Time and time again this year, we are seeing properties sell very quickly and often for OVER asking price! Those are usually properties where we have been able to consult with sellers early enough in the process to advise on improvements such as paint, flooring, lighting, new surfaces, etc and then take the staging to a level that adds excitement and perceived value to the property.  I call the necessary components for success the 4P’s:

1. Preparation: Clean, of course, but move-in ready and updated, as well.
2. Price: Attractively pricing their Portland property according to the advice of an experienced realtor using recent and neighborhood comps. However, if buyers fall in love with the property you can sometimes surprise even a very experienced broker with clamoring buyers!
3. Presentation: Buyers want properties that capture their imagination and exemplify the lifestyle to which they aspire. Upscale staging is key! Ordinary furniture won’t cut it.  Must look like a model home.
4. Promotion:  Once again, a savvy listing broker who knows how to get the word out to other Portland area brokers and buyers quickly and effectively.

Mid-Century kitchen before Transformation

The kitchen above is an example of a room in a house that we not only staged but provided interior design services to enhance the appeal of the house for today’s buyers. By getting in early in the process, we were able to re-direct the more mainstream approach the sellers we taking with a remodel. We designed a chic and exciting look with quartz countertops, cork flooring, and a fabulous tile backsplash that we directed be taken all the way to the ceiling. This was also extremely cost effective and actually saved the clients thousands of dollars as they had planned to rip out and replace the cabinets. Here is the finished product:

Mid-Century Kitchen after Interior Design and Staging by Transformations

Oh, the best is the results: At last count the sellers received 5 offers in the first 2 weeks after listing, were expecting another 2 offers to come in and those offers had escalated the sales price to over $10,000 over asking!!!  Will do a complete report with photos and offer info on a future blog when the sale is final.

Ask us if you have a Portland property that you are worried about selling quickly. We can help!

We stage houses on a daily basis. It is sometimes easy to forget that these structures have history and people’s lives have been played out within those walls.   This house was home to a family for 35 years – they had it custom built, raised children, enjoyed grandchildren, fed the birds and LIVED there. This year it was time to say “farewell” and it was a wrenching experience for the wife in particular.

I was called in to help them get as big a return as possible to help finance their retirement.  This is what I saw – oh and they wanted it in a hurry. (To see larger please click the image):

The living room Before transformation

Well, I took a deep breath and told the broker, who fortunately already trusted me from previous projects, that it needed a LOT of help to get top dollar. She was on board with it so the first thing was to replace the blue carpet throughout with a more updated choice. Additionally, the window treatments had to go. Third, I selected updated paint colors throughout the home. And finally, new updated but inexpensive light fixtures were chosen to replace the brass ones. The work was done  in about 2 weeks and then we staged the heck out of it!

Staged Living Room After Transformation

To compensate for some remaining dated and taste-specific aspects in the house, we staged it in a very contemporary style which underscored some of the contemporary architectural features including the great ceilings and stone fireplace in the living room.  This is a way of adding instant updates and perceived value by buyers. If the furnishings look upscale, so does the property!

Oh, I almost forgot the master bedroom and bath with wall paper on the walls and rosy pink sinks and bathtub…

Master Bedroom Before Transformation

Master Bath Before: Dark cabinets, pink sinks and wall cabinet

As a stager I learned a long time ago to pick my battles. There was no budget to replace the pink sinks, matching bath tub or brass faucets, so we had to make the best of it. The blue carpet came out and was replaced by neutral vinyl, walls were painted a neutral color and the stained glass wall cabinet was replaced by artwork.

Master Bath After

So we had the dark cabinets painted white, the large hardware removed, new vinyl flooring replaced the blue carpet and  contemporary artwork that tied in the pink fixtures was a lucky find in our inventory.

There will be more Before and After’s in the Portfolio section of the main website where you can see more of the transformation, but cutting to the chase here, this house went pending after only 7 days! It is highly unlikely that would have been the case without the updating and contemporary, upscale staging.

The reluctant seller was effusive which was the best part:

IT LOOKS GORGEOUS!!!  It was actually very therapeutic for me, and I think I’m beginning now to ‘let it go’…..we had almost 35 years of happy happy times there…9 grandchildren know it as Grandma and Grandpa’s place—their haven, the place they celebrate birthdays, graduations, Christmas and so much more.. we even had a wedding there…our 4 kids know it like the back of their hands….one thing that can’t be put in the ad is “Good karma is free, and included in the sale”!!!  The back yard is a bird sanctuary, and we hope the new owners invited all our feathered friends to return…

Anyway, thanks for taking such good care of it—-you cannot know how much it means to have it looks so so wonderful, and so different that I cannot make comparisons…which is a good thing!!   …You can’t know how much it means to ME that you showed such taste and respect for the home we spent more than half our married lives in!!

Well, that brought tears to my eyes!  Sometimes, what we do actually improves peoples’ lives – not just the structures. And that’s enough for me…

Master Bedroom after Transformation

We were privileged to be asked to stage a historic home in Portland’s King Hill neighborhood.  The seller/client has fabulous taste and had done an amazing job on most of the home herself. But she knew there were some holes in the decor that needed to be filled in the right ways. It was a high bar, but we jumped in with all our best creativity and furnishings and here is the result in a virtual tour.

I should be clear that we fully staged the kitchen and nook, family room behind the Sitting Room, Master Bedroom and Bath, Guest Room and bath and the floor vase on the grand staircase and a few other touches elsewhere. We supplemented the sellers’ existing furnishings in a way that it should feel seamless.

Our client is delighted – her comments made our day!

Wow!  You gals both took my breathe away this afternoon when I walked into my beautifully, magically transformed house.
It looks absolutely fantastic!!!!  I am thrilled.  Excellent work, ladies!!!  THANK YOU!!

Before and After photos will be posted as soon as possible.. But for now, hope you enjoy the virtual tour!

And due credit must go to Wendy O’Brien for her contributions as guest designer in elevating the style and substance of the staging.

Living Room staged with a touch of English charm

We recently had the privilege of staging the model home for a new concept development Belford Place. The builder, Eck Construction, Inc,  are leading the trend of smaller housing but with upscale treatments. What was especially exciting was the chance to capture English cottage style after many years of being a confirmed Anglophile.
You can see a virtual tour of the staged model by following this link
Some of the buyer comments were just what we hoped: “So elegant.”  “It seems so much larger than 1240 square feet.”  “Very tranquil.”  “Beautiful and exactly my style.  I could move here this moment!”  “Sophisticated but livable English style.”

Finally my addiction to England has paid off in my passion for home staging!  And I’m off soon for a new dose of inspiration..Stay tuned!

Whew – this year is certainly different from last! When properties are are “Priced and Prepped” meaning prepared smartly and priced right for the market, buyers are snapping them up.

Here’s an example that sold almost instantly. The sellers wisely asked for professional recommendations prior to staging and we gave them suggestions that maximized return and results.

This is a lovely bungalow in the Laurelhust neighborhood which sold in less than 12 hours after it was listed!  The sellers with young children were moving out of the area and realized that the property would market better – and their lives would be easier – if they moved first, then prepped and staged prior to listing.  We recommended changing paint color in dining room and getting a new, updated light fixture. Here are some Before and After shots – you can click on a photo to see it larger:

Dining Room Before was dated and dark.

After staging it now shines!

The living room was very large and thrown a bit off balance by the placement of the fireplace on one end.  There had also been a children’s play area on the same end. We streamlined and spiffed up the space…

The living room Before was awkward - fireplace is to the right in pic

Living Room After is a gracious area for anyone to enjoy.

The kitchen was one of the most impressive transformations!  While another staging company had recommended spending several thousand dollars painting the home’s exterior, we advised that the money would be better spent updating the appliances, painting the wallpaper out, and adding updated hardware to the oak cabinets (a more cost-effective strategy than painting them).  All of these recommendations have a higher ROI (return on investment) than painting the exterior.  The results of our strategy paid off for the sellers!

Kitchen Before Transformation

And voila! A light, bright, up-to-date kitchen!

There is more of this transformation that can be seen in our portfolio on the main website.  The master bedroom, den, and a child’s room all are worth taking a peek..And do remember that staging is a mix of art, science and business. It isn’t exact, but experience in the field counts for a lot and can put money in your pocket!

After a couple years in the doldrums, the real estate market is on the rebound. Not like it used to be but a marked improvement from 2008-10! This month alone we have had 5 of our properties go “sale pending” and the month is only half over!

Here’s a few from this year…Click on photos to see larger image.

Lake Oswego ranch home as it was Before staging

This house sat on the market for a grand total of 592 oops make that 825 days!  When a property is that stale it takes a jolt to get action…
After we staged it, it went pending in 46 days! How’s that for results?

Styled to attract a young buyer after staging

We styled the staging to appeal to young buyers as we decide who the most likely audience is before we stage a property. Sure enough, the buyer is a single woman in her 30′s! It worked.

We next have a house that was the childhood home of a broker friend of ours.  His father had done a great job of updating the bathrooms and painting in current colors, but his furnishings would never attract top dollar for the house. So he hired us.

Living/dining room of 80's house Before staging

We felt this property would appeal to young professional buyers so we expanded on the cool, contemporary architecture with our staging to underscore those elements.

After West Hills split-level home with contemporary staging

The property was listed on Friday night and the seller received 2 offers the next day!  It closed over asking price.

Then we staged a very interesting property in the desirable King’s Heights area of Portland.  This had been an architect’s own home and he had fun with it.  We should all have fun with our homes no matter what anyone else thinks!  This one was a mix of classic egg and dart details, some Swiss chalet touches and mid-Century thrown in for good measure…  Without staging, the disparities might have overpowered the assets for buyers.  Here’s some Before shots – what do you think?

Different styles are more apparent when room is empty

And here's some of the chalet touches

Fireplace end of living room before staging

And here is what we did after.. We tied the disparate styles together with an eclectic design incorporating some whimsy.

Living Room staged with a touch of whimsy

The other end of the living room after staging

From the other side the nook, with kitchen

Master Bedroom evoking a contemporary vibe

And here's the dining room

As you can see it was no mean fete to pull this together and make it believable. But it did garner 5 offers and we felt we helped the cause with our sensitivity to the spirit of the man who obviously loved this house and had fun with it.. We did, too!

Will be posting more projects before too long.. Thanks for stopping by and please let me know if you would like blogs about anything specific..

Ciao for now~

I’m a collector at heart, I confess. I love stuff – pretty stuff, nostalgic stuff, whimsical stuff.  Actually turns out to be a useful trait in building staging inventory!

While clutter is the enemy of staging,  there actually is such a thing as “nice” clutter – even “desirable” clutter!

This room is perfectly composed with collected objects "Great Clutter"

Love the richness of this room-scape!  It’s fascinating and although filled to capacity, not chaotic.

Countering this, is the following example of “bad” clutter

Normally cluttered room: Too many small objects

Sometimes people feel the need to put lots of little, cutesy objects everywhere which just ends up looking messy and uninspired.

And then there are those with no control whatsoever!

And the Ugly Cluttered Room!

So that is ridiculous, right?  But it’s making me think that today’s the day to clear out my walk-in closet and make it into an Oprah closet!

Don’t want to leave you with that image in your head, so here is a soothing, minimalist room to enjoy!

Clean, uncluttered bedroom; Ahhhhhhhhh

Let’s De-Clutter!  And organize our treasures into an inspired design… Let me know what have done to clear away the clutter and let the beauty of your home shine through – and free your mind as well…

Home staging in Portland is back  – the market is heating up and houses are moving again!  This is good for everyone even if you’re not actively selling property.  People are more confident, the banks are lending again and spring is on it’s way…

Dogwood on a spring day

But I digress.. It’s fun to be busy again and Transformations has re-invented what we do and how we stage and it is working!   As I’m so busy staging, there is little time for blogging so I’ll try to keep these short and sweet and get the hang of it. Let me know anytime if you have a question about any aspect of staging – I’m never quite sure what others might be interested in. So please tell me!

Recently we staged a loft in the Pearl for a wonderful physician and his wife who were downsizing.  They are busy people with lots of interests and hadn’t updated the loft when they moved in.  The interior was a mix of comfortable old furniture, some artisan wood furniture, a loom, tons of books, and even a 1930′s vibraphone which he played for me! Gave me goosebumps – sounded amazing.  They had already moved out so there was the usual disarray from moving on top of it. (Please click on photos to view larger)

This Pearl loft had one large open area. The orange walls chopped it up and added to disconnected feeling.

They knew – and their broker concurred – that in the current market they needed to go the extra mile to make the property sell. So the broker, Dianne Rodway of City Properties Group with whom we have had repeated successes, referred them to us and we were off… I had them paint the orange out to a more neutral tan which made the room feel bigger, removed all furniture except we did use the cool coffee table and we staged it in style.

 

After: Main living area in Pearl Loft

Bedroom Before Staging - but after moving!

Here it is after the transformation – love the concrete now against the textured headboard!

Bedroom After

And here are a few more shots of the loft after our staging.. Oh and the Results:  Received an offer 2 days after listing and after a lot of negotiation (great broker!) sold for 96.6% of listing!!    Everyone is delighted.

The kitchen, dining area and an added workspace - very Pearl

Here’s a Before and After of the other end of the living space…

The other end of living area prior to staging

Now the built-ins are smartly showcased

The sellers in this situation placed their trust in their experienced broker and professional staging team.  The process started at the beginning of the year before it was apparent that efforts like this were being rewarded.  But we now know that sellers who hire the pros are seeing it pay rich dividends. It was a pleasure to be a part of this success!

Transformations is now starting our 8th year of staging real estate listings in Portland. Thank you, Portland!!   During that time so much has changed!

When we started in 2003, very few knew what home staging was and most realtors didn’t see the value as they felt properties would sell just fine without it. But one realtor, TC Cairns of RE/MAX, gave us our first shot and it worked – thanks, TC!. We started by working out of our garage and built the stock one piece at a time. Here’s a shot of our first project which was a very white townhouse in Mtn Park… YIKES!  I had a lot to learn…

Transformations' first home staging job in 2003.

And learn I did!  I hired some great people, met great realtors and developed a repertoire of staging styles.  By the time 2006/7 rolled around we became the foremost high-end staging company in Portland, working with many builders such as Renaissance Homes and staging multi-million $ properties every week.  It was fun as growth equals shopping and building the inventory to keep up with demand meant LOTS of shopping!  The fabulous property featured below was built by Eslinger Builders, on Blue Heron Bay in Lake Oswego listed for $2 Million and sold in 30 days!  It was drop-dead gorgeous and so much fun to stage!

This was a $2 million spec house for Eslinger Builers in Lake Oswego. Simply spectacular and fun to stage!

The style at that time was opulent with lots of accessories and no expense was spared.  The houses sold quickly.

Fast forward to 2010.  Buyer sensibilities have changed in the last 2 years with the changed economy.  They now respond to much more streamlined interiors rather than fussy and contemporary has replaced traditional.  So we have changed our design aesthetic with them – our style is now sleek, clean and cool.

Sleek, contemporary staging with organic touches

Fussy is a thing of the past and we couldn’t be happier!  Oh, we still stage in a multitude of styles depending on the type of architecture, target audience and client preferences.  But we are planning to add fresh, fun furnishings to add to the stock and as we get them we will let you peek… A new era of imaginative, yet sophisticated, staging is dawning here in Portland and we are happy to have you along for this leg of the adventure!