Barbara Jacobs offers Color Design for Real Estate Professionals: Is it “Design,” or “Staging”?
Color and design services for real estate professionals are designed to help!
As a real estate professional, you know that “color is key” in making that all-important first impression to a new buyer. Whether for a condo, an HOA group, an individual residence or a commercial location, the same principles apply. And on the other hand, your new homeowners will want to be making their new house their own very personal home environment.
Color is the creative staging necessary for any property, whether residential or commercial. Barbara Jacobs has enough depth in her experience to comfort and guide even the color blind… Her summation is presented in remarkable detail, which leads to the roadmap for the painter. It is a rather seamless process, created from years of professionalism. Thank you, Barbara, for all that wisdom.
—Susan Schlossberg
Real Estate Professional, Cambridge, MA
Whether you need “Design” or “Staging,” you and your clients can benefit from professional design consulting services.
A few of the ways I can help you and your clients sell their home better are:
- Staging Consultation: revise the existing space in various ways, to create focus
- Maximize the best features – minimize others
- Artwork – Yes, it can make a difference. Selection and installation are both important.
- Interior color
- Exterior color
- Added value
- Curb Appeal – consulting about paint colors; roofing; stone; shutters; millwork, and other materials to incorporate both practical and aesthetic items; plantings, and architectural details (adding, removing, or changing specific items in some way to enhance the property)
- And this unique service: Designer Color Palettes™– a new way to visualize colors!
Because you and your clients can see the property with new colors—before painting—it’s a great tool to inspire your clients with fresh color ideas, both Before and After the sale. - DCP™ is our own proprietary system
This exciting viewing process allows you to see what the advertised property or newly purchased property will look like with new colors—before the investment has been made in actually painting.
This little cottage is just one example of how color makes a big difference!
So, back to the initial question…What is “Design,” and what is “Staging?”
As you can imagine, the word “design” carries a lot of hidden information. Many levels and areas of expertise are included there. Therefore, for the purpose of this discussion, a designer is a professional who specializes in home design, renovation, and decor. The term “decorator” usually applies to someone who is not involved in actual restructuring of the space, or creating lighting and electrical plans. That is for professionals in the field who have specific education and experience and often special licensing. This of course would include architects and other licensed design-build professionals.
Quoting from the Real Estate side…
“I believe that an excellent paint job and some creative staging can embellish any property, whether commercial or residential in nature. Color is the creative staging. Color done incorrectly can confuse potential buyers, lower the price and delay longer a sale. The flow of an area can be defined as well as diffused by understanding where emphasis should not be placed or where a focal point is needed. A good real estate broker can increase the value of a most ordinary residence simply by hiring the appropriate professionals for the job.
–Susan Scholssberg, Real Estate professional, Cambridge, MA
Create the invitation to imagine.
Many real estate professionals work with stagers and already have a good idea and experience with that process. The process of “Staging” usually covers the field of helping revise the home to be more neutral in a sense. Ideally this will result in a space that is not just empty and vacant looking, but a house that has a minimum of highly personal items of the current owner that might dominate the feeling of the space. After all, we want it to feel inviting in many ways – ideally, to be inviting just as shown. We also want to invite the prospective new owner to use their imaginations, so they can personally identify with the house and project themselves into living there
Some of the aspects of staging are in the list above. Staging can be consulting—or actually moving things around. Sometimes staging involves inserting new (rented or borrowed) furniture and other decor items into the space to give it a more inviting look. But often using some of the existing furnishings is also possible. Each location is different.
If you do work with stagers who select colors, I am happy to use my DCP process with the colors they have selected. Just send me a note with your questions.
One example of a multi-faceted project
Publications
- Whether in tough or easy real estate times we need all the help we can get in making our homes attractive. Creating Curb Appeal by Michelle Valigursky & Lisa Vail, with photography by Theresa M. Grant, is a beautiful and affordable resource for anyone interesting in creating a beautiful home exterior. I’m pleased to have been included in the “Living with Color” chapter of this publication!
Boston area architectural and interior designer Jeanne Kopacz brings a well-rounded and complete approach to the title’s subject, with the emphasis on how color affects all areas of the design process. I was delighted to be a resource for the section on “Visual Color Mixing.”- Durability + Design
I’ve been a contributor to this professional publication for a number of years, providing a variety of blog posts and a recent feature article.
Because each client is different, there are many solutions to their situations. I look forward to answering any questions you have about how I can work with you to help create the ideal way to help your client.