When we put our home on the market a few years ago, I was uneasy having total strangers go through our home. Would actual buyers come through or would it be just a bunch of lookie-loos? I had a flashback to the pestiferous neighbor from the television show Bewitched. I mean every neighborhood has a Mrs. Kravits around the corner, right? But to be honest, I couldn’t really blame the neighbors for taking a peek; I’ve been guilty of the same and thought nothing of it. However, it was quite different when my home was on display.
And so the process began. First on the list was to depersonalize. This is easier said than done. Our beloved “home” of 15 years needed to be transformed back into a “house.” Because we were moving out of state, minimizing was a priority. Boy that garage sale was a doosy! The only thing I regret is not getting rid of more things at that sale.
Our house was far from perfect. We had to repaint nearly EVERY room. My daughter’s ocean-themed room that I worked on every evening for weeks had to be neutralized, including the glowing stars on the ceiling. I have fond memories lying in bed with her enjoying the big dipper that I attempted to replicate. Next room…why oh why did I agree to that bright orange bathroom? I finally threw in the towel after I neutralized the Grinch-green closet…was painting that ceiling really necessary? It was clearly time to call in the pros.
We hired a wonderful painter who was tall enough to paint the ceiling without using a ladder. Not only was his work better, my blood pressure normalized. Our giant painter was WORTH EVERY PENNY! It felt like a lifetime had passed but once the painting was complete, we were finally ready to list our home. Colorado was calling our name.
Our first Open House was both exciting and nerve wracking. Will anyone show up? Will they look through my cabinets? Will they think it was ugly? Did I remember to hide the dog dish? Or will we have an offer!?? Upon our arrival, we were informed of a successful open house but no offers, drats!
We managed to survive the untimely showings even with our salivating 75-pound German Shepherd and hyper Border Collie sharing the back seat as we drove around the neighborhood. Luckily, both kids were in college. When all was said and done, our preparation paid off and we even ended up with competing offers which resulted in a top dollar sale. I can honestly attribute our success to the following:
1. We had a great agent
2. We depersonalized and neutralized
3. We were willing to work hard but knew when it was time to call in the pros
4. We staged our home for the buyer demographic
So when you hire me as your home stager, rest assured that I will bring my A-game cause I've “been there, done that!” I will happily guide you through the steps to have a successful sale.
Janice Fiola is the owner of Enhancement Home Staging in Monument, Colorado 719-394-8869: enhancementhomestaging@gmail.com : www.enhancementhomestaging.com