Real Estate
Selling Your Home? Alexandria Home Stager Shares Secrets
A home stager can get your house ready with decluttering tips, decorating with furniture and accent pieces and more.
Alexandria home stager Kate Jackson is busy helping area homeowners prepare their homes for sale by helping with advice about decluttering, paint colors, furnishings and accent pieces, to help present your home in the best light possible to potential buyers. She offered some tips to Patch readers and explains how home staging works, during a recent Q&A:
Q: How did you get into this business?
A: I learned about it by watching HGTV home-renovating shows. I thought it seemed very creative and would be an interesting business to start. My varied work history has allowed me to develop many skills that I have applied. The first 20 years of my career were spent in theater and doing film work, where I came to be involved with the challenges of set design and lighting to create a dramatic mood and ambiance. I have also owned multiple companies that span 25 years involving restaurants, event planning and catering. Successful event planning has to address flow, color and theme continuity, very similar to staging. Through it al,l I have developed quite an eye for balancing shapes, colors and form, to “accentuate the positive.” Staging is really just creating a space where people say: “Wow, I want to buy this one!”
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Q: Where do you get your furniture and accessories from?
A: I source rental furniture from local small businesses in our community. I have gathered a myriad of items that I lease as accessory pieces when I stage properties: Artwork, bedspreads, rugs, glass, lamps, pottery and more.
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Q: Is there a certain style these days that sells homes? If so, what would you call the style?
A: I normally try to create an eclectic style that will match the area, the property and the potential customer. Whether it is contemporary or traditional, it needs to be memorable. It’s always important not to “over-dress it." We are selling the space, not the items in it. We are offering choices as to how each room could be utilized.
Q: Do you consult with the homeowner on the "look" or do they just let you do whatever you want?
A: During the initial consultation, we discuss the appropriate way to move forward on the design and look. With occupied properties, I sometimes have to remind them that this is not how you might live in the house, but how we are going to sell it. I try hard to be tactful. I realize how difficult it can be to have someone comment on your personal living quarters.
Q: What are some of the biggest decorating problems you see when a home isn't staged?
A: To not de-clutter is the biggest issue. People want to see the property, not your “stuff” everywhere. A messy house suggests that their probably isn’t enough room for storage in closets. The walls don’t have to be all white, but you need to choose tones that the majority of people would like: Subtle colors that could blend with their furniture. People want to see a clean, cozy and interesting property that they would feel comfortable calling home.
Q: How much does it cost to stage a home?
A: The initial consultation for vacant properties is $65 in Virginia and $75 in DC or Maryland. The consultation includes touring the house, taking photos and then designing and negotiating furniture rentals. I will have the lease agreement forwarded from the rental company for confirmation.
I will also provide a lease agreement for the accent pieces that I provide for a two-month time period and my staging fee varies with size of the project. We definitely do not have to stage an entire house. The main focus should be the living room, dining room, kitchen, master bedroom and bath and any other space we should feature. I can offer paint recommendations, landscaping suggestions and everything else in between.
The initial active consultation for occupied properties is $150 in Virginia; in DC or Maryland, $165. This includes touring the house and offering room by room suggestions as to how to prep your house to be listed. Many sessions will include moving furniture or accent pieces to be in their proper position. Sessions usually last about two hours depending on the property size. I can offer paint recommendations, landscaping suggestions and everything else in between.
Q: Who pays for staging: Homeowner or real estate agent?
A: I’ve had it work both ways.
Q: Do some buyers want to keep the decor and furniture and does that happen often?
A: Some buyers want to keep purchase items, but they are not for sale. This is my inventory to operate my business; same for the rental company. I will offer to shop for them though.
Q: Do you also decorate homes that aren't up for sale?
A: I have assisted people in their new home purchases as to furniture placement and paint color choices. However, an interior decorator will have more resources to choose from for buying new furniture.
Q: What is your goal when you stage a room?
A: To make it feel warm and cozy. People want to see a very clean and interesting property that they would feel comfortable calling home.
Q: How does staging help sell a home?
A: Some properties will sell without staging, but most need a little lipstick to help create that “wow’ factor. It helps make them feel ready to enjoy their lives and family. That’s very important, to have a clean, safe haven to create new memories.
Q: How does someone hire you and see examples of your work?
A: They can visit my business here on houzz.com.
PHOTOS courtesy of Kate Jackson
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