Looking for a simple formula for a successful sale? Our clients who follow these 6 steps have tremendous success getting their properties sold quickly and for top-dollar. Preparation, planning, and teamwork make the home-selling process go smoothly. Your home stager, photographer and listing agent are 3 key partners in your sale.  

Six Steps for a Successful Sale

1) Meet proactively with a professional home stager and begin working on your staging plan several months before you need to sell. We recommend Debbie Lea from Showcase Home Stagers. She's the best in the business.  

2) Implement low-cost, high-impact cosmetic improvements that dramatically improve your home's mass appeal. Your stager and your real estate agent can offer guidance on

We just updated our home and condo selling statistics for the 2016 sales year and compared our results to the MLS average in Dane County.

On average our listings sell for the full list price within 15 days of being on the market. 

The results validate a few of our key philosophies:

• Focus on communication. The home-selling process goes smoothly with regular and open communication. 
• Focus on improvements. We identify low-cost, high-impact projects that help you sell quickly and for top dollar. Then we refer you to reliable contractors who complete your projects at a fair price. 
• Focus on preparation by connecting you with the best stager in Madison, Debbie Lea. We pay for all of your staging costs and give you all the time you need with

Our vacant home listing at 8127 Broadmoor St is selling today, thanks in large part to the staging professionals at The Cozy Home. The Cozy Home offers turnkey staging services which transform the "bland" empty home into a "grand" MLS listing that motivates buyers to act quickly. Below are a few "before" and "after" shots which demonstrate the positive impact of staging provided by a professional. 

Living Room Before Staging

Living Room After Staging

Dinette Before Staging

Dinette After Staging

Bathroom Before Staging

Bathroom After Staging

Looking for a full-service, customized marketing plan that goes the extra mile? Contact us for a complimentary consultation. We'll work with you to develop an

When homes are prepared to list, it's always important to consider the condition of the walls. A fresh coat of paint can work wonders for the overall look and feel of your property. Doing this is easy, and quick to complete. While it's true that most people can grab a brush and paint a wall, sometimes hiring a professional can pay off in big ways. Phil McClarey of Integrity Painting Services offers several reasons to consider hiring a professional team:

1. They can spot correct: Have you ever tried to brush over just one spot, only to find that the wall is splotchy once it dries? A professional painter is experienced with problem spots, and often can cover them without repainting the whole room. McClarey's team can also repair blemished woodwork,

How do you sell a listing? It starts with an online showing, where potential buyers look at the photos you've posted, and determine if it's worth their time to come in person. Debbie Lea of Showcase Home Stagers knows this well. She works with each of our clients to transform their space, and make their homes truly photo-ready. It's not as simple as just making the rooms look nice. Debbie looks at the potential angles for photographs, and prepares each room to shine.

"People are shopping for an experience. They want to imagine themselves hosting friends, throwing a party, or relaxing in the quiet spaces of their new home. You can arrange the items in your home to help tell that story," she says.  When staging a room, Debbie looks for opportunities to

Do you need to sell your current home in order to buy another? Are you wondering how you can compete against other buyers who don't have a home sale contingency? Do you feel overwhelmed by the tasks in front of you?

Whether your goal is to "down-size" or "up-size", you and your agent can make it happen by putting a proactive plan in place. Read on to learn our seven tips for selling and buying at the same time. By following these tips you'll be taking the necessary steps that will get you into your dream home. 

7 Tips for Selling and Buying at the Same Time

Tip 1: Work proactively with your real estate agent so you're ready to sell your home as soon as you find the home you'd like to buy. This means getting your home staged and having your

In the month of December our real estate team helped 3 different clients sell their home and buy a new home on the same day. As you'll see below, each client took a unique approach to making their home purchase happen. The common element among all 3 clients was each one worked proactively to implement a specific, well-thought-out plan. See below to learn how each client sold one home in order to buy another.  

Client One: Creating a Plan A and Plan B

Our clients Jeff and Patsy wished to sell their home in Waunakee in order to buy a new construction home in Madison. We were confident we could accomplish this by selling their current home quickly and scheduling it to close on the same day as their purchase. Just in case, Jeff and Patsy put a

All of the photos below come from our 2016 listings. Each picture offers a great example of how professional staging and professional photography can work together to create a killer listing. These photos come from both upscale and modest homes, and from homes large and small. No matter what kind of home you have, you can have killer listing photos, too. 

A special thanks to Debbie Lea from Showcase Home Stagers, who shares her expertise with all of our listing clients. These listing photos wouldn't be possible without her expertise and guidance. Remember, we offer Debbie's consultation free of charge when you hire us to sell your home. 

Kitchen and Dining Room Photos

Living Room Photos

When you think about updating your home, maybe you think about granite counter tops? Flooring updates? Bathroom remodels?  While all of these updates can help you net more for your home, they also require cash up front.

What if you want to sell, but don’t want to put substantial money into these updates? Debbie Lea of Showcase Home Stagers says you can still improve your home’s visual appeal and perceived value. Debbie works with each of our clients, and her staging services are included as part of our marketing plan. Her innovative ideas, and eye for design have greatly enhanced our listings.

Debbie recommends looking at your home the way it will appear in the online listing. After all, your home’s online photos will be your first showing. Does

It's a common misconception that you have to show your home to generate interest from buyers.  We're finding that there are ways to attract buyers in the early stages of preparing a listing, even before your home is ready to show. Take, for example, a listing we have at 2 Thornhill Circle, in Wexford Village. Before the home was even officially ready to show, the sellers had eight showing appointments lined up.

How did this happen? We used an effective selling strategy:
1. Have a Professional Staging Consultation
2. Finish Staging the First Floor
3. Professionally Photograph the First Floor
4. Make the Listing Available on the MLS and Online
5. Continue Staging the Rest of the House
6. Have the Rest of the Home Photographed and Filmed
7. Open the Home for