Love It or List It. What does a Seller do when they completely fall back in love with their apartment after it has been staged? 

Do they “Love it” or do they “List it”? Is that show, “love it or list it” real?  Do people really change their plans and stay?

In the case of Sam and Leah Worth, they did both.  Looking to move their family to the suburbs, they decided to list their  3 bedroom/2 bathroom Upper Westside apartment.  The market wasn’t on fire and the real estate broker knew the offers would be substantially lower than what the market was dictating since the apartment was cluttered and worn.   Debbie Oulvey to the rescue!

A full report was issued to Sam and Leah, with all that they needed to do to prepare their property  for the selling process.  De-clutter closets so buyers can see depth and height.  De-clutter bedrooms so buyers can see space and spaciousness.  A few new pieces of furniture and lighting were purchased and the worn-out pieces were either discarded or moved to storage.  Then, the real work began:

• All rooms were painted providing a true move-in-ready appeal to the apartment.
• Windows were cleaned.
• White hotel shower curtains and towels installed in the 2 bathrooms.
• New bedding added to all 3 beds.
• Artwork was hung with a purpose – to drive traffic into the rooms.
• Sheers were hung in the windows to provide a more intimate appeal to the bedrooms and to block the street traffic visible from the main living space.

After investing long hours to properly stage the apartment, it was photographed and listed.  And the buyers came.  And they came.  And do did the offers but they were not as high as they had wanted (due to the market being a Buyers, not Sellers, market).   One day, Leah looked at Sam and said “I love this apartment.  I love the way it looks now.  Let’s stay for another few years.”  And so they did.

     *        *        *

Fast forward a few years: the market conditions in Manhattan have resurrected and a buying frenzy is happening.  Properties that are move-in ready and priced correctly are moving at a very fast pace.  Sam and Leah are giving it another try, and once again Debbie Oulvey is called in to give them pointers and advice on preparing the property for the next wave of buyers.

For more information on Home Staging New York, please call Debbie Oulvey at 917-428-3965.