Professionally assisted home staging in Pelham Manor, NY, leads to an accepted offer at $250K over asking within hours of listing.

Homeowner Gina is looking to list her home for sale in approximately six months. As her first step, Gina contacts Realtor Ann Rende, the same agent who sold her the property almost 21 years earlier.

At their initial meeting, Gina and Ann discuss potential renovations that could increase the value of the home.

The home’s large bathroom, shared by all three bedrooms, is in need of an update. After meeting with her contractor, they all agree that converting this single bath into two would add tremendous value to the home and increase the list price.

This bathroom conversion would also create an en suite for the primary bedroom. Something I’m sure this family of four would have loved while they were living there.

Gina handles all of the decisions related to the bathroom remodel brilliantly on her own. And while the construction is taking place, she’s eager to get to work staging the rest of the home without breaking what remains of her budget.

To do this, Gina’s agent discusses the benefits and value of hiring a home stager who specializes in owner-occupied homes. These home staging specialists provide professional assistance for making the best and most cost-effective decisions for those planning to live in their home while it’s on the market.

As a home stager, my favorite thing to do is to collaborate with homeowners who want to do their own staging but with the design guidance of an expert. It’s so much easier and a lot more fun when you have a staging partner. The generic term is “professionally assisted,” and AtWell Staged Home’s trademarked system is called Stage to Profit®.

After discussing how we can stage the home using what is already there, along with making a few small purchases, it feels like the perfect fit. We get to work over the next few months while the bathroom construction is taking place, visiting the home just four times and supporting Gina by phone and email along the way.

We give a minor facelift to the kitchen, making it appear and feel move-in-ready. By showing its potential, we’re giving the next buyer the option to redesign it the way they want, on their own schedule and budget.

The bathroom is beautifully transformed, even though it does delay the listing by about a month. Luckily, Gina built in extra time due to the size and complexity of the project.

The results? Pretty, practical, and profitable. A major renovation balanced by subtle changes and minor updates throughout the rest of the home—from the bedrooms to the basement—lead to an accepted offer on the first listing day.

Within hours of listing, this 3-bedroom, 3-bath, 3,500-square-foot Pelham Manor, NY, house built in 1933, has an accepted offer at 15 percent, or $250K, over the asking price of $1.65M, with a final sale at $1.9M.

Here’s how Gina tells the story of this first day sale:

“I stayed for a bit at the open house, sitting in the backyard. The couple who made the offer came out and we started chatting. Turns out they had bid on four houses in this immediate neighborhood and lost all four. But they were already sold on this street. The husband told me that during their frustrated search he passed our house one evening when it was lit up from inside and said to himself, ‘I wish that house was on the market.’ That’s when I knew they would bid. I just never expected it to be so high!”

Realtor Ann is equally excited with the results and sends this note:

As my clients know, things often look worse before they look better when preparing their home to sell. After the listing goes live, Gina sends the picture on the left along with the note: “That was one month ago. How far we came!”

30 days later…

Enjoy the transformations below to see the full journey.

← Return to Blog

Like this post? Share it!

Never miss a post. Receive free monthly updates.