Home Improvement

Home Staging When shows like HGTV's Designed to Sell and A&E's Sell This House become the water-cooler topics of choice, it's safe to say there's something to this home-staging brouhaha. And according to a 2003 HomeGain nation-wide survey of 2,000 real estate agents, home improvements in the $80 to $2,800 range made before a sale yielded the highest returns later. Not surprisingly, staging--showcasing a property so it appeals to buyers--has become big business. That means decluttering, furnishing whole houses to look spectacular or creating vignettes for walk-throughs. Some entrepreneurs even diversify with services like consulting, junk hauling, move-in arranging, color consultation and personal shopping. According to stagers we spoke with, you can get started with as little as $500 to $1,000 for a home office and marketing materials. Teresa Hagaman, president and founder of StagedRight Inc. in Berryville, Virginia, says you can expect to reinvest income into the business for the first three years. The 38-year-old has had to hire four employees, as sales have tripled each year since she began in early 2003. But how will this business fare if the real estate bubble bursts? Trish Boyle, 40, founder of Stage Right Design in Westport, Connecticut, is optimistic: "There will still be people needing to buy and sell homes, and sellers will be at risk of losing equity, so they will need stagers even more." Senior Retrofitting According to AARP, 82 percent of midlife and older Americans wish to remain in their homes forever. With the oldest boomers turning 60 next year, this means you can expect to hear a lot more about retrofitting homes for senior living. The National Association of Home Builders in Washington, DC, predicts that the aging-in-place remodeling market will comprise anywhere from $20 billion to $25 billion of the more than $214 billion remodeling market in the coming years. But "boomers don't want to see themselves as getting frail," says Jim Lapides of the NAHB Remodelors Council. Making stairs easier to climb or lowering light switches may ease the aging process, but many seniors won't seek out such retrofits. So the NAHB encourages remodelers to cross-sell subtle retrofitting for aging in place when doing routine jobs in seniors' homes. Networking is key to reaching this demo-graphic. Get started by targeting local clubs, insurance outfits and health-care professionals.--Michelle Prather