Preparing Homes For Sale in Rockland and Bergen

Free monthly newsletter with advice for selling homeowners.

We can help you prepare your home for sale. To sell your house in weeks not months, start with an evaluation by a professional home stager.

Advice for a Home Seller

A Conversation with our Chief Designer

Q. First, what does The Staging Prince do?

We advise homeowners on how to prepare and present their homes for sale and how to maximize the return they’ll get when they sell.

Q. Don’t real estate agents do that?

Not really. Because he or she is paid a commission on sale, the real estate agent’s primary goal is to market a house so it sells quickly, not to maximize the seller’s equity. So if a house needs some repairs and maybe has dated kitchen and baths, an agent’s advice may be to set the price below comparable homes so it has a chance of selling quickly. Most agents will not suggest updating the house to bring a better return, even if the cost of the updates is small and the result would make the house more competitive.

Q. What does the homeowner do about it?

Sometimes the homeowner sets the price low to avoid the hassle of making home improvements and unnecessarily gives away some of his or her equity. Sometimes the homeowner elects to set a high price because he doesn’t believe his house is worth less or because he wants to "test the market". He may even choose an agent who recommends setting a high price just to get the listing. The agent knows the house won’t sell at that price but may use the listing to find buyers to show other houses to. Eventually, after there are no offers, he’ll recommend cutting the price.

Q. So in setting too high a price or giving away equity -- either way the homeowner loses?! What can The Staging Prince do to help this homeowner?

First, as advisors, we work for the homeowner. We provide professional advice that the homeowner can trust. While we're not appraisers, we can advise homeowners on which updates to make and, if they like, also find contractors to make them and coordinate their work. The cost of the seller's making repairs or updates is nearly always less than the discount a buyer will demand to do tht work – because the buyer would need to finance the repairs on top of having just gotten a mortgage. And with so many houses on the market, a buyer can simply choose one doesn’t need work.

Q. What is the process that you use to make recommendations?

To assess the homeowner’s needs, we would conduct an evaluation for a fee as a basis for making recommendations. We will review our recommendations with the homeowner and chart a course of action to implement them according to the homeowner's wishes and budget. The homeowner is under no obligation to implement our recommendations, of course, and may want them purely for planning purposes. Whatever they do with the recommendations, they have benefitted by having their home looked at objectively by a professional staging consultant who has told them what changes are needed to sell the house quickly and maximize their equity..

Q. When should a seller contact The Staging Prince?

If homeowners call us early, while making the decision whether to sell or not, they get several benefits. They can use our repair and update recommendations as part of their planning. They can take time to do the repairs and updates with less disruption. And they can actually enjoy the updates while living in their home. They may even like the improvements so much that they postpone selling for a year or two. So they should call us early if they can.

If they have no time to wait, that’s ok. We can often complete improvements in a few weeks, sometimes in a few days. But it is important that the house be properly prepared to sell before the first open house, which brings the most traffic.

Q. Do seniors in Bergen and Rockland have special concerns?

Bergen County became suburban in the 50's after the War and in the 60's after the lower deck was added to the GW Bridge, while Rockland County became suburban in the 60’s and 70’s, spurred by completion of the TZ Bridge and the Palisades Parkway. Many Rockland County residents moved their families from the city and have been here – generally in the same house – since then. Having reached the status of seniors, many longtime Bergen and Rockland residents, as well as those throughout the Hudson Valley, are now selling their homes and moving to warmer climates and to areas with lower property taxes. But many seniors are not in a good situation. If they’ve lost retirement money in the stock market and then have to sell their home at a depressed price, they may struggle during retirement. While homes are selling, it's a challenging environment in which buyers are choosy. The Staging Prince can help downsizing seniors and other homeowners maximize their equity when they sell.

Q. So The Staging Prince is truly helping a homeowner as his or her advisor. In closing, can you summarize what you do for a Hudson Valley homeowner?

Right. We advise homeowners on readying their homes for market, presenting them to potential buyers through home staging, and maximizing their equity upon sale. Hopefully that reduces the stress of moving. We can help homeowners sell their homes quickly and at the best possible price.

With our advice, chances are the seller will get more money for the house and also will sell it faster. The modest cost of home staging is really an investment rather than an expense.