Favorite places to shop for Staging and personal home decor!

     Some of my favorite places to find items for Staging properties as well as decorating my own home are the same stores!  Here are a few of my favorites along with some fun finds at each one. What is your favorite place to shop for things for your own home? What is one fun new item you have shopped for recently?



1. Target-  I think it goes without saying! Target is a fun store

Nate Collection Chevron Urn

2. Ikea-  This is probably one of my favorite stores of all time


Ikea Throw

3.  Home Goods

4. Hobby Lobby- wall clock

Meet local Realtor Roberto Gonzalez

From time to time I would like to feature a Realtor from the 4-state area that I have gotten a chance to meet or work with personally. A few days ago I had the  chance to sit down and talk with Roberto. He was kind enough to sit down with me to talk about Staged Above and how staging can benefit not only the home owner but the Realtor as well. In our brief meeting I learned that Roberto opened up Vince's Pizza here locally back in 1989. He talked with me about the many struggles he faced when he came to Maryland over 20 years ago.  He told me how he persevered with honesty and integrity. I believe that those qualities are also what Roberto brings to the table as a Realtor. He was very encouraging of home staging as well and told me how sellers and realtors will both benefit from having their home staged before it is on the market. It was good to meet you Roberto and I look forward to working with you on your future listings. 

Roberto Gonzalez, Realtor ®

Company: RG Realty Inc. 
Address: 5 South main St, P.O.Box 310, Smithsburg, Md, 21783
Office: 240-329-9454 
Fax: 301-824-3003 
Mobile: 301-991-0207 
Email: Roberto@RGRealtyCorp.com 
Web: http://www.rgonzalez.eliteclubhomes.com 

Professional Information

Accomplished Entrepreneur and a full time Real Estate professional and Investor in Hagerstown with experience in sales that specialize in multi-family, residential and commercial properties with local experience in the acquisitions and dispositions of multi-tenant and single-tenant opportunities, property management, and strategic planning by most standards I have an extensive knowledge and experience in the multi-family Market, Marketed and sold residential and commercial Real Estate and establish affiliations with a variety of Investors, I am a customer driven Realtor dedicated to achieving results and providing exceptional service, has sold over 20 million dollars of Real Estate in both Commercial and Residential Real Estate.

My Client-First Philosophy

There are many qualities and skills that go into being an excellent real estate professional in Frederick- integrity, in-depth community and market knowledge, marketing savvy, effective negotiation skills and a high-quality professional network, all of which are hallmarks of how I work.

That said, in my experience as a Frederick real estate professional, I've also found that providing the very best service is essentially about putting my clients first. This means keeping myself accessible, being a good listener as well as a good communicator, and responding quickly to your needs.

This "client first" philosophy has always been my approach and it requires me to continually improve my skills and ways of doing business. In addition,as an expert in Hagerstown I've found that the latest technologies are enabling me to do everything I've always done, only much more quickly and efficiently. They've also helped me to extend the range of services I provide to my clients.

So when you decide that you'd like to buy or sell a home in the Frederick County, Washington county and surrounding areas. areas, please contact me at 301-991-0207.

Do you Pinterest?

Do you Pinterest? If so come join me? Follow Staged Above on Pinterest

I love Pinterest and Im really loving it for Staging as well.
Check out a few of these beautiful kitchens I  pinned recently.

Source: houzz.com via Staged on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Staged on Pinterest

Source: funnypics221.net16.net via Staged on Pinterest

Source: raveis.com via Staged on Pinterest

Why Stage a Vacant Home?

Before Staging

One question I am asked is "Why Should I Stage a Vacant home?"
It is really hard for buyers to visualize furniture placement in a vacant home. Staging a Vacant home is just as important to staging an occupied home. When Staging a vacant home the 3 most important spaces to Stage are the Kitchen/dining, Living room and Master. If you can not afford to do the whole house doing these 3 rooms will still be a BIG return on staging investment. (ROSI)

After Staging

Real Estate Staging Statistics Report By RESA
Released February 2010

Vacant Homes Previously on the Market

In 2009 vacant homes in our study that were previously on the market on average of 277 Days as un-staged properties had not sold. Those same homes were then taken off the market and staged and re-listed. Those properties on average sold after 63 days on market after they were staged, which is 78% less time on the market.

1) Vacant homes tend to look cold, sterile, and uninviting. A few pieces of furniture + area rugs and accessories such as art and florals in each room add the warmth that help buyers envision the house as a home.

2) Empty rooms - especially particularly large or small ones - often raise questions in buyers' minds about whether, where, and how furniture will fit and how it should be placed. This is magnified even more if the room has unusual angles or oddly-placed windows. Staging provides solutions to these dilemmas that will show the home in its best light!

3) Vacant homes can look as if they have been sitting too long on the market, conveying the impression that sellers may be desperate and that the house hasn't been well-maintained or may have unknown issues. Furnishing a home helps give it a lived-in feeling that makes it competitive with other (furnished) homes on the market and makes it look move-in ready.

4) Staging creates a preferred lifestyle buyers aspire to; a professional stager appeals to your target demographic by using design elements to appeal to buyers' emotions. Stagers also have the experience to know who your target demographic (buyers) are, and what style of furniture, bedding, and accessories will "wow" them.

5) Since 85-90% of buyers start their home search on the internet, having attractive MLS photos on-line is critical. Furnished and decorated rooms are much more appealing to the vast majority of buyers than empty rooms!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7306832

Staging infographics

Statistics to Stage your home!

Staged Above before and afters

This is a house that I staged a few weeks ago.  This is an occupied home.  I worked mostly with what the sellers had by rearranging furniture and bringing in a few accessories from my inventory. This home is in Fairfield,PA and listed by Kelly Kline with Remax in Hagerstown, MD

Staged Homes in the MEDIA 20/20

Here is a video of Staged Homes in the Media. This is a clip from 20/20 on ABC

What is the meaning behind the name of your business?

Hi,

Im Shari, the owner of Staged Above.Im an Accredited Staging Professional. I wanted to first take a few minutes to explain why I picked the name Staged Above and why I chose the logo I did.  I sold houses in Arizona over 10 years ago as a Realtor. During that time when I would take clients around I would often see buyers get really discouraged and also distracted when they would walk into a home for sell and it was cluttered.  A buyer has a hard time imagining themselves living in a home that looks too lived in. I have personally been a buyer 3 times since living in Maryland and I can tell you that each time I have been buying I have seen ALOT of clutter out there. My goal at Staged Above and the reason behind the name is this. I want to help sellers place their home above the crowd! I want their house to stand out above all the other listings in that same price point and same neighborhood.  The logo has the same meaning. I hope it makes sense to you? The hand is placing the home up above the crowd of listings. A stager should be able to come in and help all sellers regardless of price, condition and location. I hope that you will consider calling me before you get ready to list your home! I am now Staging in Hagerstown and Frederick Maryland areas, as well as Martinsburg,WV  and Chambersburg,PA areas.