All I did was....Home Staging Success Stories

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How to stage an bookcase... something most people have difficulty with.

Advantage Staging was fortunate to be able to apprentice with the Stager of the Year when I first started working in this industry.

One very important  skill that was taught was how to stage a bookcase.

In this example all I did was declutter and make sure the book case was only two thirds full.

stage a bookcase before  stage a bookcase after

The staging suggestions in this example were a matter of spending a few minutes boxing up the items that were making the office look less spacious than what it actually was. 

Now buyers can imagine themselves working in the this lovely den at home that has room to work and display their favourite things.

Investment, minimal.

Impact priceless.

Advantage Staging is ready to create interest in your property when you are ready to list.

Michelle Finnamore    Advantage Staging

Two offices to serve you better.

Home Staging in Vaughan, Maple, Woodbridge and area     416.928.2999

Home Staging in Barrie, Alliston and area                          705.720.0113

2010 Ontario Home Builders Nomination for design

2010 National Association of Home Builders U.S.A.  Award for design

2010 Canadian Staging Professionals Entrepreneur of the Year Award

 

 

 

21 commentsMichelle Finnamore • June 10 2011 03:51PM

When sellers ask if they have to update light fixtures... show them this!

Sally Weatherley, home stager extraordinaire in Vancouver, has inspired me to write about the chandliers and light fixtures that I replace when I am home staging in Vaughan. Most of these chandeliers and light fixtures were purchased 20 -25 years ago and were the height of fashion and very on trend at the time.

Lighting is like jewellery in a home. It is what gets noticed by buyers when they approach your front door, entering the foyer and in each room they travel through. When you are selling your home, it is now a product for sale so it is a good idea to put your best "jewellery" on display. And that means replacing light fixtures like these.....

    outdated light fixture  outdated light fixture

  outdated light fixture

outdated light fixture

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With current lighting such as these...

updated light fixture                                                                        Simple and elegant, not too much show. Just enough to bring interest to the room and give light to the space. This light was a three tier chandlier for only $499 from Home Depot. Most three tier lights I sourced started at $800 and up so this one was a great find.

 

updated lighting

 

 

When there are several light fixtures in a row, try to keep the shades very simple. These lights had a very simple crystal at the end of the installation post to give a little bling to the light.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remember these strip lights? You felt like you were being interogated! Honest, I didn't do it!

outdated light fixture 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All I did was change the look and feel of the home to appeal to buyers looking to just "move right in".

Investment, minimal.

Impact, priceless.

Advantage Staging is ready to create interest in your property when you are ready to sell.

Michelle Finnamore     Advantage Staging

Vaughan, Maple, Woodbridge and surrounding area    416.928.2999

Barrie, Alliston and area                                                   705.720.0113

2010 Ontario Home Builders Nomination for Design

2010 National Association of Home Builders U.S.A.  Silver Award for Design

2010 Canadian Staging Professionals Entrepreneur of the Year Award

20 commentsMichelle Finnamore • June 08 2011 08:49PM

All I did was... make the ensuite look like a decor magazine shot.

Buyers all start with a check list of items that they want to have in their next home. It could be a double car garage, a large eat in kitchen, four bedrooms or an in law suite. In the end for most buyers, it comes down to emotion and how they feel in a house.

That's why home staging is one of the best marketing tools you have to prepare your home for sale.    Advantage Staging tries to create a vignette somewhere in the home that will have the buyer saying "I knew right away this house was for me!"

All I did in these homes was create master ensuite vignettes that make you think you are staying at a spa hotel retreat. And who wouldn't like the thought that?

bathroom decor

 

 

staging a bathroom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 You can create a  very zen, spa like look using very    simple, white towels, florals and soap dispensers. White always symbolizes clean and inviting.

 

 

 

 

bathroom decor  A splash of colour can also create that fresh look you would like to see in a bathroom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you are listing a home, one of the most important areas of the home to a buyer after the kitchen is the master ensuite.

These are the two areas that the buyer of the house will be using every day so make them look their best.

Clean, clean , and then clean again. Then stage the bathroom to create the "get a way from it all"  look that todays buyers see in every decor magazine and on HGTV design shows.

Home staging is not an expensive option that only higher price point homes use to market their properties. These staging vignettes ranged in price from $18  - $35 each creating a magazine like quality to them which buyers take note of.

Investment, minimal.

Impact, priceless.

 

Michelle Finnamore                    Advantage Staging      Two offices to serve you better.

Vaughan & Woodbridge Area      416.928.2999

Barrie and Area                         705.720.0113

 

2010  National Association of Home Builders U.S.A.   Silver Award for design

2010  Ontario Home Builders Association                 Silver Award for design

2010  Canadian Staging Professionals                     Entrepreneur of the Year Award

9 commentsMichelle Finnamore • March 12 2011 06:59PM

Real Estate Salespeople and Home Stagers... a match made in heaven raising funds for breast cancer research.

Advantage Staging works with many successful Realtors and two of them comprise the Diamond Team at Remax Premier in Vaughan.

The Diamond Team inlcudes home staging as part of their marketing plan to prepare their listings for photos and open houses. Together we make things happen. The clients are happy as they have a detailed written action plan to get their homes ready for listing photos, agent open houses and for public open houses.

Homeowners are sometimes reluctant to have a  home stager come in to their home as they have heard different stories and watched TV programs. With our team working together we get homeowners on board with the suggestions and they are always pleased with the outcome. Their homes sell quickly and for market value. This lets them avoid having buyers trudge through their homes for lengthy periods of time and gets them moving forward with their plans for the new life ahead. And who wouldn't like that!

To thank all their loyal clients Nadia Curci and Adele De Rango who make up the Diamond Team held a client appreciation night. Dinner was served with their usual pink theme. It was like a one big family sitting down to eat and share their happy stories about listing and selling and the team.

diamond team   diamond team

The pink theme is always present with the Diamond Team as they are tireless fundraisers in support of Breast Cancer Research.

diamond team  remax run for the cure

If you would like to be part of the Diamond Team success story and the Remax Run for the Cure this spring please contact Nadia or Adele. They would love your support in their dream to find a cure.

 

Michelle Finnamore  Advantage Staging    Two offices to serve you better.

Vaughan, Woodbridge and area    416.928.2999

Barrie and area                           705.720.0113

 

2 commentsMichelle Finnamore • March 08 2011 09:16AM

Vacant properties... leave them empty to show that they are spacious.

Whoa!!! I can hear you disagreeing all the way up here in snowy Toronto.  I have heard many a real estate sales person and home owner express this sentiment. The problem with leaving a home or a room vacant is that the buyer cannot identify what the purpose of the room might be or whether their furniture will fit in the space. The buyer needs something in the room to make a comparison to.

For instance, when a dining room has a table set in it the buyer will be thinking ..."My table is a little longer than this one so mine will fit here no problem". You get the buyer seeing themselves living in the home. 

Advantage Staging will rent a dining room table set to you for a very reasonable fee or you can do as my client did. They had lived in the house for 5 years without ever having purchased a dining room set.  I suggested that they borrow one as they had no budget to rent one.  Well they did one better than that.

When they bought their new home, they asked the homeowner if they could "borrow" their dining room set to put in their home to get it sold. The person that they bought the home from said of course and actually delivered it to the family.  Will wonders never cease.... their house sold in 5 days!

Another home staging success story in Vaughan. If you need help getting your property ready for sale contact Michelle to get your listing "move in ready".

Here are a couple of examples that illustrate why you would want to stage a vacant home.

Which room in the house is this? After staging there is no doubt. It is a bedroom and a very nice one at that.

staging bedroom   staging bedroom

This bedroom looks too small...... or does it look just right?

staging bedroom   staging bedroom

Invest minimal.

Impact priceless.

When you want to prepare your property for sale, call Michelle at Advantage Staging to produce that "just move in" look that buyers are looking for.

Two offices to serve you.

Vaughan, Woodbridge, Maple   416.928.2999

Barrie and area                       705.720.0113

16 commentsMichelle Finnamore • January 17 2011 01:45PM