What better time to evoke these emotions, then during the Holiday Season, when we’re all ( buyers included) in a mood of reflection and eager anticipation of what lays ahead. Target those emotions in potential buyers and you’ve made the sale !

Here are some tips that will help your home appeal to the buyers:

• Sight: We all love the warm glow of a fireplace, candles and effective mood lighting. It makes any room look more inviting, it brings out the warm tones in fabrics, paints and it even complements our skin tone to make us look and feel better. That’s good enough for me! Give your rooms that cozy look by switching your cool white or florescent light bulbs with warm white or amber bulbs. And don’t forget the candles. Nothing beats the warm and elegant appearance candle light can bring to your interior spaces (just keep them out of reach of children and pets).
• Sound: Sound or music can be a powerful selling strategy that used effectively, can have a welcoming and calming effect on buyers. During the holidays, why not “welcome” buyers with easy listening, well-known instrumentals. They’ll be sure to feel right at home.
• Smell: Gentle, familiar scents will evoke holiday memories in any buyer. The scent of a fresh tree, clove studded oranges, simmering cider with holiday spices, fresh baked sweets and breads…they all say “Welcome Home”. But watch for sprays and heavy scents that might affect those with allergies or other sensitivies.
• Touch: Very often buyer’s minds translate the feeling of textures in fabrics, upholsteries, draperies, accessories into a sense of inviting comfort, quality and elegance. So dig out those cozy throws, the velvet cushions or table runners, the luxuriously thick hand towels. Appeal to buyers who are looking for the comfort and quality that your home offers.
• Taste: It’s the holidays – so how about leaving a tasty treat for potential buyers. Nothing says HOME than a plate of fresh baked cookies, sweets or a festive bowl of fruit.

The more time your buyers spend in your home, the more they have invested in it. Not only can you use these home staging strategies during the holidays, but they apply throughout the year. Just adapt to the season or the current holiday and you’ll be set to SELL !

Happy Holidays!

Thank you to everyone that turned out on that lovely weekend and dropped in on us.    Your feedback was terrific and your continued interest in Accentuate staging is most sincerely appreciated.

On the Home Staging front, we were encouraged to hear that many of you are preparing to enter the real estate market after months of a slowing market.   As the market has adjusted, so have you.     With the right realtor, a realistic price and an effectively staged home you are sure to stand out in the market!  Accentuate can show you how.

For those of you staying put,  I hope that we gave you some inspiration and fresh ideas to accentuate your homes with a interior makeover or even a renovation.  We were delighted to address your interior design queries and look forward to helping you transform your homes from ordinary to extraordinary.

We invite you to drop by and see us at the Kerrisdale Ice Arena.

Where:
Kerrisdale Ice Arena
5670 East Boulevard, Vancouver (on the corner of East Boulevard and 41st)

When:
Friday, May 1           5pm to 9pm
Saturday, May 2     10am to 6pm
Sunday, May 3        11am to 5pm

There is FREE Admission and parking.

Looking forward to seeing you,

Katherine van Leeuwen
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Accentuate Home Staging Design Group
ph: 604-328-6479 www.accentuate.ca fx: 604-931-2449

Accentuate at the TD Canada Trust Home Show

This weekend, Accentuate participated in another local event—the Annual TD Canada Trust Home Show 2009 at the Johnson Street branch in Coquitlam.

We were honoured as featured speakers to present the business of Home Staging to TD customers— what it is, why it helps sell homes and tips on how to prepare homes for selling.

Thank you to everyone that attended our information seminar and who also dropped by our display table to learn more about how Home Staging can help you sell your homes faster and for top dollar.   A big thanks as well to Tom Lewis, Small Business Advisor,  for coordinating the show.

We also drew for a terrific prize this weekend.    And the WINNER is…….Janet Ong who won a 1-hour Accentuate Staging Consultation .   Congratulations Janet!

Thank you to everyone that turned out on that lovely weekend and dropped in on Accentuate.   Spring was definitely in the air, and I hope that we helped inspire those of you getting ready to freshen up your homes with a interior makeover or even a renovation.

For those of you selling your homes or thinking about selling in the near future, we were delighted to share with you the impact that home staging can have in keeping your listings competitive while also displaying for you a sampling of our rental inventory.

So…drum roll please….. with no further ado….we are very excited to announce the winner of our weekend draw.    Judy Morrow, is the lucky recipient of a 1 hour home staging or interior consultation by Accentuate – PLUS – a $50 gift card to spend at one of our favourite local stores….HomeSense.     Congratulations, Judy!

We invite you to drop by and attend our presentation “Home Staging – Who, What, Why and How?”

Come by to learn more about Accentuate, the business of home staging, why it can help you sell your home faster and for top dollar in today’s market as well as “D-I-Y” tips.

Where:
TD Canada Trust
2nd floor, 1140 Johnson Street, Coquitlam, BC

When:
Saturday April 25 at 11:30am

Looking forward to seeing you,

Katherine van Leeuwen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Accentuate Home Staging Design Group
ph: 604-328-6479   www.accentuate.ca fx: 604-931-2449