My good friend Andy Capelluto asked me to enter Realty U's "I Staged It" Photo contest. So I have to submit lots of entries. I'm a real estate agent and not a stager, but I did attend Barb Schwarz ASP Class, which was a blast, and do help clients get their properties ready for sale. This happens to be my own house the way it was in the mls when I bought it (before) and the way it is now prepared for market (after)
This room is part of "the great room" at the rear of the house. The previous owner had a table in this huge room. We usually have two sofas in an L, but for showing and photos for selling, I've removed one of the sofas and rearranged it.
BEFORE
We painted the walls a very light turquoise blue so the millwork around the windows would pop better. We blocked the door to the deck with the big screen TV as there is a second door in the same position to the right of that big window. Two doors were unnecessary. We also removed the "granny" light fixture and replaced it with a more modern one. And we removed the vertical blinds and replaced them with mini blinds.
Here's the result AFTER
Real Estate related posts focusing on the Seattle Area including Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Green Lake, North Seattle and around Lake Washington to the Eastside aka either side of the 520 bridge.
Seattle Historic Homes - Earthwise Salvage
Are You Ready for 2008? Time to post your Stats!
Are you READY for business in 2008?
Staging A Home for Sale - Lakemont in Bellevue, WA
Staging a Townhome for Sale - Bothell, WA
Are you "watching" the market? Or are you "influencing" the market?
When grandchildren come to visit - Kirkland Washington
"Cozy" sells for less - Getting Flat' Ben's Ready for Market
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
Powered by the ActiveRain Real Estate Network
© 2008 ActiveRain Corp. All Rights Reserved
Very nice Ardell! Gorgeous view, love the colours - very sleek....:-) I want your TV!
Well, I do believe you could have a career in design, decorating and staging. You're wonderful!
Ardell, the "After" Effect is certainly amazing. It gives you the feeling of wanting to put your leg up and enjoy the view, while the "Before" area simply felt like it was a "walk through"... nothing special area. Now, you have just framed the heart of the home. Thanks for such an amazing effect.
You've done a terrific job! I love the wall color. It really does accentuate the woodwork. The couch set at an angle is also very effective.
"I'm a real estate agent and not a stager"
Yeah right. I think you might be a little better than the average bear at both.
Steve
Hi ARDELL:) I am loving these pictures - you have done an awesome job. I think I might camoflauge that door a bit more - a ceiling hanging or something? I am just floored - what a difference the befores and afters are! Good luck on the market!
Courtney,
I agree for living here and have considered many things to camoflauge the door. But for selling the house it's probably good that people know there is a door there in case they use the room differently. That's the beauty of "Great Rooms" They are flexible.
I don't have photos of the rest of the Great Room yet, we use it as a music room. More photos to come.
I see that the outside rails are now white, but what happened to the plants? where they changes?
Your friend in Charlottesville!
Charles,
All the decking was whitewashed to make the external appearance of the home larger and wider since it is long and narrow. With brown decking the house looked smaller than with white decking. It was more for curb appeal than view from interior.
The plants are trimmed. When that bush (which is the next door neighbor's bush) has new foliage on top, the new foliage is sometimes red, depending on the season. It was recently trimmed. While the red fire bush is dramatic, it also blocks the lake view.
Remember...staging not decorating. The lake view sells for more than the neighbor's red bush :) What you see should be the highest value features. I know you can't see the lake from this angle, but from the kitchen window and the front porch and the front parlor, the lake disappears when that bush gets high and red topped.
To some extent the red bush is obviously seasonally red then green and not controllable. I likely will attach some planters with red and white flowers to the decking before I'm finished. Not all the way across, but here and there for accent.
Courtney,
Also showing door their is likely a matter of disclosure. You don't want to conceal it entirely and have the new owner not know until after closing that there is a door there.
The paint is beautiful, but how did buyers react if there was no dining area?
Amanda...there is a separate dining area across from the kitchen. The former owner had two huge eating areas and no TV except for in the bedroom of the master suite.
I'm working on the kitchen and will soon post photos of the dining area and kitchen.
Love the transformation - keep them photos coming.
The change is remarkable! Love the deck railing painted white-everything looks crisp and new!