Photo by Patsi Jones / Phoenix Home Enhancement Before

Patricia Craze is an eagle-eyed editor, but she doesn’t deal with words. She steps into strangers’ homes and, with a kind but unflinching demeanor, “edits out” the tired furniture, abstract art, dated Precious Moments collections and unsightly dust bunnies.

She is a home stager with PMC Interiors, swooping in to streamline houses before sellers put them on the market in hopes of gaining a clear advantage over the rest of the real estate on the block. And today, there’s a lot of real estate on the block, which means those Precious Moments figurines really have to go.

Craze says business is good for Phoenix home stagers, as more people try to sell their houses and seek out their advice. Three years ago, when homes were changing hands in a matter of days, if not hours, no one bothered to redecorate first.

Times have changed, but don’t fret. Snag some free advice from the Valley’s leading stagers, who offer tricks of the trade for anyone selling a house, or for those just longing to live in a model home.

First Impressions

It turns out your mother was right about first impressions. You don’t get a second chance to make one, particularly in the snap-judgment land of home buying. When someone pulls up to your house, they decide in seconds if they love it or hate it.

“It takes 15 seconds for prospective buyers to form an opinion as they approach your house, so the first thing I focus on is curb appeal,” Craze says.

Rule No. 1: Don’t park cars in the driveway. The last thing you want to do is block the view of your (soon to be) lovely home.

Patsi Jones, a home stager with Phoenix Home Enhancement, says you have even less time. “People decide in the first five seconds if they like it,” she says. “You want color, something attractive out there, like an Italian cypress tree with potted flowers.”

Make sure there is something in your yard that compels passersby to say, “How charming.” Maybe it’s a small bistro table and chairs at the entryway, a fountain or spring flowers – anything that adds an air of domestic bliss.

And while it may be the last thing people look at, the backyard is no less important. Keeping the yard maintained is a no-brainer. Take the extra step of resurfacing an old swimming pool (Pebble Tec is nice, but only when it looks new) and installing a child-safe fence.