real estate: Home Staging = Real Estate Therapy - 02/01/10 11:15 AM
Today I had an experience that reminded me why I LOVE my job as the owner of a Los Angeles Home Staging company. It reminded me that I do so much more than help people prepare their homes for sale. Some days I am also a Real Estate therapist. Today was one of those days!
With all the craziness in the Los Angeles real estate market, I have been very busy in the past few weeks. So much so that, in order to fit in a client who needed some help selling her home, I arranged a consultation for a Sunday. … (24 comments)

real estate: Survey Highlights Gender Differences in Home Purchase Decisions - 08/26/09 12:20 PM
Earlier this month Coldwell Banker released the results of a survey they created to discover the extent to which men and women differ in the home-buying process. They surveyed 1,000 men and women, asking questions like:
"How long did it take for you to know that the last home you purchased was right for you?
and
“Who 'wears the pants' in the relationship when it comes to making major financial decisions?”
It is crucial for all Realtors, Stagers and home sellers to understand the results of this survey, so that they can make sure the property they're selling will appeal to … (11 comments)

real estate: Selling Your Home When Your Neighbor’s House is an Eyesore - 08/13/09 06:34 PM
 

Just read an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times about the problems associated with trying to sell your home when you live next to a dilapidated home or a vacant foreclosed property.
This was very timely since I encountered this very issue while previewing a beautiful new construction home in Sherman Oaks just last week. The developer built 2 gorgeous, side-by-side, high-end homes with luxury upgrades and beautiful finishes. The homes were identical in layout, but the builder wanted to Stage only one - the less desirable one. Why was it less desirable? Smaller? Fewer rooms? Ummm...no. This … (14 comments)

real estate: Another Staging Success Story – Cheviot Hills Spanish - 07/10/09 01:26 PM
As a professional Los Angeles Home Stager, it is always a pleasure to work with clients who  take your advice and roll with it! Such was the case with a recent listing in Cheviot Hills. The couple living in the home were retiring and moving to Palm Springs, so they wanted to sell their beautiful Spanish style home…quickly!
The agent, Randy Troup of Coldwell Banker Brentwood West, often hires me to do Staging Consultation reports for his sellers. I preview the property and spend a couple of hours giving the sellers detailed recommendations of low-cost things they can do to (using … (7 comments)

real estate: Some Thoughts on Trees and Selling a Home - 06/10/09 05:59 PM
Spring is my absolute favorite time of year in LA because the jacarandas are blooming, showcasing their gorgeous purple flowers all over town. I just love walking down streets like this one in my neighborhood at this time of year.

Towards the end of the blooming season, however, trees tend to get sparser and most of those purple blooms end up on the lawns and driveways of their owners. In fact today on my morning walk I spotted many a lawn completely covered with fallen flowers. Loving the jacaranda as I do, I happen to think of this carpet of … (17 comments)

real estate: Staging Works: West Los Angeles Condo in Escrow 1st Week on Market! - 05/27/09 05:48 PM
Since we have been so busy Staging lately, I was remiss in posting about our latest project - a lovely condo in West LA that we Staged on May 15th. Blogging about it was on my “to-do” list for today, but when I checked my email this morning I got the following email from the Realtor:
“I am happy to tell you that I got an accepted offer on the Pelham condo in the first week. It’s in escrow & inspection and I’m looking for a backup offer.”
It must have been fate that I hadn’t yet blogged about this project, … (19 comments)

real estate: Staging a Model Home in Culver City - 05/21/09 05:03 PM
There’s nothing I enjoy more than Staging close to home! If you happen to forget something, it’s just a short drive to storage, and you’re never stuck in traffic on the way home. So I was thrilled when Stage to Sell was hired to Stage a model unit for a beautiful new townhome development in my very own Culver City!
When I first previewed this property, my biggest concern was the size of the 2 main living spaces. The townhome had both a formal living room and a family room on the main level, but both rooms felt very small, especially … (10 comments)

real estate: The Power of Home Staging: Bachelor Pad to Loft Chic - 05/18/09 10:35 PM
Last week we Staged a beautiful loft at The Broadway on Hollywood & Vine. The owner was a young professional who had beautiful furniture, but almost nothing else. The condo certainly wasn’t cluttered, and the furniture was in the right place. But something was missing. The Realtor on this job has great taste and knew immediately that this listing needed some Staging help.
Click here to see how we took this loft from bachelor pad to loft chic!


 

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Annie Pinsker-Brown | Stage to SellOwner & Principal Designer310-384-1084www.stagetosell.biz"We get you to SOLD so you can get on … (20 comments)

real estate: A HUGE Thank You for Voting for Stage To Sell... P.S. We WON!! - 05/05/09 08:16 PM
Well, after all my shameless plugging, the votes are in and thanks to YOU, my company Stage to Sell has been named one of the winners in StartUp Nation's Leading Moms in Business Competition for 2009!
This contest really struck a chord with me because when I became a working mom five years ago, I was amazed at how difficult it was to run both a family and a business. It is often a thankless job and the hours are quite long! Of course as any mom knows, we wouldn't have it any other way.
Being a mom-preneur has given me … (22 comments)

real estate: A Security Solution for REOs - 04/24/09 05:16 PM
 
I recently wrote a blog entitled "Squatters Increasingly Calling Foreclosures Home" about advocacy groups that are actively helping homeless people around the country move into foreclosed properties that are empty and all but abandoned by the banks that own them. This was a very controversial topic, and many of my readers had strong opinions on one side or another of the issue. There is concensus, however, in the feeling that the banks are not doing enough to secure their REO properties. Well now there is a solution, at least for those in the Los Angeles area.
This week I was … (16 comments)

real estate: Squatters Increasingly Calling Foreclosures Home - 04/10/09 01:29 PM
According to an article from yesterday's NY Times, though squatting in vacant homes has long been an issue on a smaller scale, with so many vacant foreclosures on the market, homeless advocacy groups around the country are now actively assisting homeless families to take up residence in these foreclosed properties. And overwhelmed police departments are not helping much in the eviction process.
The groups say that they have sometimes received support from neighbors and that beleaguered police departments have not aggressively gone after squatters. "We're seeing sheriffs' departments who are reluctant to move fast on foreclosures or evictions," said Bill Faith, director … (37 comments)

real estate: Los Angeles Home Staging Company needs your vote in StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition! - 03/23/09 05:16 PM
So now that it's down to the wire, I am going to shamelessly and humbly ask you, my wonderful network of friends and colleagues, to PLEASE take a moment out of your busy days to vote for me in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition.
A couple of months ago, I posted a blog asking for your support as I entered the competition.
Most of you know me as a professional Home Stager in Los Angeles, but you may not know that I am also a mom of two wonderful kids ages 3 & 6. I started my Home … (6 comments)

real estate: Staged & Sold - Santa Monica Townhome - 03/04/09 11:04 PM
Right before the holidays last year I blogged about a Santa Monica townhome we Staged on December 8th (I remember because it was my birthday). This was the second townhome in the same condo complex, and this one was listed by Randy Troup of Coldwell Banker.
I must admit I was leery about Staging a home so close to Christmas since it's a tough time to hit the market, but the homeowner was insistent. He made some great updates to the unit with paint and carpet and was gung-ho on Staging from day one. Not to mention he was a really … (20 comments)

real estate: Los Angeles Home Stager hits 20,000 AR points (and counting)! - 02/14/09 03:03 PM
Well it's taken me awhile but I finally reached another milestone - 20,000 points on Active Rain! I have to say that in these uncertain times within our industry, it is so encouraging to hear from other Staging professionals around the block as well as around the country. Some of your posts are inspirational, some make me laugh, some get me off my rear and motivated to try something new. But they all touch me every day. And I wouldn't trade this community of true pro's for anything. Here's to the next 20,000 (and may they accrue more quickly than the … (23 comments)

real estate: Followup to Murphy's Law and the Case of the Moldy Sofas - 02/08/09 03:13 PM
For anyone who read it, here's a quick followup to my original post on Murphy's Law and the Case of the Moldy Sofas.
As you may remember, we recently did some interior design work for the common areas of a low income housing development in Downtown Los Angeles. And much to our surprise, when we arrived onsite and opened the sofa/loveseat/chair/ottoman boxes, they were covered in mold.

 
Our vendor (EuroModerno) immediately contacted their supplier who said that the mold "should wipe off and stay off." But a couple of weeks later we went back to check, and a bit … (13 comments)

real estate: Then & Now...My How I've Changed! - 02/04/09 06:14 PM
I was inspired by Melissa Marro's blog by the same title to write a little about my own growth as a Professional Home Stager over the last 4-1/2 years. When I first started my Los Angeles Home Staging business in 2004, I was one of the only small companies doing Staging on the west side of LA. There were some Stagers who worked only on estate properties ($3 million dollar + homes), but only one or two of us working on your average every day properties. So many of the Realtors I approached in those days were under the impression that … (33 comments)

real estate: Please Support Stage to Sell in Leading Moms in Business Competition - 01/26/09 05:13 PM

You may not know that in addition to being a small business owner, I am also a mom of two wonderful (and somewhat crazy) kids, ages 3 and almost 6.

I started my Home Staging business in 2004, when my eldest was just a toddler, as a way to be home with him while also doing something I loved. Though having a home-based business does allow for some flexibility with my schedule, as any working mom knows, it is also a tough road to haul. Now that the business is thriving, I often find myself working much longer hours … (10 comments)

real estate: Santa Monica 4-Level Townhome Staged and Ready to Sell - 01/24/09 03:36 PM
This will go down in history as one of my most physically demanding jobs because there were (count them) 4 LEVELS! A basement office, the main level with living/dining rooms & kitchen, the bedrooms upstairs and then a gorgeous roof deck on top!
It was a lot of work but the Realtor & clients were thrilled with the transformation!
LIVING ROOM
This room was a challenge because of the awkwardly situated fireplace. The room wasn't deep enough to have the sofa across from the TV so although it may not be ideal for watching television, this layout actually gave the fireplace … (21 comments)

real estate: A web traffic research experiment makes one L.A. Home Stager VERY happy! - 01/15/09 05:17 PM
Have you heard of Sitemeter.com? It's a FREE and easy way to track important details about how many people are visiting your site, how they got there and how long they're staying. I heard about this site at the IAHSP Home Staging Convention back in July and I quickly signed up. I get an email every week with my current stats and it looks like this:
STAGE TO SELL - Los Angeles Home Staging                     -- Site Summary ---                               Visits            Total ........................ 1,761                        Average per Day ................. 19                        Average Visit Length .......... 3:43                        This Week ...................... 131                      … (23 comments)

real estate: Murphy's Law of Home Staging and the Case of the Moldy Sofas - 01/07/09 05:33 PM
Ok, you've waited patiently for it since I alluded to this post in my last blog about Staging for a Low Income Housing Development. Now it's finally here...Bear with me because it's a long one!
Before I begin let me say that I absolutely LOVE the client who has given me a total of 3 different projects like this one. They are fun and easy to work with, they pay in advance and never give me a hassle about anything. Not to mention, they are always very pleased with my work! For these reasons I really hate to complain about anything … (45 comments)

 
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Annie Pinsker-Brown | Stage to Sell, Los Angeles Home Stager

Los Angeles, CA

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Stage to Sell - LA Home Staging

Address: Los Angeles, CA

Office Phone: (310) 384-1084

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