Day in the Life

Staging in Portland

I love staging my properties. I won’t bore you with stats but staged homes do sell faster and for more money. Why wouldn’t you want to stage a home? My staged homes are not sterile-all-white-no-personality homes but rather homes with enticing vignettes to engage the buyers. Oftentimes I am introducing just a few pieces into the home to brighten up rooms with a “pop o’ color” as I am fond of saying. Lately I have had several full installations of furniture, fixtures, drapes, artwork, rugs and dishes. These were time consuming but in all cases the homes sold for substantially more than what the sellers anticipated, even WELL above where we were expecting to be with this market, which was already a higher sold price.

Recently I staged a Portland cape. The living room had a couch, chair, coffee table and bookcase. The fireplace surround was painted black. It looked a little cold. I brought in plants, artwork, books, vases, a plethora of pillows, rugs, end tables and chairs. It went from cold to cozy. Total cost of the living room including bookcase items was $140.00.

The sunroom was dark plywood with tattered carpeting and had only a wooden bench. The walls were painted crisp white, the rug removed and floor painted. I thought a nautical blue and white theme would look stunning. I brought in a wicker side table to match a wicker chair borrowed from the seller’s relative. Again I added pillows, art pieces, books, rugs and plants. The sunroom became a sunny spot to sit with a morning cup of coffee and newspaper or to enjoy cool summer breezes in the evening. Buyers could picture themselves enjoying time and being comfortable in the sunroom. Total cost of sunroom $79.00.

Everything shown in these photos came from Goodwill, amassed over the years. I am using Goodwill because it is a good source for budget-friendly decorating pieces. You know what they say, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”. Well, these are my staging treasures. An added benefit to economical staging is that I am not as concerned if a piece is broken, lost or walks off, and yes that has happened. But that is a different Day in the Life of a Realtor story. Next time you are thinking about a room re-do, check out Goodwill, Salvation Army or any of the other community thrift shops. Treasure awaits.

Another day in the life of a real estate agent. #RealtorOnTheGo