Fireplaces are a great feature

Fireplaces are on many buyers want list. Here are a few tips for staging a fireplace.  Make sure the fireplace is clean and in good repair.  Remove the dated old brass screen. Replace with a new screen or paint the screen black.  Make the fireplace the focal point of the room.  Don't block it with furniture.

Be careful with pictures on virtual tours

I heard a frightening thing from Carey Valentine at W. J. Bradley Mortage the other day.  The bad guys are always one step ahead of us.  Our virtual tours have become a shopping cart for predators.  Just think about it our tours show childrens rooms.  It is easy to determine if its a boy room or girls appoximate age and any interests the child may have by the decor.  It is also popular to decorate the walls with the childs name.  Now the person has the sex, age , address and school information from the internet site.

If you are going to list your house or you are a realtor think about depersonalizing the childs room.  Remove photos and names from the walls on your virtual tours.  Really think about what kind of information can be gathered from these photo tours.  We need to protect ourselves and our clients.

Staging includes the fridge

When staging your house do not forget to declutter the refrigerator.  Clean off the top and remove all the papers and clutter from the front of the fridge. 

We get so used to seeing it that we do not notice it but a buyer will notice it.

The key to staging is clutter control

When staging a house in preparation for listing the most important thing is CLUTTER CONTROL.  The less clutter there is the bigger and brighter the house will seem. You are preparing to move so box up your things and it will be easier to move when the time comes.