Val Allocco, HSE; ASHSR - Home Stager for Manhattan, Brooklyn & Long Island

I absolutely love preparing the Home Consultation Report; it is such a simple and effective tool to employ when selling a house. The best news is that our Staged 2 Sell NY report is completely affordable for anyone who might be putting their house on the market in Nassau County, Suffolk County, Queens, Brooklyn or Manhattan, NY. When the suggestions/directions are followed properly, the result can be the same as if you hired a Home Stager to do the work for you.

So, you may ask, what exactly is this report and what will a Home Consultation Report cover?

The Staged 2 Sell NY Comprehensive Home Staging Report begins curbside where it addresses the overall ‘curb appeal' of the property. Special attention is given to the exterior appearance and entry. Aside from flower beds being weed-free, bushes trimmed, the lawn mowed and any debris (leaves, twigs, litter) removed, the front door should have a fresh coat of paint, shiny hardware and a welcoming wreath. Seasonal flowers (that are planted in containers) at the entry help to infuse some color and warmth. A new ‘welcome' mat will add to the appeal. The driveway might benefit from a top-coat of asphalt or fresh stones. In addition, we make sure that there is adequate outdoor lighting and that light fixtures are updated, shiny and clean.

Once inside, each room is assessed for color, focal points and/or architectural features, furniture placement, traffic flow, flooring and lighting. Just a word about lighting here: natural light is best and all windows need to be super-clean and free from heavy window treatments. The assessment includes every area of the home and special attention is paid to closets, attics, garages and basements because those are places where clutter tends to accumulate. Prospective buyers want to see that there is ample storage for all of their 'stuff'!

Many times while giving the consultation, and always with the seller's permission, we might begin to move some furniture and/or remove some of the accessories. By doing this, the homeowner can begin to see how small changes can result in a completely different look - one that enhances the room's positive qualities. It is usually at this point that the client "gets it" and becomes excited about the changes that we are making. It is always gratifying to watch their excitement build. We often hear the seller remark "I never would have thought to do that...the room looks so much better!"

Depending on the size of the house, the walk-through generally lasts 1 ½ to 2 hours. At Staged 2 Sell NY the cost for the Consultation is purposely kept low so that the service can be affordable to all. Many times the Realtor will "gift" the report to their client as part of their service and we always give the agent a 20% discount when they pay for the Report. As one realtor recently told me, "I would rather invest money in a comprehensive report that will help the seller to prepare the house for sale than spend money on newspaper ads".

Within 24 hours of the Home Consultation, we e-mail the client and realtor a detailed report that is broken down by room/area and addresses each necessary change in priority order. Think of it as a ‘blueprint' for the seller with which they can do all, or part, of the staging themselves, or we can do some of all of the work for them.

I can tell you that this report is extremely effective in helping the house to sell more quickly and for a higher price than if left ‘unstaged'. We have had amazing results from homes that have been prepared for market by this method. When the seller understands and follows the Consultation Report, the results are truly amazing!

Val Allocco, a certified (HSE), professional Home Stager, is the founder & owner of Staged 2 Sell NY which was established in early 2006 and serves all of Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk Counties) as well as the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. She is also the Metro New York Chapter President of ASHSR (American Society of Home Stagers and Redesigners).

Val has taught Adult Education courses on "Staging Your Home To Sell" and has also been a featured speaker at numerous Home Selling Seminars on, and around, Long Island. She is available for seminars and other real estate related presentations and can be reached at 516-982-2671.

Please visit www.staged2sellny.com for more information and examples of our work.

For those who are looking to sell a "Vacant" or Newly Constructed House, here in New York and on Long Island, here is some pertinent information regarding Home Staging and Rental furniture vs. Purchased home furnishings:

When I visit a newly constructed or vacant house for the purpose of providing a proposal for staging with rented furniture, I begin by touring the house and taking pictures of the rooms that need to be staged. Normally, only the impact rooms (Entry, Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen and Great Room or Family Room) need to be furnished in order for buyers to see the purpose and potential of each room and have a point of reference as to what size furnishings the room can hold. In the case of older houses, however, many times the bedrooms are very small and it is difficult to visualize the size and amount of furniture that the room can hold. In those cases, I always suggest that at least the Master Bedroom be staged with a Queen-sized bed and dresser or chest of drawers. As you can see in the photo below of a house that I staged in Oyster Bay, LI, a staged room actually shows larger than if left empty!

Once I return to the office, I download the photos and begin planning what each room will require in order to highlight the architecture and focal points of the space. A lot of care and thought go into this process; not only do I need to choose unique and appropriate furnishings, but I need to be mindful of the cost for each. I am able to ‘shop' for the most competitive pricing because I work with all three big rental companies in the tri-state area.

When all the necessary furnishings have been chosen, I present the client with a written proposal which details each piece of furniture and the monthly rental cost per item. State tax and Damage Waiver fees are added to the overall monthly fee, as well as a one-time delivery/set up/pick up fee. The total monthly cost to rent furniture is usually a bit of a jolt for most clients because they find it hard to believe how all those small ‘per item' monthly rental fees can add up!

I realize that the monthly furniture rental fees might have a little bit of 'sticker shock' for some people, and that is understandable. The good news is that the rental fees are paid on a monthly basis and can be charged to a major credit card. What I ask my clients to take into consideration is what the overall investment will be and then to think about how much the first, or next price reduction on the house will be (not to mention that after the first few weeks on the market, a house becomes 'market worn' and will receive fewer showings by other agents).

Then I ask them to consider this: More than 80% of today's home buyers start their search online and if the photos depict empty rooms, or even worse show only exterior pictures of a house, chances are that the viewer will move on to the next listing. The most memorable houses are those that make an eye-catching impression which entices buyers' interest. Staged rooms help buyers to visualize the true potential of the house. When buyers tour the house, rooms that are strategically furnished help them to connect to the home on a personal and emotional level; they will remember that house throughout the home searching process. Remember that once a potential buyer has toured a home and has not made the necessary connection to it, you have lost that 'audience'....they will not come back again because they have already formed a negative opinion.

The newly constructed houses of today's market offer all kinds of amenities and quality craftsmanship and yet they are difficult to sell...just look at how many there are on MLS in Nassau and Suffolk Counties here on Long Island!

When a vacant, newly constructed house is staged, potential buyers are more apt to connect to the home on a more personal level; they can actually envision themselves living there! As part of my staging, I always include specific 'props' for different rooms, such as an open book with a pair of reading glasses perched on top and strategically placed on a coffee table in the family room...or faux vegetables in a bowl next to an open cookbook in the 'prep' area of the kitchen...or an 'interrupted' game of Scrabble in the den. Without being too 'viewer specific' (everyone prepares meals, plays games and reads books), I want the buyers to see that this could be 'their' room...'their' HOME! It is that connection that will ultimately sell your house!

When it comes to the builders, if the idea of spending a few thousand dollars on rental furniture does not strike them as a good business investment, I tell them that perhaps they might want to consider doing what some other Long Island builders have done, and that is to buy the furniture and then either reuse it in other models or sell it with the house (quite often the buyer loves the way the room looks and asks if they can purchase some, or all of the furniture). The overall cost to purchase the furnishings usually works out to be in the same ballpark as 3 months rental fees for the same amount of furniture and accessories.

Val Allocco, a certified (HSE), professional Home Stager, is the founder & owner of Staged 2 Sell NY which was established in early 2006 and serves all of Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk Counties) as well as the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. She is also the Metro New York Chapter President of ASHSR (American Society of Home Stagers and Redesigners).

Val has taught Adult Education courses on "Staging Your Home To Sell" and has also been a featured speaker at numerous Home Selling Seminars on, and around, Long Island. She is available for seminars and other real estate related presentations and can be reached at 516-982-2671.

Please visit www.staged2sellny.com for more information and examples of our work.

I have been working with builders of newly-constructed homes for some time now. The houses that are being built in Nassau and Suffolk counties here on Long Island are spectacular! They have wainscoting on the walls, tongue-n-groove moldings, tray ceilings, spa-like baths, top of the line stainless steel appliances and a myriad of other special features. Once completed, the house is only lacking one thing and that is ‘personalized appeal' which is achieved through Home Staging. This specialized form of staging creates an environment which is specific to the buyer and one where they can identify themselves with the house and actually envision themselves living there!

For decades now, builders have employed a special selling technique in the form of Model Homes and have paid large sums to Interior Designers to come in and furnish every room in order to give the house a ‘home like' feel. Today's builders, however, have discovered that the same effect can be achieved through Home Staging, but at a fraction of the cost!

Some builders prefer to stage only the ‘impact rooms' such as the Entry, Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen and Great Room (usually combined). They would rather rent furniture and have the Stager supply the accessories as opposed to purchasing the furnishings. For builders who can recycle the furnishings in their other newly-constructed houses, it is more cost-effective to buy everything and either use it again in another house, or let the home buyer purchase whatever might appeal to them. At Staged 2 Sell NY, we are adaptable and can either stage all the rooms or a portion of such. We always work within the seller's budget.

I recently staged just such a Model Home in Hauppauge, NY (Suffolk County) for Forestbrook Homes of St. James. The house is the model for a new community call "Horseshoe Estates" and is located off Blydenburg Road, which is just minutes from the L.I. Expressway. This house is ideally located - even the airport is within a few miles! This builder creates quality homes and every detail has been attended to.

It was the builder's decision to purchase the furnishings as opposed to renting. This was a very wise decision on his part because for less than $10,000, he was able to buy all the furniture and accessories (including area rugs, artwork, window treatments, lamps, and all other props) for those impact rooms AND pay for the staging! When I shopped, each piece of furniture and every other item were specifically chosen not only for this house, but also for his other houses, many of which are much larger with substantially higher ceilings; this way he can choose to use everything in another Model or just sell part, or all, with the house.

I would like to show you photos of each staged room; by the way, I always stage at least one bathroom and it is usually the ‘Powder Room' on the main floor.

These new houses are being billed as "This NEW Luxury Community offers two standing model homes as well as 13 additional places to build your own! Our models feature full brick fronts. 5/6 bedrooms, 3/4.5 baths, 2 car garage,9 ft first floor ceilings, hardwood flooring,custom trim and molding,designer kitchen cabinetry,professional appliances,fireplace,full basement, in-ground sprinklers (front), central alarm, central air conditioning and central vacuum systems. Beautiful paver driveway and walkways! This prestigious Community backs the Hauppauge Hamlet Golf Course! LOW,LOW TAXES of $9996.00! Visit our current model located on lot#9! Directions - Rt 347 East to Mt. Pleasant Rd. South - turns into Blydenburgh Rd. - Entry to complex on Left!

For more information or a showing, please contact the realtor, Catherine Lindstadt of Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate of Northport, NY @631-266-6113. Catherine and I will be co-hosting Open Houses in September, so please call her for more information.

Val Allocco, a certified (HSE), professional Home Stager, is the founder & owner of Staged 2 Sell NY which was established in early 2006 and serves all of Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk Counties) as well as the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. She is also the Metro New York Chapter President of ASHSR (American Society of Home Stagers and Redesigners).

Val has taught Adult Education courses on "Staging Your Home To Sell" and has also been a featured speaker at numerous Home Selling Seminars on, and around, Long Island. She is available for seminars and other real estate related presentations and can be reached at 516-982-2671.

Please visit www.staged2sellny.com for more information and examples of our work.

I recently staged a vacant Circa 1600's house on the North Shore of Long Island. Although I worked up a detailed proposal for rental furniture befitting that style of home, the owner/investor opted to purchase the furniture instead of paying the approximately $1200 per month rental fees for living room, bedroom, kitchen and library furniture.

I must tell you that I was somewhat skeptical as to what it would cost to buy all of that furniture, but I had a rare afternoon of ‘freedom' and was excited to see if we could pull this off!

The client and I went to a long ‘corridor' of furniture stores which is located here on Long Island. We began our search at "Raymour and Flanagans", but found that the furniture on display was not appropriate for this type of home and it was a little 'pricey'. We went to Bob's Discount Furniture and ‘hit a home run'! We found an 8 piece bedroom set complete with queen sized sleigh bed for $999; a 7 piece living room ensemble (with 2 Tiffany-styled lamps) for $1499, and a kitchen table (marble and glass) with 4 wrought iron chairs for $499. All that we needed was a loveseat and chair for the library.

While my client was handling the financial and delivery portion of the sale, I went out to other stores in search of an appropriate loveseat and upholstered chair. It was quite by accident that I discovered a perfect chair as I was leaving the first store. It was marked down to $399, it was striped and I loved it! I made a note of the style number and price and drove to a furniture store called "The Place". I was approached by a saleswoman who proved to be very helpful in narrowing down the choices to those items that fit my needs. I don't think that it took more than 5 minutes to find exactly what I was looking for. I called my client who had just left "Bob's" and asked him to come over and look at the loveseat.

When my client saw the loveseat, he eagerly approved and paid the $379 that it was marked down to. Since the ensemble contained 2 striped pillows that looked very much like the fabric of that $399 chair, I asked if we could take one of the pillows with us. The saleslady said that it would be fine, and when the order paperwork was complete, the client and I drove over to the store where I had discovered the chair. As soon as we walked in, I could see that it was a perfect match, and so that became the final purchase of the day.

All totaled, with delivery and tax, my client spent approximately $4500 and the furniture is his to use in other houses. It took us about 2 hours to chose and buy all of the furniture.

Since my design tastes always ran toward traditional, I had plenty of accessories of my own that would be perfect for this house. I also had 8 chairs that I ‘rescued' from a Chinese Restaurant that was being demolished. Once they were reconditioned and recovered, they were just what I needed for the dining room. There was only one ‘glitch' with the newly purchased furnishings and that was because the doorway to the library was very narrow and the loveseat would not fit through it. I had an antique loveseat in my possession that I no longer use, and even though it wasn't what I originally wanted in that room, it still worked AND it fit through the doorway! We actually ended up using the loveseat in a ‘family room' located off the kitchen. It was never my intention to stage that room, however once the loveseat was placed there, I just had to give the room a complete staging! I needed to ‘borrow' quite a few things from my own home, but the room really came together and actually became one of my favorite rooms in the house!

Here are some Before and After photos - the last picture is from the 'family room':

Staged 2 Sell NY specializes in Vacant House Staging. Call today and let us 'set the stage' for your successful sale!