This townhome in Westlake Village, CA was a total disconnect to its site. It is situated right on the lake but the house was up the creek.
From the moment you entered the front door the view took center stage. What was lacking were the supporting cast members. Zan and Larry Bernhardt with Dilbeck Real Estate in Westlake Village, are savvy realtors and knew that this home was desperate to be staged. They called me at Ventura County Home Staging the minute they got into the property.
Day One: The game plan was to do as much as possible on a tight budget. The living room, dining room, family room, kitchen and loft got the green light for staging. Also a necessity was some new flooring and paint. Literally the day that I previewed the property I chose the interior paint color (Dunn-Edwards Nomadic Taupe) and started looking for flooring. The painters started prepping that day. Obviously this property was on the fast track!
On Day Two I brought in my flooring installer, who noticed big issues with the original vinyl in the master bathroom. Pet urine had seeped underneath the vinyl tiles; they literally pulled right up with no effort! My installer (who didn’t even have the job yet) took off his “good” shirt and started pulling up the soaked tiles. Now that’s dedication!! (He got the job!)
That same day I chose the carpet and new sheet vinyl, making sure the choice would come in on time. Not so lucky with the first carpet choice! Second time around, everyone’s happy and it ships from California so will get to us in two days! Whew. The new flooring is installed just six days after I had the installer come preview the job site. Yes, we had some jostling between the painters, electricians, and the flooring guys, but everything got done. This is one benefit of working with a professional stager: we know our contractors and can be the coordinator/intermediary between all the trades.
On Day 10, just two full days after the flooring went in – and while the painters were finishing up – I got in to stage the home. Cort Furniture brought in the most of the living, dining, family room, and loft pieces. I added art, accessories, small furniture, lamps, and plants from my ever-growing inventory. I chose to infuse a beachy/natural theme for all the rooms. This pulled the water view of the lake right into the house. And of course we staged the patio ... where the best views take place!
This staging took exactly two weeks from start to broker's open. The list of things that took place: Paint entire interior, install new carpet in 3/4 of the house and vinyl flooring in the master bathroom, install new lights in dining room and master bathroom, stage the living room, dining room, kitchen, family room, loft and back patio. Here are some befores and afters:
Here is a before shot of the living room. Light blue carpet is showing wear and tear!
You can see that the color palette is subtle with a few pops of color. The sofa is facing the two-story fireplace.
We even squeaked in a small singular sitting area into the living room!
This room held few clues as to its function!
No guessing necessary now. It's a formal dining room with a nautical theme!
This upstairs loft is left without a purpose.
Office space is critical for those that work from home. An office with a view to the lake is a win-win! And keeping the beach theme going.
This family room is on the small side.
Go big or go home, I say!
What? A patio table with no chairs?!
Chairs for the patio table ... check. Extra seating area to contemplate the good life ... double check.
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Ventura County Home Staging was created by Pam Smith, a Certified Real Estate Staging Specialist and proud professional member of RESA. Additionally certified as a Redesign Specialist, and interior designer, Pam is an expert at using her creativity to work with any budget and with any sized project. Pam's multitude of design talents give real estate properties the competitive edge needed to sell homes quickly and profitably.
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