Since there is so much concern over the housing market here in Volusia county as well as elsewhere our readers will likely be interested in the information and opinions of Mary Rhodes, a professional home stager. Specialists like Rhodes help the homeowner get his or her house into a condition to make it most sale-able in the most affordable manner.
Rhodes says the three most basic principles of home staging are: De-clutter, depersonalize and clean up.
Declutter simply means get rid of things that make the house look cluttered. Here again you might want a disinterested person to tell you what is clutter since we all consider our own clutter as treasure.
Depersonalize means removal of photos, trinkets, collectibles and anything that suggests your personal living style.
In order to minimize labor in de-cluttering and depersonalizing Mrs. Rhodes says that they suggest it be combined wit early packing for your move.
Every effort should be made to make the house Q-tip clean. That means as clean as you can possibly make it.
No doubt many of these things may be emotionally difficult to do since many of your most cherished things must be put into hiding.
Therefore, when doing these things it must be remembered that once you decide to sell your house it is no longer your home it is a product for sale on the market.
Two other items high on the stager’s to do list are: Paint when needed and "curb appeal” where you want the yard to look as good as is practical.
This means cutting the grass, weeding and adding a shrub or two if it will help substantially. Again the help of an outsider can be indispensable.
One of the finer points in home staging is to get the best improvement in home saleability with the least cost.
At this time there are about a dozen home stagers active in this area.
According to data put out by 2004 -2005 stagedtimes .com, the average time to sell a home with the help of a professional home stager was half of what it was without a home stager. Staged homes sold for an average 6.9 percent higher.
This data is three years old. However, it does show that professional help is worth having.