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How to make your house look bigger, sell faster
By Gretchen McKay
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
This article was featured in the Ventura County Star’s
October 1st, 2006 issue as the front page article of
the Star Homes section.
Interior Designer, Nanette Catarinella, is quoted as
saying, “What helps to sell a home quickly and
for top dollar is in knowing how to accentuate its best
features and downplay its flaws. It’s all about
understanding the psychology of what makes a buyer fall
in love with a house. You need to downplay the homeowner’s
personality and neutralize the décor.”
And she adds, “Minor cosmetic updating rather
than a major remodel often makes enough difference in
terms of increasing visual appeal.” Catarinella
charges $175-$200 per hour for the initial consultation,
plus $75-$100 per hour for staging.
The article goes on to say that “Staging is not
really new; for years good Realtors have instructed
their clients to de-clutter and clean their homes. But
staging as a separate service has really come into its
own in the past few years. |
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her personal interior designer,
Nate Berkus, helped a couple "stage"
their home for sale. He offered some important
advice: |
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| Tip
#6: Upgrade using inexpensive, high-quality materials |
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The fireplace in Zigi and Yusef's living room
was surrounded by ceramic tile. Nate says you
can upgrade details like this for a small amount
of money.
Nate found a cream-colored marble tile at Lowe's
that only cost $215 to complete the fireplace.
Nate shows Zigi how to tile the fireplace herself.
"The real estate listing can say natural
stone surround," Nate says.
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Nate also hangs two wood panels he found in the garage
to call more attention to the new look of the fireplace.
To complete the room, Nate adds new drapes from Lowe's
to accentuate the high ceilings, three lamps, two chairs
and some throw pillows to the room for a grand total
of $984.16. |
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| Tip
#7: Paint walls a warm, inviting color |
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Zigi and Yusef used to have bright-colored walls,
but decided to tone it down with white once they
decided to sell.
Despite what they had been told, white is definitely
not everybody's color. "White is not a neutral,"
Nate says. "In fact, it makes every crack,
every imperfection in the walls stand out."
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| Nate immediately warms up the color
of all the walls in the house with Lowe's American Tradition
Satin paint in Warm Buff for a total of $132. "This
is a much warmer feeling in the house," Nate says.
"And I think that's what you want a prospective
buyer to think." |
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