

I received a call recently from a realtor I work with that was concerned about a property in Baltimore, MD. It had been on the market for nearly 4 months already and another house down the street had sold much quicker. The other property had been staged. The realtor didn’t have much of a budget for staging the newly renovated, American Foursquare house built in the 1920s in a classic Northern Baltimore neighborhood.
The renovations were well done, lots of space and a great kitchen. The only problem was the house was empty and had gray everywhere. Gray walls, carpets, floors, even the kitchen backsplash had a mix of light and dark grays! Gray is a wonderful and trendy look for homes, but if the house is empty it can make a house seem more like a cavern instead of a home. The house needed a POP of color to relieve the overwhelming grayness. 
I had a small budget and needed to target certain areas to create a more comfortable and less caverness feel. I added tangerine accessories to the kitchen and bathrooms and a chic slipper chair in the living room. These simple touches tied the house together, created natural flow and brought a feeling of warmth and comfort through the house. The entryway was open and welcoming so I added a tall bamboo plant to highlight the space and continue the modern style of the house in the accessories.
Even with a small budget, staging can have a high impact on potential buyers. I once heard a realtor say “see something, feel something.” Every item a stager adds or arranges exists to evoke feeling and allow buyers to see themselves in that home. This house had great potential, but it needed a little warmth to turn the house into home.



Terry L. Cooch founded TLC Home, LLC in 2008, first building her reputation by helping homeowners create functional systems and calm, comfortable living spaces. Over time, her love of design and her talent for transforming how a home looks and feels led her to professional home staging. 