Northern Virginia Real Estate and Community News Blog

Selling your home is like being in front of an audience. Staging your home is becoming more important than ever before. Just imagine the first time you walk into a home.  Remember the first impression you have always has something to do with the following 3 Cs: 1. Cleanliness: Having spotless windows, floors and carpets; Detail the refrigerator and pantry: These need to be staged, too. Shelves and drawers need to be clean, and crumb and grunge free. Artfully arrange contents (think still life) and strive for lots of empty space so buyers will think there's room to spare. 2. Clutter-free: clear paper piles on counter tops and tables. Put away magazines with busy covers. If the magazine has a cover like 'Veranda' magazine, fine, but absolutely no celebrity covers, Schwarz said. "If you leave out a People with Kim Kardashian on the cover, the buyers will pick it up and read instead of looking at your house." Make sure books are appropriate. 3. Creating a scene in a buyer's minds is the same as suggestive selling. Help buyers see the good life they will have in the space. Set up a board game in the den. Set the table outside with fun linens and margarita glasses. Think three - When arranging tablescapes, go with three items of three different heights, in a triangle. For instance, a table lamp (tall), a plant (medium), a stack of wooden coasters, (short). Play the angles - Putting beds or armoires at an angle can break up flat lines and aid flow. Try it if a room feels too static. Invite with towels - Tie bath towels (in excellent condition) on towel bars with raffia, tulle or thick ribbons. Hang towels over the edge of the tub, place French soap on them and a clean loofah. Keep towels you actually use hidden. Accessorize the kitchen - Pull decorative accessories away from the walls, about one-third of the way. Don't cram them in the corner. (That's nice when you're cooking, but you're not cooking.) My go-to touch is a white rectangular plate with three pieces of the same fruit spaced evenly on it-- peaches, pears, apples. Put out an open cookbook on an easel. Put away appliances -  Use one large rug rather than a few small ones. Fluff up the bed. The master bed is a major focal point. Stage it with decorative pillows. Put a bottle of champagne on a tray with two glasses on the side table. Need tips  on staging your home, send Bernadette an email at bernie@rmxsells.com.