We have discussed this issue many times before, but given the following case study from a consult this week, it obviously bears repeating.
Consider this $3 "million baby" in one of the fancier Wall Street suburbs around here -
The Foyer --- or Rotunda --- or Reception Room --- it's the room all the others are "off" so to speak, useful if you're playing Clue in 3D. That's faux painting on the walls - a brick, plaster and red ivy treatment.
Here's the Grand Living Room (replete with working pipe organ)
Faux painted silk wall treatments are in every nook and cranny. There's gorgeous antique furniture and every horizontal surface is jam-packed with marvellous groupings of interesting collectibles - be it mercury glass, silver, Clarice Clift pottery, depression glass... all the trappings of a well-established, wealthy family. Did I mention that the great Caruso sang in this living room?
And it goes on - pool with tea house, terraced Italianate gardens (sans statuary, presumably stored for the winter), library with wine seller, family with en suite full bath (er... not sure) very fun old style kitchen with all new, state of the art Viking appliances....
Yet, they haven't had any showings in 6 months. Why d'you think?
Sure, price. The market isn't what it was, but actually this home comps out well at that number.
My diagnosis is that the home is very specific. It's an Italianate manor, more Umbrian than Tuscan, and it has only 3 bedrooms on the 2nd floor. There's another on the first and a 5th in the basement that works beatifully as a guest suite, and has a lovely view. (The house was built into a hillside.)
We're looking for a particular buyer. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack - it's doable, don't get me wrong, but it's not fast.
Our profile is a family of 3 - 4 people or less, who entertain a lot, who want to listen or play lots of organ music in their own living room and who have long loved all things European. They need to have honey-mooned in Italy, or somewhere in Bavaria perhaps, or have hailed from those parts. They need to be not afraid of quirky old houses with character. They need to be able to play in their albeit private FRONT yard.
This is not "everyone" or "anyone" that we're looking for.
Plus, the home is competing with new construction in this price range. How many new millionaires are prepared to substitue new for character?
I believe in congruent staging. A Tudor needs to be accessorized with colors and shapes that resonate with that overall period style. Arts and Crafts homes also have their own color palette, and seem to look best with rather linear pieces, if not actually Stickley-esque stuff. But remember we are STAGING, not DESIGNING. So, we want to the spaces to "lightly seasoned" with period style, not be text-book replicas, if the home is going to appeal to the widest number of people.
In the house above, I believe all the horizontal surfaces are going to have to be cleared and then sparsely accessorized to suggest, not show, the home's provenance. This is a grand home, and it would be an honor for someone to have the fun of owning it for a while. We'll need to address lighting, the musty old smell, and.... sizzle up the copy on the MLS.... serve pasta at the Brokers Open when it comes back on the market...
What would you all do?
A classically designed 5 BR home, furnished with a sleek "Restoration Hardware" look would certainly be the faster, easier sale... but who does that serve.
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Juliet Johnson Staging serves the luxury real estate market of Essex, Union and Morris Counties of New Jersey. Staging homes for sale, styling each space with rental items on varying time intervals, so as to best illustrate a home's potential. We are based in Short Hills, NJ. To maximize the opportunity with your home, please call (973) 477-7000 to schedule an appointment.
