Celebrating Our Best of Snohomish County Wins – Thank You!

What an incredible night! We are beyond grateful for everyone who joined us to celebrate being voted Best Real Estate Broker & Company and Best Handyman & House Painting for SMART Building Services in the Best of Snohomish County awards.

This recognition is a true honor, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the incredible support of our clients, friends, and community. Whether you’ve trusted us to help you buy or sell a home, or relied on SMART Building Services to keep your home in top shape, we appreciate every one of you.

At The Pelham Group NW, our passion is helping people find not just a house, but a home—one that fits their lifestyle and dreams. Meanwhile, SMART Building Services is dedicated to ensuring those homes remain in top condition, offering expert handyman and house painting services with the same commitment to quality and care.

Our recent celebration was a testament to the strong relationships we’ve built and the community that continues to support us. Seeing so many friendly faces come together to share in this moment meant the world to us.

To our clients, colleagues, friends, and family—thank you! Your trust and support fuel our passion for what we do every single day. We look forward to continuing to serve you in the years to come!

With gratitude,
Kim & Brien Pelham
📍 The Pelham Group NW at Katrina Eileen Real Estate| SMART Building Services

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Home Staging 4 Year Anniversary

It was 4 years ago that I started my own staging company specializing in occupied homes. This was my first post with Before-and-After photos (click here for original Facebook post) — a condo in South Everett that had been on the market for two months with only 2 showings and no offers. I sold it in 5 days for $5,000 above their previous price. Starting my staging company has been one of the best things I have done in my business to help my clients maximize their return on selling their home.

Most people do not know that the majority of big staging companies will not stage your home if you are living in it because they do not like your dog, your cat, and your kids. They don’t want to mix their stuff with your stuff. But if you have dogs, cats and kids, chances are your home can really benefit from some staging to help you get it looking its best. Marketing your home starts with staging and photography. If your home doesn’t look good online, buyers will simply scroll past it and won’t come and view it. So the first thing I do is help you make your home look like the photos in a magazine.

Creating an Emotional Impact

Next is to make sure that your home has an emotional impact on the buyer when they tour your home. There is psychology behind my staging. My staging is accessible and designed to create an emotional connection with the buyer. The buyer feels comfortable enough to sit down on the couch and picture themselves and their children and pets living in the house.

I use soothing colors in the master bedroom and bath to create a feeling of a spa, an oasis away from the world. In other areas of the home, I use bursts of bright colors and large graphic artwork to create energy to motivate them to make an offer. I make the home memorable by place a quirky or fun decorative item here or there so it stands out in their minds after a long day of viewing properties. “I remember that house. It had the mermaid tail in the master bathroom shower!”

And last, but very much not least, my style of staging distracts the buyer’s eye from any defects that might exist in the house. Things like scuffed paint and tired flooring become less noticeable. I work with things that might be beyond your budget to change, for example creating an updated look with an outdated bathroom tile color.

In most situations, staging has one of the highest returns on investment for anything you do to improve your home. In the listing in the photos, the staging cost the client $1,200 and they made $5,000 more on the sale. That’s a FOUR HUNDRED PERCENT RETURN on investment.

I recently had someone tell me that she received a quote of $6,000 for a partial stage of their home. My price would have been around $3,000 for a full stage. I use your existing furniture whenever possible to help keep costs down and always work with you to balance things within your budget. My staging company exists to serve my clients — it is not a profit center in my business. The staging is done at my cost, so this saves my clients big $$ over the cost of independent stagers.

Maximize Your Selling Power

The real estate market is more competitive than ever, especially in the Seattle area. Standing out from the competition has never been more challenging or crucial to selling your home, which is why home staging is so important to maximize your home’s value during the selling process.

If you would like more information on my step-by-step process to help you sell your home, call today at 425.213.8761 or schedule a FREE consultation to learn more about staging your home.

The Importance of Staging Your Home

THE IMPORTANCE OF STAGING YOUR HOME | The Pelham Group NW | Pelham Real Estate

First impressions are everything, and in the real estate world, there are no exceptions. The Seattle region’s housing market is very competitive, which means that, when selling your home, making sure it stands out is extremely important.

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