Los Angeles Home Staging Info

Last week, I was asked to do a home staging bid on a home in Arcadia, CA, that was located in an area of Arcadia known for its free roaming peacocks, near the LA County Arboretum. I stage many homes in Arcadia and am often asked about feng shui and peacocks.

The peacock is the official city bird of Arcadia and a picure of a peacock is displayed on street signs and the official city seal.

It's not unusual to see peacocks and peahens grazing in front yards and wandering the streets of Arcadia, particularly near the LA Arboretum.

Peacocks were first brought from India to Arcadia at the beginning of the 20th century by "Lucky" Baldwin, an early landholder in Arcadia, and founder of the Santa Anita Park Racetrack.

Peacocks & Feng Shui:

I think one of the many reasons (besides being lovely to look at) peacocks are allowed to roam freely in Arcadia is because of their high symbolic value in Feng Shui. Peacocks symbolize beauty, love and attraction, and their feathers are often used as a love "cure" to attract a partner. In addition the "1,000 eyes" of the male's tail feathers promote fame and luck and also awareness and protection. Its not a bad idea to have a statue of a peacock or a tail feather in your office or place of business if you want to have better luck and recognition for yourself or your business.

Peafowl Facts:

• Peafowl is the official name when you are not being gender specific
• Peacock is the male, peahen is the female, and peachick are the offspring under 1 yr. old
• Peafowl can fly, but not very far. They like to roost in trees.
• Peacocks molt their tail feathers naturally at the end of the breeding season each year
• Peacocks use their brilliantly colored tail feathers to attract mates (the more, the merrier)
  
• Peafowl can live up to 15 years in captivity

How to live in harmony with peafowl:

Besides being beautiful, peafowl can also be destructive to gardens, and can also be very loud and noisy. Here's some tips to deter peafowl from setting up residency in your yard.

• Choose garden plants that peafowl don't like to snack on. A few good choices are Azalea, Bird of Paradise, Bouganvillea, Cactus, Clivia, Gardenia, Lavender and Roses.
  
• Peafowl are omnivorous. They will eat dog & cat food, seeds, bugs, plants, you name it. Don't leave cat or dog food out and cover your compost heap if you have one.
• Peafowl don't like to be sprayed with water. Sprinklers & hose spray can act to deter them from your property.
• Don't feed peafowl. You may like them, but your neighbor may not. It is illegal to feed peafowl on public property.

Click here for more information about Peacocks in Arcadia provided by the city of Arcadia.

Click here for more information about using Feng Shui to help sell your home or home staging in Arcadia.

The past few weeks have been super busy, with most (not all) of our home staging projects located in Arcadia.

We are very fortunate to have a loyal following among many of the top Arcadia real estate agents and Arcadia Realtors. Moving Mountains Design gets hired to stage many of the new construction Arcadia homes and luxury homes in Arcadia, but lately we have been staging a lot of homes for real estate investors who have started investing in Arcadia real estate again.

This past week we were hired to stage this beautifully remodeled Arcadia home. I really enjoy working with this listing agent. He and his wife are real go-getters and part of his marketing package is to offer home staging on some of his listings (now you see why I like working with him:o)

As you can see, I added red and orange touches in both the living room and the master bedroom which works very well with the red dining room walls.

For more information about this beautiful Arcadia home, contact the listing agent, Wilson Wu, Coldwell Banker (626)215-6018. MLS#A10036253

The past 2 weeks have been very busy for the Pasadena & Arcadia home stagers at Moving Mountains Design. Here are photos of a lovely pool home in Arcadia that we staged.

This Arcadia pool home has wall to wall windows in the living room and dining room that overlook the sparkling blue pool. With an open floor plan and generously sized rooms, this is a great home for entertaining. This smart homeowner knew that by hiring a professional home stager, potential buyers would not be put off by large open rooms and would be able to see how they could lay out their furniture if they purchased this home. Also, every space now has a clearly defined purpose and the home feels warm & welcoming.

To see more photos of this terrific Arcadia pool home, read Arcadia Home Stagers Stage a Wonderful Pool Home on my Los Angeles home staging blog.

For more information about this home, contact the listing agent, Ben Tong, at (626)589-3879. MLS#H10031994

Congratulations Tommy Thai, listing agent extraordinaire! You did an incredible job marketing this luxury Arcadia listing and getting it sold quickly and for top dollar ($2.4M+).

And thank you for hiring Moving Mountains Design to stage this gorgeous new construction home.

Escrow opened and closed in a record 4 days after receiving 3 bids!

Click here to read more about how we staged this gorgeous new construction Arcadia luxury home

Click here to visit our home staging in Los Angeles and Arcadia web site

For more information about home staging in Los Angeles, Arcadia and Pasadena, or to learn how we can help you sell your home faster and for a better price, contact Michelle Minch at (626)441-8975 or via email Michelle@MovingMountainsDesign.com

Moving Mountains Design We know what makes homes sell (TM)

Los Angeles home staging company, Moving Mountains Design, was hired to stage this gorgeous Arcadia home last week.

It's brand new construction, approximately 6,000 sq. ft. with 5 bedroom suites, 5 1/2 bathrooms. We staged the entire downstairs including the entry, living room, family room, dining room, breakfast area, 2 kitchens, pantry, butler's pantry, family room/great room, formal office and downstairs bedroom suite. Upstairs we staged another family room, a second bedroom suite, a wet bar, the Master bedroom and bath. 

It took 6 stagers & 2 furniture movers the better part of the day, but we got this beautiful home staged in one day on time and on budget.

Read more and see more photos at Moving Mountains Design home staging web site

For more information about this gorgeous new construction Arcadia home, contact the listing agent, Tommy Thai, Prudential California Realty, (626)389-3899.

©2009 Moving Mountains Design and Michelle Minch. All rights reserved.

Arcadia home staging helps sell home on the evening of the first open house. The owner/agent didn't even have time to get the sign up!

After sitting on the market for several weeks, with no offers (not even low ball offers) the owner/agent decided to stage this cute cottage in hopes of getting it to sell. He had gotten one of our brochures from another house we had staged in the area, and the listing agent on that house sang our praises. (See, leaving your marketing materials in homes you stage does help drive more business)

Read Staged Home in Arcadia Gets Offer After First Open House!

This was a great client to work with. He followed our instructions for the landscaping and curb appeal matters that needed to be addressed. And, since English wasn't his first language, I helped him with his Craigs List ad. We provided photographs to use on the MLS and in marketing materials. The first open house after staging was a big success with lots of potential buyers coming through. I am happy to report that the home is in escrow and is set to close shortly. The owner received an offer on the evening of the first open house. He is thrilled and we are so happy that our home staging services helped make this sale happen.

Living Room before staging by Moving Mountains  Design

Living room after staging

Another view of the living room before staging

 After staging by Moving Mountains Design Home Staging

Master bedroom before staging (sorry I don't have the exact same angle)

Master bedroom after staging. We had no choice but to place the bed in front of a window. 2 walls had windows, one wall had a closet door and the remaining wall was too short for a queen bed.

Sorry no 'before' photo of this angle from the dining room into the kitchen

If you need help getting your home ready to sell or want to have your home staged in Arcadia, Los Angeles, Pasadena, San Marino, Alhambra, the San Gabriel Valley or the San Fernando Valley, please call us at (626)441-8975 or visit our Arcadia and Pasadena home staging web site. We have lots of photos of homes
 we have helped move from "for sale" to "sold".

©2008www.MovingMountainsDesign.com. All rights reserved.

Update: Staging was the Magic Bullet! This house had been on the market for 217 days before we staged it. It sold a few days ago. 58 days on the market after staging (that includes a 30 day escrow).

We had the opportunity to stage a beautiful Mediterranean style home in Arcadia, CA, this week. The home has been on the market for more than 7 months with no offers, which is unusual in this area, even in this market. The Listing Agent is very energetic, enthusiastic and on top of her game. Apparently, the homeowner was a little ambivalent about selling the house, or at least doing what needed to be done to get the house sold, and there were some accessibility issues for showings.

This week the home owner agreed to have the house staged, and the Listing Agent is excited that he has made this commitment to the selling process. I don't normally do occupieds, but I couldn't resist this one. Most of the rooms were devoid of furniture, and we did use a little bit of the home owner's furniture where appropriate. We purchased all new bedding and towels for the home owner to use and move to his new home. Hopefully, staging this home will be the magic bullet that helps it sell. Here are the end results:

Living Room

Dining Room

Family Room

Kitchen

Master Bedroom

Master Bath

The home owner is so happy about how the staging turned out that he has asked me to help him furnish his new home once this one is sold.

For another perspective on this project see Rugs Make All The Difference

Moving Mountains Design is the San Gabriel Valley's premiere home staging and interior design company. Located in Pasadena, California, we help our clients in Pasadena, Arcadia, San Marino, San Gabriel and La Canada/Flintridge sell their homes faster and for more money. Visit our web site www.MovingMountainsDesign.com, or call us at (626)441-8975 to discuss your home staging or interior design needs. From Condos to Cottages to Castles, we know what makes homes sell.

We staged a very nice Mediterranean style home yesterday in Arcadia, CA. It looked great when we were finished, but something was missing. Rugs! The Persian rugs weren't part of my original contract, but the homeowner, Realtor and I all agreed that they were really necessary. Yes, the home had  large expanses of beautiful Brazilian Cherry hardwood floors. But in this case, the hardwood floors were too much of a good thing and needed to be subdued a bit. I am truly a Persian rug junkie, and I use them wherever I am able, but I am still always amazed at the warmth and finishing touch a well chosen rug can add to a room.  Persian rugs always add a touch of class. A great Persian rug can elevate a not-so-special home to a home buyers will fall in love with.

This is the Living Room after staging, but without rugs.

 Living Room after staging with the addition of a beautiful Persian rug.

Family Room after staging but before the addition of a Persian rug.

Family room after the addition of a Persian rug.

For more photos of this project see Will Staging Be the Magic Bullet?

Copyright Moving Mountains Design 2007. All rights reserved.

I am honored to have been nominated for Professional Stager of the Year. To vote for me, click here. 

Moving Mountains Design is the Pasadena area's premiere home staging and full service interior design company, serving Pasadena, San Marino, Arcadia, Alhambra, La Canada/Flintridge and the San Gabriel Valley. Visit our website at www.MovingMountainsDesign.com or phone us at (626)441-8975 to discuss your home staging and property merchandising needs.

In a recent blog The Homeowner Raised the Listing Price $200,000 AFTER STAGING!!! I wrote that the homeowner was so excited after we staged his home that he raised the listing price by $200,000.00 from $2.78 million to $2.98 million. Well, the home has sold already and escrow has closed! The homeowner did not get the original $200,000.00 bump he had hoped for after staging, but he did get an additional $80,000.00 he would not have gotten if he hadn't staged the house. We staged the home on June 15, 16, & 17. The one and only open house (Realtors Caravan) was held on June 20 (Wednesday). The first offers (multiple) came in on Friday, June 22. Escrow closed last Thursday, July 12.

How's this for statistics:

• Days on market before an accepted offer - 5!
• Days on market from MLS listing to close of escrow - 22!
• Value added by staging - $80,000.00!

This is an excellent example of the value hiring a Professional Home Stager to enhance your property regardless of how grand the home.

In addition, the home buyer purchased all of the Persian rugs, French tapestries and furniture from my company Moving Mountains Design after the purchase of the home was negotiated. This turned out to be a win-win-win situation for all involved.

You can view additional photos of the house at Before & After Pics of "The Big House" .

The home buyer loved the way the house was staged so much that they purchased all of the rugs, tapestries & furniture, plus some of the accessories after escrow closed!

Michelle Minch is the President of Moving Mountains Design, a full service Home Staging and Interior Design corporation, located in Pasadena, CA. You can visit our website at www.MovingMountainsDesign.com.

I recently blogged about my experiences staging a 7,800 sq. ft. home in Arcadia, CA, The Homeowner Raised the Listing Price $200,000 AFTER STAGING!!! . This was a beautiful house - I was very lucky to have such a great canvas to work with. Here are some Before and After photos:

Living Room Before and After (above)

Office Before and After (above)

Loft Sitting Area Before and After (above) (A vertical picture would have been better, but this was all I had left at this point)

Dining Room Before and After

Den Before and After

Moving Mountains Design is a full service Home Staging and Interior Design Corporation located in Pasadena, CA. We specialize in staging vacant homes in Pasadena, Arcadia, San Marino, La Canada/Flintridge and San Gabriel.