Sejal Parekh

I love tackling homes that have been on the market for awhile. As a seller or listing agent, it can be frustrating because it is hard to identify what is keeping a property on the market. As a stager, I recommend getting a critical pair of eyes in the home. There may be quick fixes that will give the home a newer, more polished feel without having to spend a lot of money. Here are a few problem areas I often see:

1. A bland front porch/entrance. There has to be something eye-catching or minutely remarkable about the front area. Otherwise the home a potential buyer is walking up to is, in their mind, like every other house on the block. Who wants to buy that? They want to buy the "cute" home that they are proud of. This can be done by: re-painting the front door a fresh, colorful shade (I LOVE a deep red color), planting flowers, or simply placing a small terra cotta pot with colorful flowers near the front door. And a new, clean welcome mat. Do not use the sellers old frayed mat, please.

2. Weird after market things the seller did. OK, I should take back the word weird. It's things we all do - add plastic 3M hooks to the bathroom and kitchen, put a cheap full length mirror up in a random spot that we use to get ready, put up a shelf in the laundry room to hold detergent, etc. I have done all those things in my own home. However, when it comes time to sell, a buyer does not want to see these remnants of how we lived our lives in the home. As I always say - think "MODEL HOME". The imaginary families in the model home don't need a under-the-cabinet plastic paper towel dispenser. Their under the cabinets are pristine. They don't need a double stick hook for their plastic bags, they only need a mirror in the bathroom, not behind the bedroom door. So try to get the home to its pristine, imaginary family state. It will give your buyers something to ooh and ahh at.

3. A dirty or not professionally cleaned home. Yes a home on the market is usually clean. But is it impeccably clean and spotless? I highly recommend hiring a professional cleaning service. Tell them the house will be going on sale and the cleaner it is, the better the response will be. They will understand. I often see these areas missed in cleanings: electrical faceplates (both for outlets and for on/off switches), baseboards, small marks on walls, railings, tub grout, tiles, kitchen countertops, etc. These are all areas where a little bit of elbow grease and the right cleaning products (magic eraser, etc) can make a HUGE difference. You'd be surprised at the types of marks I've been able to remove with just soap and warm water and some muscle (much to the amazement of my clients!). We all want to move into that beautifully clean home, so do your buyers.

Sejal Parekh

Founder and Professional Home Stager

Innovae Designs Home Staging

San Francisco Bay Area

www.innovaedesigns.com

www.facebook.com/innovaedesigns

Tel 650.450.3648

Dear sellers and listing agents,

Staging doesn't necessarily mean storing all your furniture and bringing in all new pieces fresh out of the Ethan Allen catalogue. Although doing this would be pretty nice (ok, REALLY nice), often many of the pieces a seller has can be used to create a beautifully staged home. The type of things we stagers like to try and use: anything in good condition or items that can be spruced up or moved around and used in different areas. Couches, coffee tables, side chairs, small side tables, clear glass vases, cute stylish decor items, etc.

Things that usually need to be replaced - dated or faded bedding, old style throw pillows and rugs, those ugly (I'm sorry!) plastic backyard chairs and worn front door mats. I've noticed that after awhile, our belongings start fading but because they're ours and we see them everyday, it's hard to distinguish between things that look nice and things that look, well, not that great. A great way to get some advice on how most efficiently to stage your home is consulting with a local stager. And if you want to do the accessories shopping yourself, they can guide you to the types of pieces you should buy (and where to buy them). Those are my favorites type of projects, basically "coaching" sellers to whip their home into spectacular shape. Our consult packages start from $500.

If you're in the bay area and need some guidance, call us!

Sejal Parekh

Innovae Designs Home Staging

Founder and Professional Home Stager

www.innovaedesigns.com

Tel 650.450.3648

www.facebook.com/innovaedesigns

Staging homes in Mountain View, Los Altos, Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Cupertino, Santa Clara, San Jose, Sunnyvale, Los Gatos and surrounding areas.

Hi folks,

My name is Sejal Parekh and I own Innovae Designs Home Staging, a fabulous home staging and property styling company in Mountain View, CA. I love helping home sellers and real estate agents sell their listings quickly and for top dollar by adding that stylish and airy touch that staging brings. It is so much fun to see buyers walk through and oooh and aaah at the way a well-staged home feels. Staging works, I guarantee it (I think the Men's Warehouse guy says something along those lines).

I wanted to give a quick background on me and my inspiration for becoming a home stager. I have always loved seeing homes - whether touring open houses with my mom or walking through homes of friends and family. Growing up, my family moved about 23 times due to my dad's work in the civil engineering and construction field. The list of places we've lived includes Oklahoma City, Houston, Saudi Arabia, Columbia (South America), upstate New York, Prince Edward Island (Canada), Calgary, Boise, Washington State, Irvine (California), and now Mountain View, California. With all the moving around, I was always impressed by how my mom was able to take a vacant home and make it a home we loved even if for just a short time.

I never thought I would be in the "home" business. After studying Biology and International Studies at UC Irvine, I worked in the medical device field for about six years. I was fortunate to have an opportunity to move to Silicon Valley for work. After about two years in the bay area, I realized I wanted to decorate homes! I had always loved arranging and re-arranging my furniture and had very often helped my mom pick decorations and accessories for our homes. Somehow it all came together when I read about a home staging course offered in San Jose. When we got to state a real client's home for practice, I knew this is what I wanted to do.

I started Innovae Designs Home Staging about 3 years and am proud to have a fantastic staging team. We stage homes throughout the South Bay and Peninsula areas and offer various packages to suit all types of clients. I look forward to sharing my staging and style tips here on ActiveRain!

Sincerely,

Sejal

Sejal Parekh

Founder and Professional Home Stager

Innovae Designs Home Staging

www.innovaedesigns.com

www.facebook.com/innovaedesigns

Tel 650.450.3648