Five Staging Tips to Help Sell Your Home

If you are thinking about selling your home, here are five simple budget minded suggestions that are easy to do and will enhance the appearance and appeal of your home to the prospective buyer.

1. Create an environment that will appeal to the most people as possible. Use neutral colors when painting: beige tones; gray tones or pale greens work well. A minimal amount of furniture and accessories in the home makes it easier for the buyer to see the home’s floor plan. Put away personal items such as trophies, family photos, and collectables. Your doll, seashell or pet rock collection may be important to you but it will give the home a cluttered feel. So, pack those collections away save them for your next home.

2. Always take full advantage of all artificial and natural lighting. Check your light bulbs and make sure they are all working and that the bulbs have the some color. If some bulbs burn white and other bulbs yellow in a room, it looks odd and detracts from the room’s appearance. Try not to block any natural lighting coming into the home, particularly if you have attractive views. Remove heavy curtains and furniture in front of the windows. If possible, stage the room with light colored furniture, which will enhance lightness and makes the room seem larger.

3. Think about the purpose of each of your rooms. Homebuyers who see the property might not have the vision for what a room could be, and might distracted by how the current homeowner is using a room. For example, if the dining room is wall-to-wall toys, the homebuyer might leave the house thinking there is no dining room in the home. For best results with potential buyers turn the dining room back into a dining room and remove unrelated items.

4. Remove traces of family pets. This is a challenging one, but many buyers are extremely sensitive to pet odor, and the sight and smell of a litter box will put their nose into overdrive. Offensive odors have been known to cost many homeowners a sale. Large dog kennels in the kitchen can also take away from the appeal of your home. If you have gnawed woodwork, scratched floors or frayed rugs/carpets due to animals, make repairs before putting your house on the market.

5. When staging, create a focal point in the room. Set the table in a simple uncluttered fashion, remove extra leaves from the table to maximize available space and make the room look larger. Have a headboard on the bed in the bedroom, place fresh flowers on tables, and in large or empty rooms add a well-placed plant. All these techniques create a focal point that draws the eye and creates interest. If your home is completely empty ask your realtor about virtual staging; this is a technique where empty rooms are staged with photos showing them furnished and accessorized. Ninety percent of buyers start their home search online. Sometimes it is impossible or impractical to stage a home. Virtual staging gives buyers an idea of what the home could look like with furniture.

In summary, think about creating a clean, uncluttered, neutral canvas when staging your home and you should get a buyer quicker and for top dollar. According to Inman for every $1 that is put into staging a home there will be a $2 increase in sale price.

Marta Beckett, Realtor
Keller Williams Realty- Eden Prairie
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EPPIA is a networking group whose members are committed to the welfare of seniors in our community. EPPIA members meet to learn, exchange information and discuss issues in the field of aging. For more information on EPPIA and local senior resources, please visit our website at www.edenprairieaging.org.

Senior Housing Options

When people reach the age where they would like to downsize and move, many of them put it off because they don’t know where to start. A good place to begin is by identifying the type of housing that best suits your needs:

Senior Cooperatives - Senior cooperatives are not-for-profit organizations collectively owned and governed by the members themselves. Apartments are purchased and usually have an additional monthly operational fee to cover maintenance, renovations and repairs.

Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) - Senior housing planned and operated to provide a continuum of accommodations and services including, but not limited to: independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing care. A CCRC resident contract involves either an entrance fee or buy-in which may or may not be partially or fully refundable. These communities charge monthly fees and sometimes residents pay all or part of their utilities. You do not own your apartment in a CCRC.

Senior Housing - Senior Housing is for people age 62 or better (sometimes 55 or better) who want to live independently in a community setting. Options are townhomes or apartments. Assisted Living and Memory Care are often part of the campus, so there is a continuum of care available. These are rental units; services, amenities, length of lease and rental inclusions vary greatly among communities.

Residential Care Homes – These are homes in regular neighborhoods where 5 to 10 older adults live who need care due to dementia or illness such as Parkinson’s. There is a 24 hour awake staff to care for the residents, and a variety of activities are offered, based on the needs of the residents.

Staying At Home - There is always the option of staying in your home and contracting with Home Health agencies and/or Companion Care companies. The costs depend on the services needed and the length of time you need a caregiver/companion to provide those services.

Different types of senior housing are commonly defined as:

Independent Living - Independent Living is for seniors who wish to live independently while benefiting from the advantages of an enhanced social, cultural and recreational lifestyle. Home Health services may available on a “scheduled basis.”

Assisted Living - Assisted Living is for seniors who need help with the Activities of Daily Living (ADL), yet wish to remain as independent as possible. The ADLs can include: bathing/showering, grooming/dressing, mobility and eating/meals. Good questions to ask include: Is Elderly Waiver accepted if finances are a problem? Are special diets accommodated? How is the cost of services determined: Point system? Packages? A La Carte? Cost and availability of meals; housekeeping, utilities, amenities, and transportation are other things to consider.

Memory Care - Memory Care offers supportive health and personal care services 24 hours a day in a secure, specially designed, therapeutic residential setting for those with Dementia, Alzheimer’s and related conditions. Activities and meals are designed to meet the unique needs of the residents. Some questions to ask include: How do you determine the level of care needed? What types of activities do you provide for residents and how often? What type of nursing staff is available? (Assisted Living and Memory care may or may not provide 24 hour skilled nursing on-site.)

Some good ideas to ease stressful decision making:

• Don’t wait for a “crisis” – it is difficult on you and your loves ones. It could also limit your options in where you can live and what is available.
• Make a list of things you want in a senior community such as location, apartment type, amenities, costs, and activities.
• Avoid looking at too many communities – it can become overwhelming and confusing.
• Make the move while you are still active and can enjoy your new life style.
• Create a “Health Care Directive” – it’s a valuable gift for your loved ones and ensures you will get the type of care you want if you are unable to speak for yourself.

This is general information about four of the most common types of senior housing options. The best way to ensure you are fully informed is to determine what types of things are most important to you and then consult the experts – they will provide the answers you need.

Libby Jensen
Director of Marketing – Summit Place
www.edenprairieaging.org

EPPIA is a networking group whose members are committed to the welfare of seniors in our community. EPPIA meets five times a year to exchange information and problem solve in the field of aging. For more information on EPPIA please visit our website at www.edenprairieaging.org.

Manage Your Move

Moving is one of those things in life that most people find stressful and overwhelming. As we age our needs, interests, and abilities change. Our housing needs change too. You might gradually discover that the home where you raised your family is now too big and too much for you to take care of. Maybe you feel a bit isolated and want a more active social life. Or maybe it is just time for a change. But moving seems like an overwhelming task and you don’t know where to start as you look around at all of the things you have accumulated over the last 20, 30, 40, or even 60 years.

Here’s the good news: there are companies that specialize in moving people, and they are there to help you. These companies are often referred to as “move management companies.” Some companies focus on the senior market and they are very familiar with issues that face seniors and their families during a move. They can help you through this important life step and ease the stress of preparing to move, moving, and getting settled again.

What does a move management company do?
The core services that are offered consist of space planning, sorting items, packing, moving and then unpacking and setting up the new home.

• Creating a floor plan is the most important part of the senior move management process. An accurate layout insures appropriate clearances and familiar furniture layouts. From there, the senior move manager collaborates with the client to make decisions about which household items to keep and which ones to give to family donate, sell, etc. These decisions are difficult for many of us, but when done with an experienced and empathetic professional, it can be a motivating part of the process.
• Having the move management team safely pack your items is the next step in the process. They bring all the packing materials. No need to gather boxes from the grocery or liquor store! All packing materials are removed at the end of moving day- no mess for you to clean up.

Imagine walking into your new home, at the end of the moving day to find your furniture arranged, your bed made, clocks set, toothbrush in place, your clothes hung in your closets, the kitchen organized, and even your remote control right where you left it, on your end table next to your recliner! It’s a time when people take a deep breath, smile, and say “I can’t believe you got all of this done!”

Why use a senior move management company?
Using a senior move management company allows you to focus on yourself or your loved one who is moving. Often families are living in different cities and many are working and busy with other commitments and do not have the time or expertise to help a loved one move.  The senior move manager streamlines the entire move process as they can be the single point of contact for everyone involved. They are always working in your best interest to reduce stress and save you time and money! They know how to make moves happen and can coordinate with all of the services you need to make the move including realtors, movers, storage facilities, estate sales professionals and the community you are moving into, or out of.

• Working with you to prepare for the move the move management team can help you determine what will fit into your new home.  This eliminates the worry of finding places to put your things away, and prevents you from paying to move things that will not fit or tripping over furniture in over-crowded rooms.
• During the move your move manager will direct all aspects of the move.  This relieves clients and their families of having to deal with details they might not have the time, energy, or expertise to handle and reduces their stress.

If you are planning to move, seriously consider hiring a senior move management company to help you. Most companies will provide a free estimate; the only cost for that is your time.

Article contributors:

Holly Hansen, Senior Partner – Brilliant Moves
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Cathy Matrejek, Managing Partner - Changing Lifestyle Solutions
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952-935-5286

Amy Rottunda, Owner - House Language, LLC
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612-819-9059

EPPIA is a networking group whose members are committed to the welfare of seniors in our community. EPPIA meets five times a year to exchange information and problem solve in the field of aging. For more information on EPPIA please visit our website at www.edenprairieaging.org.

Residential Care Homes

Although the concept of residential care has been around the state of Minnesota since the 1990’s, people often ask what residential care is and how is it different from a traditional assisted living environment.

Part of the confusion lays in the fact that most residential care homes are licensed as assisted living, but how and where they provide care makes all the difference in the world. Generally speaking, these are free-standing, single-family homes located in residential neighborhoods, not large facilities. They provide high quality care in real homes in real neighborhoods and give individuals a place to age in a home-like environment, often in their own community.

Residential care homes are licensed and monitored by the Minnesota Department of Health. Most are privately owned and managed by a 1-2 person team dedicated to knowing each resident and their family. On average, homes accommodate between 4-12 residents in a low caregiver to resident ratio. This allows for individualized care based on knowing each resident and their needs. Various activities are provided and individual interests and routines are respected. The small number of residents creates an intimate family-like environment. It also allows homes to specialize in types of care. For example, homes might specifically serve those with Alzheimer’s and dementia, Parkinson’s disease, or 50-70 year olds with other types of cognitive or physical disabilities. Other homes might have a mixed population of care needs. Whatever the case may be, residential care homes are warm and inviting, staffed by competent individuals.

Homes are staffed with awake caregivers on a 24/7 basis. Homes have access to an RN and owners of the homes are often on site. Owners serve as the point person, communicating with families, residents, staff and providers. Staff are competent and compassionate individuals who treat residents like their own family members. Staff receive ongoing training to ensure they provide the best delivery of services. Families and residents find comfort in this and real bonds are developed. Staff, residents and visitors naturally become a family unit. Conversations flow with and among all due to the intimate nature of the setting.

Transitioning from one’s home to any facility can be difficult, but moving to a residential care home allows for minimal disruption because it is a one-time move. Homes adapt themselves to meet the needs of the residents, and work with other service providers to enable the individual to remain in the care home until end of life. Individualized care plans are developed with the family and/or resident and care is modified to meet the changing needs of each resident.

Ask yourself - Would your loved one’s current housing situation:

• Adapt the environment to meet the needs of one resident?
• Develop a plan to help a resident with behaviors rather than hospitalize or medicate them?
• Have family sleep over at the end of life?
• Allow a resident to iron, laundry, set tables?
• Recognize them as an individual who has a rich past?
• Allow a husband and wife to live together regardless of care levels?
• Have a staff person escort them to the Emergency Room?
• Move in with their beloved pet?
• Modify one’s care to support end of life in a home environment?

In the end, residential care homes are smaller, more intimate and offer individualized care through the end of life in a real home environment. All of this is managed by a one or two person management team that closely knows the resident and is available 24/7 to meet their needs and the needs their families.

Article contributors:

Christine Rowland, MSW Pioneer Estates
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Jenny Morgan, RN Breck Homes
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Tina Haugstad RN Nurturing Care
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For more info: www.Residentialcare-mn.org

EPPIA is a networking group whose members are committed to the welfare of seniors in our community. EPPIA meets five times a year to exchange information and problem solve in the field of aging. For more information on EPPIA please visit our website at www.edenprairieaging.org.