One of the most important steps in marketing a home is setting the stage, making the home more inviting and appealing to potential buyers. It also can be an additional revenue generator for the REALTOR® with the right sense of style and motivation.

Even the most reluctant homeowner can be persuaded to part with some clutter, freshen dull walls with a clean, neutral paint color and brighten the home with flowers. Some Realtors and home sellers are finding that with the proper staging, they can actually command higher prices for homes after they are "staged" than they could by leaving the owner's decor, furnishings and belongings in place.

All that is required is a little more good faith on the part of the home owner and a great sense of style on the part of the Realtor. You will explain to the home owner that fees for home staging are separate and above your regular fee as will be the storage costs for furnishings and junk that "doesn't work" and the cost of goods that are added to the home such as rented furnishings or flower beds. But the higher price you can get for the property will be well worth it - to you and the home seller. You can either charge the fees for yourself or hire a home staging firm. Either way, home staging services are a terrific addition to your portfolio of services.

Two real estate professionals with Prudential California Realty have made home-staging a marketing specialty. Judith Glass and Sheila Sabine work as a team to add decorations and furniture to present a property in the best light. Other Realtors and home owners may choose to hire a company to do this service, but Glass and Sabine choose to do the work themselves.

The team works with sellers to make their property stand out from the competition by creating an atmosphere of beauty and tranquillity. They bring everything from furniture, to flowers, to art for the walls to achieve the best effect to awe potential buyers.

"The most important thing for a house on the market is that it shows well," Sabine said. "People buy homes based on emotions. As a seller, you want to be certain your home will arouse those emotions the second a prospective home buyer walks in the front door."

Glass and Sabine specialize in bringing out the potential in the home with paint, potted plants, and even crawling through their home owner's attics to retrieve antique treasures. The team's technique is based on three words: see, simplicity and select.

"We walk into a house and try to see it for what it really is - the bones of the house. We then see what we can do to simplify the surroundings, after which, we begin selecting decor that will "wow" buyers," Sabine explains. "The decor will show the buyer were they can sit buy the fire and sip a glass of wine; where they can host dinner parties; and where they can end their stressful day in the master bedroom. A buyer's heart has to be touched to make a sale."

The team includes their staging service in every listing presentation and rarely do they list a home unless the sellers agree to let them stage it.

Both women have backgrounds in art and interior design. Glass has an MBA degree in marketing and is a member of the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association. Sabine is a graduate of the Sogetsu Ikebana School of Tokyo. They both recognize the value of Feng-Shui, the art of arranging inanimate objects and walls to generate positive energy flow. Sabine also trains other real estate professionals at Prudential California Realty how to stage homes.

"Ninety-five percent of the homes we stage sell in the first month of being on the market," Glass said. "Not only do staged homes sell quickly, it is not unusual for multiple offers to come in over the asking price."