HOME & DESIGN
REAL ESTATE
“It was a complete change
of look, and the house
went under contract in
about 30 days.”— Matilde Sorensen
TIFFANI BUCKLEY
“Before” photo of the living room, still empty space, at 955 Surf Lane in
Vero, an oceanfront property staged by Hazel House. Buckley’s sketches
indicate the initial design elements.
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decorator-style furnishings and immediate livability for a
buyer. On the seller’s advantage list, a staged home can bring
a better price.
READY HOMES
A 2016 Maritz Research poll cited in U.S. News and World
Reports found 63 percent of buyers will pay more for move-in
ready homes. And showcasing a home with elegant interiors
and clutter-free rooms makes it easier for a buyer to visualize
living there.
For Buckley and Kennedy, the staging business began
almost accidentally. They’d been introduced through mutual
friends in Atlanta after moving to Vero.
Buckley began buying, styling and flipping homes in
Indian River County. Kennedy had just launched a design
business. They started exchanging ideas and suggestions on
projects, sharing furniture pieces and design elements. “We
said, one day we’re going to have to do this as a staging business,”
Buckley recalls.
A friend of Kennedy’s couldn’t sell an empty home in
Vero’s Riomar section, so she offered to stage it for him. The
house went under contract within days.
Enter Matilde Sorensen. The owner/broker of Dale Sorensen
Realty in Vero saw that house and hired Kennedy to
stage another home. Sorensen had just taken the listing on a
large house that had been lingering on the market in John’s
Island along the ocean for nearly a year.
Buying and flipping homes became a less viable option
for Buckley after the real estate market improved in 2014, so
Kennedy asked Buckley to help her stage Sorensen’s John’s
Island listing. The staging business was born. >>
After staging is completed
in the same room. A
slightly modern feel with
neutrals and a touch of
color, the clean look that
is a specialty of Hazel
House design.
JAMES NORTHEN