In 2011, I placed my home on the market because I had anticipated a move to East Hampton, New York. Shortly thereafter, my real estate agent began showing my home to potential buyers. Although several people had shown an interest, I had yet to receive any offers for my property. Since the time for my move to be complete was vastly approaching, I was becoming desperate to sell my house.
I talked to my realtor about dropping the asking price to help to spur interest. Instead, she came up with another solution. My realtor asked me to consider hiring a professional stager to help me sell my property, and advised that if this failed, I could still lower the asking price if I thought it necessary.
Hiring the professional stager was like a dream come true. In the end, I was able to sell my home within a month and received $10,000 above the price I original set for the property. It seems that my home was so attractive that two buyers began a bidding war on my home.
The professional stager I hired helped me sell my property quickly and at a tremendous profit. Three things made his efforts pay great dividends when it came to selling my home:
#1. Accentuating the Positive
One of the most attractive features of my home was its wide windows. Unfortunately, I had collected quite a few pieces of antique furniture, which I had then placed in front of these windows. My stager asked me to remove some of this furniture and place it in the basement instead. The result was that plenty of natural light was able to shine through, making the rooms seem larger and brighter.
My decorating scheme also changed in order to accentuate my home’s positive features. I painted the walls a neutral color throughout and added colorful throw rugs in many rooms. These added color to my hardwood floors, helping to draw further attention to my home’s positive aspects.
#2. Eliminating the Negative
There was a lack of countertop and cabinet space in the kitchen area, so my professional stager went to work on this issue. By eliminating clutter on the counter, this made it appear more spacious. My professional stager also suggested easy renovations to increase the amount of storage space in the kitchen.
#3. Understanding Buyers
Likewise, the Hamptons Real Estate market contains a surprisingly large handful of meticulous and somewhat picky buyers. My professional stager helped me realize how important it was to let my realtor take control of showing the home. In the past, I had demonstrated a tendency to monopolize the situation, which could have scared away potential buyers. - Once I realized this, I made a vow to stay out of the way whenever the home was being shown.
The stager’s efforts took just over a week, but during that time, I learned a great deal. While it was an investment to hire this professional, it resulted in a very quick sale thereafter. I would definitely recommend hiring a professional stager to anyone who is struggling to sell his or her home.
Sam Marquit
Professional Writer, Publisher & Editor
