Libby Telford, Home Staging Consultant ~ Education is Key!

Tuesday, October 21st - Stand up for Whole Foods rezoning!

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 12:30:49 -0500

Just a quick reminder about the Joint City Council/Planning Commission meeting for the North Raleigh Whole Foods rezoning petition!

* The meeting is Tuesday, October 21st at 6:30 PM at the City Council Chambers in the Avery C. Upchurch Municipal Building at 222 W. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh.

* This is THE CRUCIAL public meeting in front of the City Council, so physical attendance by our supporters is essential. We encourage you to get to the meeting around 6:00 PM since space may be limited. All citizens are encouraged to participate, not just North Raleigh citizens.

* For driving directions, maps, and parking information please visit our website at www.BringWholeFoods.org.

* Community participation is very important and we look forward to seeing you at the meeting. Please forward this email to your neighbors and friends!

* We urge you to visit the website to email your City Council members with your support for the rezoning petition!

Thank you!

(I apologize about all these announcement posts, I will get back to Real stuff soon, I promise!)

CAC Voting for Whole Foods rezoning, North Raleigh - Thurs, Sept 4

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:09:33 -0500

Don't risk letting a vocal minority take away our right to have a Whole Foods in our neighborhood.

* The first important public meeting is the Citizen's Advisory Council - North on Thursday, September 4 @ 7:00 PM. It will be held at the Millbrook Exchange Park, 1905 Spring Forest Road. This is a voting meeting so physical attendance by supporters is the only way to be heard!

* Starting at 5:30 PM, before the North CAC meeting, Whole Foods and Regency Centers will host a"meet and greet" for supporters. We will meet at an outdoor public area adjacent to the Community Center, which will be well-marked. Snacks and refreshments will be provided by Whole Foods.

* Also, please check out the ALL NEW www.BringWholeFoods.org to show your support by e-mailing your Raleigh City Council Member, to "Refer-A-Friend" to join the online petition, and to get more information about the project.

Thank you so much for your support and we look forward to seeing you and your friends on September 4th!

> Click here to download the CAC North Map to determine whether or not you are in the voting zone.

Help bring Whole Foods Market to North Raleigh!

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:56:27 -0500

Click here to sign the PETITION to bring Whole Foods to North Raleigh.

Anyone who shops at the only Whole Foods Market in Raleigh, North Carolina (on Wade Ave) knows that it's almost always crowded and hard to get around in the aisles without bumping into someone, let alone find a parking space! It is estimated that about 20% of the shoppers drive from North Raleigh and surrounding areas just to shop there. Myself, I am one of them, living in the Wakefield neighborhood.

Well this may soon be alleviated (in 2010) with a proposed plan to build a new Whole Foods at Six Forks Rd and Strickland Rd (Colonnade Center Dr). Whole Foods is currently in negotiations with the developers (Regency Centers & Welcor Development)... yes you may have already heard the rumors, and they're true!

Before you get too excited, the one thing that can prevent this from happening is lack of support - there is a re-zoning issue to get past (from business park to commercial). However, it should be an easy issue to get past if the BringWholeFoods.org Grassroots Comittee is successful in getting enough signatures on the petition for rezoning.

Whole Foods is not just another grocery chain... Not only are they known for their high quality natural and organic products, but they actively support local growers, and are actively involved in supporting the communities in which their stores reside in. Whole Foods Markets have values that make them a welcome, needed and wanted addition to any community!

People who live in the North Raleigh area will discover a new place to take their kids and have a healthy lunch, take home a delicious and preservative-free prepared meal for dinner, or just find unique, quality and local products as part of their regular shopping routine.

If you would like to support bringing Whole Foods Market to North Raleigh please sign the PETITION!

The GrassRoots Committee (which I am proud to be a part of) is aiming to get as many signatures as possible by the end of this July. Then moving forward to the next step which will be the public hearing slated for October. To sign the petition you do not have to be a resident only in the North Raleigh area... if you live near the Wade Ave location you may most certainly support it to alleviate some of the overcrowding!

Libby Telford is President of Style It Right, LLC which offers Home Staging, Interior Redesign, Color Consulting and Photography services for homeowners in the Raleigh and Greater Raleigh areas. Contact Libby at 919.435.7713 or visit www.StyleItRight.com for more information on preparing your home for sale.

Art to create a serious, yet relaxing mood for the home office

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 16:15:19 -0500

One of the things that helps to sell your home is appropriately chosen art that suits the room's mood and decor. Of course you will want to take it with you to your new home, so choosing art that you also like is important!

An idea I like to implement for home offices is black and white photo prints. Framed black and white prints can evoke a serious, yet relaxing mood. After all, the home office is where business is taken care of, but also a place where you don't want a stressful environment!

Adding a touch of color, for example blue, green or red matting, can enhance the current color scheme of the room, or just to add some color in an otherwise colorless room.

For example:

[The above prints can be purchased here - framed, unframed, or on canvas in various sizes to suit your needs.]

Tips to prepare for a successful Open House

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 13:19:18 -0600

Today is Sunday, the day most people hold their Open House anticipating droves of prospective buyers coming to see their beautifully merchandised home, ready for the taking.

But is it really ready?

The first place to start is looking at the photos you're using to attract the buyers in the first place. Do you even have any photos on that Craigslist ad? Or are you just banking on the description you wrote to be enough to get them flocking? Photos are a must!

If you do have photos, are they any good? Are they doing a good job of marketing the spaciousness of the house or are they merely showcasing your taste in furniture in a corner of the room?

How about the kids? Are you letting them hang around to play in the backyard or watch t.v. in the great room thinking it's a savvy way to market how child-friendly the home is? Think again. Arrange some kind of fun activity with another supervising adult that will take at least a couple of hours.

Speaking of kids, should the buyers expect to be tripping over robots and lego when they come in for a look? Think not. Put all toys away in a neat and tidy fashion - use baskets or plastic bins that can be neatly stacked in a cabinet, a storage room or garage.

What about sound effects? How are you employing that warm and welcoming atmosphere - by locking the barking dog in the garage to keep it from licking people to death? No! Send the dog to doggy day care, or ask a neighbor to dog-sit for a few hours. The same goes for cats, unless you have the type that will remain hidden under the bed or some other inconspicuous place that cats always manage to find as soon as strangers enter the house.

One more important tip - the driveway pileup. How many cars must you park in the driveway? Do you have 3 or 4 vehicles to suit every vehicular need in the household? That may be convenient for you and your family, but not for people coming to look at the home. If you must have a car just have one or two in the garage. Try to keep the driveway open to visitors making it easy for people to come and go. Park the extras down the street or in a nearby parking lot. You don't want to risk losing a prospective buyer because they couldn't find a place to park their car!

Best wishes for success at your Open House!

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.

Some beautiful reasons why I made North Carolina my home

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 20:48:24 -0600

Continuing on with the photo theme (my previous blog "lunar eclipse") I thought I'd share some of my photography of this beautiful state - from the coast to the mountains. These photos have been taken over the last year. Some are from the big road trip I took last winter (originating in Toronto,Canada) where I actually saw and fell in love with NC for the first time, and some are from over the last few months since I've made NC my home. I look forward to taking Spring photos!

I'm sure that posting these here on AR can be a nice compliment to Realtors who are attracting out of state buyers! Also, it is fitting since I do offer photography services for my clients in addition to Home Staging.

I hope you enjoy!

Blue Ridge In the Morning

Autumnal Reflection

Evening Walk on Falls Lake

Johnny Mercer's Pier, Wilmington

The Tea Clipper, Morehead City

NC State Fair

Raleigh Sunset

Wednesday's lunar eclipse, a beautiful sight!

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 11:50:54 -0600

For those of you who may not have seen it due to weather, sleep, or just plain forgot about, I watched the lunar eclipse as it evolved in the sky and got a shot of it.

To me this was its most beautiful state - emerging from the shadow.

Enjoy!

Listing Agents - another way to secure listings

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 16:15:30 -0600

I realize there are some markets that are more aware of the value in a Stager/Agent relationship than in other markets. I find the market here in Raleigh, NC, overall, to be one that is a little slower in recognizing the value. So, I'm here to help make this more common knowledge by spreading the word to help educate those who haven't really thought much of it.

It really is a simple concept... When an Agent presents their listing package to the potential client and explains that staging is "part of my listing process" and why, the motivated seller will quickly realize they have a motivated Agent.

Staging in various degrees can work for every listing, from small condos to large estates.

Staging doesn't just mean furnishing vacant homes, staging can also be any or all of the following:

Guiding the homeowner to rearrange what they have to create more appeal and definition that otherwise may not exist.
A fresh coat of paint - appropriate colors can be suggested and trade referrals given by the stager
Recognizing some flaws that can be easily fixed before showing up on the home inspector's report.
Adding a few new accessories to spruce up the mood of a space - these can be kept and enjoyed in the new home as well.
Prepare the home for beautiful listing photos that attract the most buyers.

No job is too small! Every property needs to move quickly and sell for the most money.

And yes, staging does cost money, anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand - depending on the need and budget. But this money is an investment that is almost always returned by getting close to the listing price or more, preventing a price reduction (assuming the house is appropriately priced), and getting the house sold quicker.

So... why wouldn't every agent want to give themselves AND their clients this edge on the selling process? What is holding you back?

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.

Staging your rental property to attract ideal tenants

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 13:58:57 -0600

As a previous income property owner myself I know how hard it can be to get the right tenants - the one's who will pay the rent, take care of their space, clean up after themselves and abide by the basic rules of a the tenant/landlord relationship. I myself was an apartment dweller for many years and I was always the type that would come back to my empty apartment after moving to clean up. Not many people do this, so I'm sure I was a rarity! Whenever I had to give landlord references I was always confident that I'd get a rave review - rent paid on time, quiet and respectable tenant, left apartment in move in condition.

So how can you find tenants like me? One way is to stage your property to attract the demographic you want to rent to. The photo below is an example of a staged apartment that I photographed in 2005, before I was a stager!

(Staged by the building's Management team, Photograph by Libby Telford)

You can imagine that this apartment would most likely attract a different demographic and subliminally pass the message that the landlord wants respectable and responsible people to live in this apartment.

Compare the staged apartment to the unstaged apartment shown here:

This one tends to relay the message that it's a free for all and anyone can come look and anyone can probably get the place.

(Photograph by Libby Telford)

And of course you also do want to make a good impression for the right tenants. In a house that is divided into apartments (duplex,triplex,etc) there is usually a common entrance that the tenants share to get to their apartment. It is an area that landlords all too often fail to realize is a very important place that should also be updated to attract the right tenant. For example, the house below was a duplex I bought in Toronto in 2005, and as you can see it needed some work before I could start looking for tenants:

Please forgive the photo quality, these were taken with a basic point & shoot camera, but you get the idea! After the electrical work was completed, the walls were repainted and a couple of photos were placed to add personality the blue carpet wasn't so hideous after all!

Once I started screening tenants not only were they all very impressed with the place, but I was able to be very choosy as to who's application I would accept, because I had a lot to choose from. The tenants I ended up getting were the best, my hard work paid off!

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.

Preparing your home for sale: Important tips for sellers

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 14:13:07 -0600

When it's time to put your home on the market it is now time to make it a house. By that I mean you must make the transition from being a home owner to selling your house. Not only physically, but mentally. Put yourself in the mind frame of merchandising a very expensive product. You want that product to be packaged in the best possible way, gleam clean, and show its best.

There are some basic, but very effective things you can do yourself in order to bring the home to the showing-ready stage that will attract the most buyers. Here are a some tips:

CLEAN UP THE DIRT, DUST & GRIME

Make the house sparkle! Yes, it must be impossibly clean. Cleaner than you would ever have it even while living in it. And not just the counter tops and floors. Don't forget the windows, window sills, the closets, the garage, the yards, the driveway, and all of the appliances.

Extra tip: Mr Clean Magic Erasers - they do wonders on removing scuffs from door frames, baseboards, and other moldings when used correctly.

DE-PERSONALIZE

All family photos, portraits, party photos, etc must be put away. Start packing these things along with your diplomas, trophies, and office clutter now to get a head start on something you have to do anyway. Leaving these things out on display will cause buyers to focus on you and your life rather than what they're there for - imagining themselves in your house!

Extra tip: If you have kids and think that leaving their toys spread out all over is a good way to show that the house is family friendly - think again! Buy some new plastic storage containers or baskets to quickly organize and hide these items before a showing.

CURTAINS

Replace old, outdated, or overly dominating curtains with nice but neutral pre-made panels from a local Linens N' Things, Target, or World Market. Don't forget to measure correctly and iron the creases out. If you have blinds get rid of them. Replace them with the above mentioned. The only exception here is if you have beautiful plantation shutters.

DIY COSMETIC REPAIRS

Go around the house and look for uneven seams or separations in the crown molding, baseboards or window frames. Fill them in with the appropriate caulking. There are types that can be painted over. There are also anti-mold types for bathrooms, you may need this to touch up shower tiles or faucet fixtures.

CLOSETS

Don't think people won't be looking inside them. I sure do! People want to know what kind of storage space the house offers, this is very important. Start packing up stuff you don't use - jackets, shoes, miscellaneous stuff, etc. Taking everything out and only putting back a few things in a neat and tidy fashion is not only effective, but gets you a head start on packing for the move.

Extra tip: Before putting everything back in you may want to evaluate the interior walls of the closet space. Are they scuffed from the vacuum cleaner and things constantly brushing up against the walls? If so, repaint them with a quick coat of white before putting everything back in.

FIXTURES

If you have old tarnished brass light fixtures, out dated chandeliers, or fixtures that don't match the overall style of your home replace them! You can go to a big box hardware store and find new replacements for an affordable price. Just don't buy anything that you might want to take with you to your new home, the buyer may assume it will come with the house unless specified as an exclusion in the purchase agreement.

Extra tip: Be very mindful of what fixtures you leave in the house while showing. Chandeliers, built-in HDTVs, high-end refrigerators or other major appliances, etc, may be a great selling point for your home, but only if they are included in the purchase price!

It can be a turn-off to a buyer if you say NO when they ask you if you will include any of these with the house in a bargaining tactic. So unless you are already prepared to negotiate, it's better just to avoid that potential scenario altogether. Additionally, if it is never made clear that these items aren't included with the purchase price from the very beginning, and the buyer discovers they are gone when they take possession that can start a very ugly scenario as well.

Consider replacing these items with rentals, or cheaper versions borrowed from someone else or another home before listing.

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.

Property investors: Spending less can cost you more

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 09:47:03 -0600

I read an interesting article in today's paper, The News & Observer, about the North Carolina Department of Transportation (DOT) trimming project costs and not wanting to spend an extra $2.8 million dollars to lay thicker pavement for the I-795, a new four lane freeway. That decision will end up costing them $10 million dollars more. Just 16 months after construction potholes and cracks are showing up all over the freeway. Now the DOT has to pay for studying this problem and fixing it.

The DOT engineer, Wendi Johnson, on the project from the beginning warned that the pavement they decided to lay would be too thin and too weak. But they didn't heed her advice and are now paying big time for that mistake.

Though road construction is far from comparable to selling your home, the message is the same: Being overly budget conscious in the wrong area can end up costing you more than you're trying to save.

As a property investor you're in the business of buying and selling homes for profit. Often times you put in a lot of time and hard work to make improvements on the house that make it more appealing to a larger number of buyers. The place where you may decide to cut corners is actually the most important area: presenting the home.

The new tile or hardwood floors you laid out look gorgeous, and the fabulous work you did in the kitchen is top-notch, but you still need to define the rooms to give buyers perspective and help them imagine themselves living in that house. The house needs to grab buyers in a warm inviting embrace as soon as the buyers walk in. Other wise you risk having to pay another month's worth of mortgage and bills on that house, and another month... and another month...

The first thing you need to do before listing the house is stage it. Rent some furniture to define each room's function, focal points, and highlight the home's best features. If you don't, buyers are going to walk in and focus on all the little details, such as any mistakes in the tile application, uneven seams in the crown molding, placement of electrical receptacles, etc. You get the idea. Have buyers focus on the highlights, flow and function of the house and how they can make it theirs.

If choosing furniture and placing accessories is not your area of expertise than contact a Home Staging consultant to help you with this process. The cost of hiring a Home Staging consultant and renting furniture is minimal when you look at the potential ROI.

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.

The "Stage before you list" psychology

Libby Telford, Raleigh Home Staging Consultant (Style It Right, LLC) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 17:57:00 -0600

Gone are the days where one could say to themselves, "My house is beautiful as it is, I don't need to do any work on it to sell it!".

Sellers are finding out that this mentality is no longer working for them, no matter how beautiful their 80's style black furniture is, or how the lilac walls in the living room perpetuate the spring theme along with the outdated flower-patterned sofa. Yes, we have reached the day, largely thanks to some t.v. shows on HGTV and TLC, where Sellers must now say to themselves, "Time to sell the house, where do I start?"

Step one, stage it.
Step two, photograph it.
Step three, list it.
Step four, show it.
Step five, accept offer!

Staging your home before you photograph and list is crucial in today's market. Out of all the listings in your neighborhood you want buyers to eagerly flock to your house in higher numbers. They will if the above steps are followed in that precise order. They will also put a visual memory stamp of your home at the top of their list when looking at other less appealing homes.

Ways to stage your home effectively can consist of anything from de-cluttering and reorganizing, to renting furniture, all the way to tearing out an unnecessary wall between the kitchen and dining room or renovating a bathroom. Forward thinking home owners will begin planning projects such as the latter as much as a year in advance to selling their home.

I hear about it all too often, especially from Realtors, that they've had an unstaged listing that's been on the market longer than a house with the exact same floor plan that's in the same community at a similar price point. That's when everybody starts to get desperate. Of course it will help to hire a Stager at this point, but in reality sellers are already feeling the pressure of time and maybe even a mortgage on another house so their first thought is to go the price reduction route.

The message to get across is that home owners cannot afford to "wait and see" if their house sells as is before considering their first price reduction.

Stage it, photograph it, show it. Say this to yourself three times... Stage it, photograph it, show it...

Libby Telford
Home Staging Consultant,
Style It Right, llc
919.435.7713

www.StyleItRight.com | Serving Raleigh & the Greater Raleigh Areas, North Carolina

Style It Right. Sell it quick. Get top dollar.