The property:
Our client, a realtor had a vacant condo unit in a Dartmouth neighbourhood that she needed to list right away. There was another condo unit in the building that is essentially the same. The other unit was also vacant and had at this point been on the market for over 80 days. The condo unit was a fairly plain unit, carpeted, neutral colours with heavy drapes, and a very outdated chandelier in the dining room. It felt drab, outdated and lifeless. Knowing that staged homes sell for more, and quicker than vacant and unstaged homes Mary knew it needed to be staged so we met to see what we could do to show the property at its best.
The staging solution:
We needed to bring the space to life, but also keeps costs at a minimal. There was one thing that we knew would be worth the money to update – it was the chandelier! We knew changing it out for more modern lighting would make a significant difference in the look and feel of the space. Lighting is such an affordable upgrade that you should always consider when preparing your home for sale. I found this great light at Kent Building Supplies, they have an amazing selection of lights very reasonably priced.
As you can see the lighting makes a significant difference in the space!
We also removed the heavy draping from the windows, and left only the sheers to soften the space and make it brighter. We pulled up old pink carpeting that had been laid over linoleum on the bathroom floor. Over and above that, we made no changes other than staging the unit with furniture and décor in the livingroom, dining/kitchen and bathrooms. These condo units attracted an older generation so we went with a contemporary style.
The Results:
The sellers only had the condo unit for a short period of time after purchasing it earlier in the year when they decided to put it back on the market. The listing went up and the very first viewing brought in an accepted offer in less than one day of the unit being listed. Mary was able to make a profit for the sellers who had decided to sell after only owning it for three and a half months by selling it for $11,000 more than what they paid for it earlier in the year! Mary moved it quickly and got a great deal for the sellers!
After photos by David McLaughlin, David McLaughlin Photographic Services
