacant homes
The whole concept of home staging in 1973 was never created for vacant homes. The main idea was to make a lived-in home stand out from the other houses on the market through the art of home staging. I learned the concept in 2006 and actually staged homes in Chicago with the creator herself. I was fortunate to learn not only her home staging techniques but I was able to get inside her head to better understand her thoughts about the process.
Staging for vacant homes became more prevalent with HGTV where the stagers would bring in a truck full of new furniture and accessories and furnish an empty house in order to flip a house for sale.
That’s a very different process than working with what a typical seller already has in their house. I’ll be honest, not every seller has great furniture and accessories like what you see when you furnish a vacant home. That’s what makes staging occupied homes very challenging – but so much fun!
Overland Park Home Staging
After working in Chicago and learning home staging with Barb, I returned to Kansas City and started my own home staging business. I had been in real estate for 19 years. It was 2006 and home staging had not yet caught on at that time. But as a Realtor, I knew houses were not selling and competition was fierce. Interest rates were over 6% and we were headed towards a real estate bubble. So, if you were selling your home, you needed to look better than any other home on the market because buyers were few. I knew home staging was about to blow up big time!
Getting the idea of home staging across to Realtors was challenging and home sellers just thought it was silly. Those were the days of sellers saying, “they can take the house the way it is or not buy it. I’m not changing anything.” With that attitude, no wonder houses weren’t selling. I remember telling some sellers they needed to repaint their sponge-painted kitchen cabinets. Needless to say, that didn’t go over well.
After getting fired from that listing, I spent the next couple of years promoting the concept of home staging to my fellow Realtors and learning how to sell the idea. At one point, we were the busiest home staging company in Overland Park. Then once home staging became a “thing,” everyone started doing it – and not always well, as you can imagine. New stagers would offer next to nothing prices to Realtors to get their foot in the door with a busy agent and there the industry went.
To this day, I follow Barb’s techniques that I learned from her, and more than that, I have never divulged her best-kept little secrets that she shared with me. She took me under her wing and saw that I had a natural talent and a great sense of style.
The average home stager
Even though everybody thinks they can stage a home, we all know that’s just not right. Realtors are not home stagers. Just because you have a real estate license or take a home staging course, that doesn’t give you a sense of style that makes you a great home stager. The number one thing a home stager must have is knowing whether or not the end result looks good. If you can’t make a decision or have to ask someone else’s opinion, you probably don’t have confidence in your style.
There are lots of home stagers that don’t have the eye that it takes to be a great home stager. You’ve got to take what you have to the next level when you’re selling and give it that model home look.
What you need to know before staging your home
If you are selling your house and your Realtor says they will bring their stager in, which usually means a home stager will stop by, consult with you and provide you with some tips for selling. That’s probably better than doing nothing but they also won’t come back and rearrange your furniture or accessories. A true home staging is about decluttering and depersonalizing your home. Once that’s completed, the final step is the rearrangement of your furniture and accessories that welcomes buyers into your home. You always want to create the model home look as much as possible if you want top dollar when selling. The right home staging will always make you more money than not.
I would suggest you hire your own home stager so you have control over the process. My home staging is always a two-step process. I will come out and provide you with a list of things to do and when you’re done, I come back and tweak things. Simple! There is a fee but if you list your home with me, I stage your home for FREE! Either way, I AM A HOME STAGER! And since 2016, I’ve been doing home staging for occupied homes!
How to get started with your home staging
Please call or text (913) 515-3250 or contact me here to talk about staging and selling your home and making lots of money doing it.
Overland Park Home Staging has been around since 2006. For that very reason, we’re often contacted to provide our best-kept home staging secrets.
Don’t miss our most recent excerpt – “Selling Your Home is all About the Buyers” – as well as other great tips from home stagers around the country, in the Redfin blog post below:
One important aspect that many home sellers overlook is staging. However, in today’s competitive housing market, home staging is an essential step in order to sell your home quickly, increase home value, and stand out from the competition.
Redfin asked us to share why staging is so important for home sellers. So, whether you’re relocating to Los Angeles, CA, or packing up and moving to Toronto, CA, you’ll be able to set the stage and sell your home for all its potential. Check out what Overland Park Home Staging had to say!
Those are just a few of my best-kept home staging secrets. I love helping home sellers create their best model home look using their own things. What I find is most people have what they need to stage their homes, it just needs to be rearranged for selling versus living.
“Remember, the way you live in your house and
the way you sell your home are
two very different ways”
Melinda Bartling
Thinking of selling your home this fall?
If you’re thinking of selling your home this fall, call or text Melinda at (913) 515-3250 or get started here. You could be moved on to your next chapter before the end of the year.
