10th Floor Please--Staging the Montage

Staging Stories~Reno, Nevada

This was a first...I'd never been to the Montage in downtown Reno before, so I was excited to see what a place in there looked like. It's funny how a change in environment can make you feel like you are worlds away even when you are in your own backyard. Walking into the lobby I felt like I was back in DC and living in the big city.

We took the elevator to the 10th floor and entered the studio. The space had a nice layout: living room, kitchen/dining, bedroom, bathroom and outdoor balcony. Just enough room for all of the essentials. The best feature though, was the view! HOLY WOW! I could sit there all day and watch the beautiful show mother nature provides. 

Each time I stage, I like to take before photos so you can see the transformation unfold. Scroll down to see all of the before images.

I made my notes and began to formulate the plan for this space. The renter that was currently living there was moving out the following week so that meant we would have a blank canvas to work with when we returned. 

To me this space felt chic, fresh and modern. I wanted to encompass the glitter of the city lights within the walls so I chose to incorporate metallic accents to bring that city glimmer inside. Additionally, the view had to be highlighted so all of the curtains were removed, allowing the natural light to come pouring in. 

The living room provides a cozy conversation area with panoramic views of the cityscape and the Truckee River. 

We used the dining table to create a separation between the living area and the bedroom. Dinner for two anyone? 

Sweet dreams are made of this! Don't you just want to hop into bed? 

If this were my place? I'd have coffee on the balcony every morning!

Would you like to see this property in person? Contact Chris Smith with Keller Williams today because this little slice of heaven isn't going to last long. 

French Country in the City: Damonte View Drive

Walking into the house on Damonte View, I was immediately excited to begin this staging process. This home boasts numerous expansive windows looking out onto the Nevada landscape. The large, open space concept provides the perfect setting for entertaining. The master bedroom has the same beautiful views and is the perfect retreat due to its isolation from the the rest of the rooms in the house. This home, located in Mountaingate, is just over 3,000 sq.ft. with 3 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms and 1 half bath. 

The current owners have already moved leaving the house mostly empty with the exception of a couple of items. We were called in to focus on the main living areas: living room, dining room, kitchen and master bedroom and bath. 

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Take a look at these before and afters:

If you are interested in taking a closer look at this home, there will be an open house this Saturday, August 15th from 11am-2pm. Contact Cathy Deal for more information 775-762-7684

Otherwise, check out the full tour, just copy and paste this link in your browser:  http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/13375-Damonte-View-Ln_Reno_NV_89511_M27029-93382

Polishing Up Diamond Ridge

There is a big difference between living in a home and living in a listed home. Even though a house is beautiful, when you are preparing to sell, sometimes it can require a little polishing. 

The house on Diamond Ridge is easy to love. A grand entry welcomes you and invites you into an open-concept floor plan that you can easily see yourself entertaining in. Both formal and informal dining allow you to set the tone for your dinner party. The kitchen has an unlimited amount of storage making it the perfect place for culinary creations.  The floorplan of the house gives a great deal of privacy to the master suite given that the additional two bedrooms are located on the opposite end of the house. The master bedroom and bath leave little to be desired, making it quite possibly my favorite room in the house! Two vanities are separated by a beautiful bathtub fit for the best bubble bath ever!

With this description, you are likely asking yourself, why was I called into stage this home? Sometimes an outside perspective can really help focus on your goals when selling the house. I offer various staging packages. In this case, I provided the couple with a homework list to complete before I arrived. Let me tell you, they aced the test! They checked off each item on the list I provided making it easy for me to come in and complete all of the finishing touches. 

Pictured below is the entry way before and after staging. The first picture shows a great table that became a catchall, which is pretty typical for things close to the front door.

We kept things bright and cheery in the entry by adding a white floor length mirror, a smaller rounded-front table, a coat rack and some decorative accessories to welcome guests upon entering the house.  

From there, we worked our way into the living room. The couch was set against the window, the love seat created a barrier between the kitchen and dining room and a recliner sat next to the love seat. A coffee table, an ottoman, several baby toys and a dog bed filled up the floor.

We simplified the decor in the space, removed the recliner and the ottoman. Also, we switched the positioning of the couch and the love seat and brought it out into the room a little more. Above the fireplace, we added a mirror and simplified the decorative accessories; added new decorative pillows to the couch and a cozy throw blanket. We moved the existing table lamps to the master and brought in a new set that tied in the warm wood tones from the kitchen and formal dining. There was a large ornately carved console table (not pictured) that was also removed. 

Moving onto the kitchen and casual dining, we asked the clients to remove everything from countertops. We removed the existing oak dining table and brought in a farm style table with a black base that matched the client's existing chairs. Instead of keeping all 6 chairs, we removed the two arm chairs and kept the 4 side chairs making it feel a little more spacious. 

The Master Suite: This is a room that I could spend some time in. Spacious, great natural light and a master bath the size of a spa. I'll let the before and after photos do the talking on this one:

Home Office: These clients work from home so the office area was one of the heavily used areas and was full of personal momentos. One piece of advice I give to all of my staging clients is to de-personalize the space as much as possible. You want to appeal to the masses and allow them to visualize themselves in the space. As I mentioned earlier, these clients aced their homework list especially when it came to removing items from the office leaving it organized, roomy and ready to work!

Spare Bedrooms and Guest Bath: These rooms needed a little fine tuning. We tagged some items for removal and re-positioned others. The result was better flow in the guest bedroom and a charming baby's room. 

Formal Dining: Lastly, we used the existing furniture in the formal dining room with the exception of the original dining chairs. (I didn't get a very good before picture so I will leave you to imagine the rest). We brought in more modern Crate and Barrel dining chairs to modernize the original set. Then we set it for a dinner party and rearranged the items in the china cabinet. Small details can go a long way. If you have items that you feel are outdated in your home, making a simple change can completely alter the look. 

Final Tip: Remember all the pain is worth the gain. De-personalizing and de-cluttering may not be the most fun but they are essential to selling your home in the shortest amount of time for the highest amount of money. 

If you would like more details on this home, contact Chris Smith: csmithrealty@yahoo.com          775-843-0657 or if you would like to see it in person, there will be an open house this Sunday, July 26th from 11:00am-2:00pm

Property Details: 3259 Diamond Ridge Drive, Reno, NV 

3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, 2,440 sqft

You can see a virtual tour here: http://tours.in1spot-photography.com/public/vtour/display/377552

Setting the Stage on Skyline

This past month has been a whirlwind! A good whirlwind of course! We've had a lot going on and on top of that, two homes came up that need to be staged. "No" has never been in my vocabulary so that meant it was time to load up the U-haul and prepare to move! 

Staging Skyline: The house on Skyline boasts over 2,500 sqft, 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, two fireplaces, and a large bonus space with french doors out to a backyard that is your own private sanctuary. The home was vacant so when I came in, it wasn't a matter of de-cluttering the space or re-arranging existing furniture. Instead it was taking a space void of personality and creating a welcoming environment focused on capturing someone's heart and allowing them to visualize calling this space home. 

Instead of staging the whole home, we focused on the main living areas: living room, dining room, office and bonus room. One thing I love about this house is the number of windows in the space and who doesn't love multiple fireplaces. Click through the before pictures to see how the space started: 

After touring through the house for the first time, my mind immediately started developing the staging plan and I never go anywhere without my notebook so I jotted a few notes down. Then it was off to the races; time to start tagging items in the warehouse.

Weather has been a little tough and unpredictable this month. You can imagine my enthusiasm when we were loading the U-haul and the sky broke into an immediate down-pour followed by a hail storm. Yes, those little white specks in the picture are huge pieces of hail!

Needless to say we took a short break until the weather subsided before we finished loading up the U-haul and then it was off to stage. It took it a couple of hours to complete the staging process, but I loved the way it came together! The living room went from cold to cozy. The kitchen and dining room are ready to entertain and the bonus space became the perfect game room! Click through the slide show to see all the after photos.

There will be an Open House this Saturday, July 25th from 1pm-3pm so if you are in the neighborhood, be sure to stop by and see this beauty in person! 

Property Details:                                                                                                                                   2075 Skyline Drive, Reno, NV. 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2,576 sqft                                             For more information contact Mike Hays: 775-771-9801  Email: Mike@mikehays.net

Staging Sells: Mt. Rose Street Edition

In the past couple months I've staged several homes all which have sold in record time! The quickest sold within 24-hours of listing it. I've found that I absolutely love staging and helping people sell their homes. Homes are like people, they have unique personalities. Some are introverted and need a little help coming out of their shell while others are quite extroverted, exhibiting so much personality, they need help containing themselves. It's important when preparing your house to sell that you remember you are trying to appeal to the masses and engage multiple offers so you can sell your home quickly and for the best price possible. 

The home I staged yesterday is a true gem, located in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Reno and it has been completely renovated with no detail left undone. This 1,600 sq.ft. beauty was a pleasure to stage and possibly my favorite to date. It was a "complete stage" meaning it had nothing in it and everything had to be brought in.  Hello Uhaul! Here I come! 

If you'd like to see this house in person, OPEN HOUSE is this weekend on Saturday and Sunday! 1485 Mt. Rose Street. For more details and for all of your real estate needs, call Mike Hays: 775.771.9801

Click the picture below to see the before pictures:

Now scroll down to see the transformation:

One of the coolest features of this house is the double sided fireplace that adds ambience to the living room and kitchen/dining area. It's a statement immediately welcoming you inside upon entering through the front door. We kept the decor simple and modern with a cozy twist.

Overstuffed micro-suede couches furnish the living room and make you want to cuddle up and enjoy a good book. From there, you move onto the office nook which is the perfect space to get your work done without being isolated from the living room.

The kitchen makes a beautiful statement with the espresso cabinets, grey subway tile backsplash, beautiful quartz countertops and stainless steel appliances. Dining in sounds better than dining out with this space. Heck, I'll even come over and do the dishes.

From there you head to the bedrooms each providing its own unique oasis. The first guest bedroom we equipped with a twin bed and small desk, perfect for little ones. The second bedroom boasts neutral tones with some metallic details to give it a little pop.

Lastly, the  master bedroom is an ideal retreat for unwinding after a busy day. With sliding glass doors that lead to the back patio, a spa like bathroom and a great closet, you're sure to be impressed.   This room is light, airy and simply delightful. 

Do you have questions about staging your home?? Want to know about this home?? Feel free to reach out to me.