Getting to know the colour BLUE

How well do you know BLUE?

• Associated with spirituality
• Represents wisdom, trust, loyality
• Lighter shades are tranquil and passive
• Brighter shades are stimulating
• Darker shades are moody and full of depth
• Positive feelings: Clean, crisp & airy, people are know to be less aggressive or violent when surrounded by this colour so its popular in prisons
• Medical: Lowers heard rate, pulse rate & breathing rate. Has a cooling effect in hot or humid weather. Preference for blue tends to develop as people mature due to a yellowing in the eye lens that requires balancing.
• Cultural: in western countries blue has remained a favorite colour for decades.
• Places to use: Bedrooms & Bathrooms
• Places not to use: No where!
  

Blue is an excellent colour to use in your home. Its relaxing, cool, tranquil and can be stimulating if you choose the right colour. I absolutely love BLUE in bathrooms & bedrooms places where you want to feel relaxed and not too stimulated.

Do you have blue is your home if so where let us know were interested to see who has blue and where.

-Kristy

Fall Decorating

Its that time again, Fall. When the nights get cooler and the days get shorter we know that the time is here. Decorating your home in the fall will not only make your home feel warm, cozy and inviting but it will ease you into the winter months.
No matter what style or decor your home has you can always add a few fall decorating elements to warm it up. What are items can you use to decorate your home? here are a few ideas.
-Blankets & Throw pillows in earthy tones.
-Firewood +/- Fire
-Candles
-Branches or trees
-Some greenery (green or with fall colours)
-Pumpkins (does not have to be a jack-o-lantern)
-Books
-Leather accessories or furniture pieces

and more there are endless possibilities. Take a few elements you have around the home bring them out and have them as your fall features.

Play, have fun & decorate

Agents do you know how to sell home staging?

Telling your clients that you work with a home stager should make them jump for joy! but as a matter of fact some are quite scared and even may put up a fight to bring one in....why is that?
I mentioned earlier that home owners are very protective as well as sensitive about their homes. They frequently confuse a home stager with an interior decorator, WE ARE NOT (we may have credentials as a decorator but that is a bonus, decorating has NOTHING to do with staging)
Since sellers confuse staging with decorating they worry that the stager will be critical of their belongings.

As a professional home stager we will NEVER criticize someones decor no matter what it is like. The whole home could be decked out in Christmas decorations all year round because it's their favorite time of year, well that is great all the power to them! but when it comes to selling a home it becomes a PRODUCT this is what we need to convey to every home owner, to make their home compete in the market it must become a house.

Now, what do you tell your clients about home staging?
well first of all you need to decide who, when, and why you will be providing this service to your clients. Hear are a few options:
- Some agents will choose to stage 100% of all of their listings no matter what the price, condition, location, or willingness of the owners are to participate.
- Stage only homes over a certain price range
- Stage only ugly homes
- Stage 90% of their listings
- Use "Basic package" for homes $XXX and the "Enhanced package" for home over $XXX
- Stage only if the owners request it
ETC their are a million possibilities to how and why you should choose to stage a home. The choice is ultimately up to you but this is how you can sell home staging so it works for you, your clients to the maximum potential.

I suggest you incorporate home staging to 100% of your listings, first of all what do you have to lose? You will make more money by selling faster for top dollar, you will make your clients more money by selling for top dollar and they will love you for ever for that, you will show your clients that you are a modern day real estate professional who keeps up with the changing times by providing them with top notch services.

So lets assume you choose to use home staging on 90-100% of your listings now what do you tell your clients? Tell them the truth!
Tell them that you are dedicated to getting them the best price for their home as well as doing it in a timely manor. Tell them that you use home staging on ALL of your listings no matter how they are decorated (this will ease your clients mind that you are not "singling" them out because of "poor decor"). Inform your clients that home staging has been proven to work and by using this in your marketing plan you are better than all other agents out their (Especially against the ones that don't use home staging or don't use it often)

We all know that times change and we need to adapt. We are in the era of social networking with twitter, blogging, facebook and more. Home Staging is like home inspections, when they first came out people did not see the point now it's necessary to have a home inspector with all home purchases, home staging is obtaining that necessity as well so why not start before EVERYONE else does it. You will have developed a great relationship with your home stager and be on their top list.

If you are a dedicated real estate professional obtain a home stager and use them frequently this will free up some time for you to do your job as a realtor and in turn not only providing top notch service to your clients but also rewarding them and yourself with an appropriate sale price in the end!

Help your clients hold on to their equity in their home once you explain this they will thank you for your effort and once it becomes a reality you will have their trust, support and recommendation to their friends and family written in stone! Home staging is an invaluable tool that you can easily use for your clients.

Happy Staging.

Attention REALTORS do you know how to use Home Staging properly?

It has come to my attention that many real estate agents do not really know how home staging can benefit them especially if the market is considered a "sellers" market where homes are not having a problem getting the SOLD sign up quickly.

"98% of Realtors perceive staging as having value, yet only 20% use it."

So why is that? let's discuss the importance of staging no matter what market and how you can use staging from a professional to make you money....

HOT markets

In a market like this home buyers buy the home that they are attracted to the most and FAST. They even sometimes put in offers OVER asking price to ensure that they get that home over anyone else. Now if someone is willing to pay OVER asking price for a home in the first place they why bother staging it?

Home staging does not cost a lot to provide for your clients with most companies in Ottawa you'll be looking to pay around $200 for a 2hr consultation. With home staginging we are appealing to the most amount of buyers in the least amount of time. When we appeal to the most amount of people in a sellers market this will stimulate the likelihood of a bidding war which is where you and your client can make a large profit on their home. I have never walked into a home and said this is so perfect it does not need to be staged! EVERY single home needs some sort of tweaking here and there whether its moving furniture to improve on traffic flow, removing a few decorative pieces that are distractions or even recapping how the home should be presented on show days. Since home staging is such a minor cost with greater benefits it should become part of your marketing plan for ALL of your listings. Considering that the statistics prove that home staging will cut back listing time as much as 50% of more and typically for more money then what as an agent do you have to lose by providing this top notch service to your clients?

Slow Market

We just came out of a slow market here in Ottawa. I had frequent calls from agents during this time because they knew that home staging is very important when their home is competing against 10 others in that location with the same features. Home staging in a slow market will again appeal to the most amount of buyers in the least amount of time but in this situation instead of bidding wars (which can still happen) you are more likely to sell faster than the rest of the competition and also hold onto your list price rather than do a price reduction.

Why Use Home Staging on All Listing Properties (Recap)

-Affordable: budget this into your marketing plan and buyers will be thank full that you have an elite program geared to get their home sold as fast as possible for the most amount of money.

-We're the "polite badguys": Many home owners are fearful that their furnishings will be criticized and judged so this is a VERY sensitive topic for most home owners. Let a professional home stager explain the importance of getting their home ready to sell in a way that appeals to the most amount of people in the least amount of time and why we are doing it. Don't put yourself in a position of potentially offend your clients.

-We ensure the best results: Our packages are not only affordable but they are designed to ensure the best end result leaving you more time to focus on your client and not the preparing of the home.

-We know what sells: No matter what market we are dealing with we need to put our best home forward! We will be able to assist clients with getting the home "move in ready" because 63% of buyers are willing to spend more money on a house that is in great condition over one that needs work.

-We save you time: You are very busy so free up some time by allowing us to keep the project of getting your clients home ready for sale. We keep your clients motivated and on track to obtain the best end result.

-We save you and your client money: As an agent we save you money by reducing the time on the market so your advertising costs are lower and your client will not have to pay their mortgage for a longer period of time by selling faster.

Remember even if the home is considered "attractive" or "well decorated" I can guarantee that I'll find something that will need to be addressed that will improve the likelihood of selling even faster and for top dollar.

if you have any questions on home staging please contact me for a FREE presentation.

Happy Staging

Purple House Update.....

Well it's been officially 1 week and the "Purple House Transformation" is taking way nicely. We have been with out Internet for the past week and that has put us out of the loop quite a bit. But it did allow us to focus 100% of our attention to getting this purple house transformed!

What's been done so far? Well....
The living room has had it's vertical blinds removed, and 4 coats of "Brazil Nut" applied to each purple wall. The purple trim around the patio door and window has been painted (again with 4-6 coats of paint) with "Crisp Linen". We also have some pieces of furniture and art taking place on finished walls. Since the dining and living is essentially one space I have chosen to have the same drapes for both spaces.

The kitchen's older cabinetry is 1/2 painted (white) with the other doors on it's way....The eating nook has had it's pine wood wainscoting painted a white with "Tibetan Orange" on the top as a POP of colour with in this home. The counter top has been purchased but not installed yet and the brick walls are being 1/2 ripped out and 1/2 painted. (due to time constraints and budgeting we have decided to keep the original kitchen and just spruce it up with easy fixes ANYONE can apply to their own home for sale or for living)

The master bedroom is finished with an accent wall in a turquoise that was pulled out from a favourite painting of elephants running in the African desert with dust being kicked up into a turquoise sky. The bedding is a chocolate colour with minor detailing to it in tan. This space is peaceful and a great bed time retreat.

As you can see lots has been done in the past week and I'm sure as you can imagine much more needs to be done, finish the kitchen cabinetry, paint the sitting room, remove wall paper and paint in the guest bedroom, set up office, replace ALL electrical switches and outlets etc.

so with time and persistence this home will be finished hopefully by the end of September for sanity's sake! lol it's a great home, great location and great spaces.

After photo's will be posted once the whole home is done to leave you in suspense!
Cheers

Purple House TRANSFORMATION commencing

Have you heard of my "purple house project?" well the transformation of this deep dark purple house is about to commence. All the purple house before pictures can be viewed on my FACEBOOK page (click HERE for a direct link).
First observation.
When you drive up to this home it looks like a stacked deck of cards, the garage on the bottom with two more levels directly above it. After parking I walked up the side steps to the door located on the right and a dark blue door welcomed me.
Entering the home.....WOW DARK PURPLE EVERYWHERE......I though the owners said decorating in 2008! Entrance, Living Room, Dining Room, All Hallways, All Bathrooms, TRIM, ceilings, and i would not be surprised if the floor is purple too......oh wait....it is! PURPLE CARPET!
To be honest it is a very nice colour of purple but it is used inappropriately. A dark colour should not be used in every square inch of any room. Why? its too dark, if you painted every square inch of your home in a dark colour it makes each space feel small, and uninviting.

These clients had their home on the market for 6 months! this is TERRIBLE especially since we are in a "Sellers" market. Homes are flying off the market selling left right and center for top dollar and many times even OVER asking price. This was a great home no structural issues, large rooms, large closets, ensuites, appropriately priced and more. What was the #1 comment on this home? "Its too dark" Home Staging could of fixed this and had the home sold in no time.

Who bought it? someone who knew what potential this home held, someone who can see beyond the dark paint, purple carpets, and very dated kitchen, someone who has a passion for fixing and beautifying homes over and over again.......can you guess who?

This homes transformation will start tomorrow September 4th 2009 and finish October 1st 2009 (not including the flooring this part of the project will happen later on in the year)

Colour Scheme
Colour is the most important aspect to a home, it is a reflection of who the home owners are as well as adds personality and definition to the space. How do you come up with a colour scheme? lots of self exploration and question asking.
- What colours do you like
- What colours do you hate
- Are you keeping resale in mind or will you be staying in this home for a while?
- Is there a style of decor you like? Modern, Traditional, Country, Eclectic, Casual etc
There are many many many questions that a professional colour consultant will ask you and all of them are very important. What is this homes NEW colour scheme?
I like to call this "A Casual Modern Oasis" now what does that mean in paint colours? Let's take a look.Whole Home:
Primary Colour: "Brazil Nut" (A1820) Trim Colour: "Crisp Linen" (A0057)

Main Bathroom: (Photo above)
Primary Colour :"Brazil Nut"
Accent: "Brown Bag" (A1804) New counter top: "Jamocha Granite" from Home Depot.

Choose a primary colour for the MAJORITY of the home. I have chosen "Brazil Nut" this colour will be used as the main colour in all rooms from the living and dining all the way up to the bedrooms. Having one primary colour will allow for a few things 1) it's cheap to buy a 5 gallon vat of it for all areas 2) it is easier to paint corners and and lots of spaces if it's the same colour 3) it allows for the home to be more uniform and cohesive.
So the top lighter colour is "Brazil Nut" in this picture above this is the palate for the main bathroom. I wanted something neutral so I can add and change my colours as frequent as I want through accessories. The darker brown is called "Brown Bag" this will be used on the farthest wall to bring that wall closer in to make the large bathroom more cozy.

Master Bedroom
Primary Colour: "Brazil Nut"
Secondary Colour: " Forrest Glen" (A1243) ......"turquoise like"
Accent Colours: "Chocolate Brown" -Bed Spread & Crisp Linen (A0057) trim

I decided to add a punch of colour in the master bedroom. The neutral wall colour of "Brazil Nut" and the chocolate brown bed sheet set was monochromatic, adding a punch of "Forrest Glen" adds some colour well still feeling refreshing and relaxing.

Guest Bedroom
Primary Colour: "Crisp Linen" (A0057)
Secondary Colour: "Seal Grey" (A2013)
Accent Colour: RED -Fitted Bed sheets

This all ended up the way it is because of the bed sheet colour of RED. I loved this colour and wanted it to be the focal point so I chose the grey for one wall and crisp linen for the majority of the other walls so this red sheet set will POP.
Kitchen
Counter Top: "Mineral Sienna" from Home Depot has orange & grey colours in it.
Primary Colour: White (Cabinetry)
Secondary Colour: "Meadowlark" (A1838) -painted backsplash
Accent Colour: "Tibetan Orange" (UL120-19, Behr) punch of colour in the eating nook.

The kitchen is where I wanted to go really fun and funky, the Tibetan Orange colour will add a strong POP of colour in the eating nook which is located at the end of the kitchen. The cabinetry will be painted white (it is now currently and old wooden colour) with the NEW granite resembling counter top and grey backsplash. This is the one room I am most excited to see upon completion.

NOW that you've see the plan check out the BEFORE photos on my facebook page the like is located above. AFTER photo's will be posted as soon as the job is done.

cheers!