HOME owners are adding thousands of dollars to the sale price of their properties by employing stylists to spruce up their houses.
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Real estate agents said hiring one of Orange's growing number of stylists for between $1200-$6000 per house was paying for itself in increased sale prices.
With the peak real estate season of spring only a month away, and at a time when there are less houses on the market, stylists are preparing for what will be their busiest time.
BEFORE AND AFTER 1: To see the before and after of this room simply slide the white line.
LJ Hooker Orange real estate agent Alistair Miller said the use of stylists to decorate houses for sale had brought good results for sellers.
"We had a house at 14 Kite Street. We were hoping for $1.3 million and it got $1.45 million. [With the styling] I reckon it might have added $100,000-$150,000," he said.
"It's not just about adding nice stuff. It's the decluttering. They take everything out and put their [items] in. It's minimalistic with just nice stuff."
BEFORE AND AFTER 2: To see the before and after of this room simply slide the white line.
Mr Miller said about 10-20 per cent of Orange houses were now being dressed for success by property stylists.
And it's not just for the top-end properties.
McCormack Barber real estate director Peter McCormack said houses selling for upwards of $400,000 were being styled with some in the $300,000-range also receiving the treatment.
Mr McCormack said gains of between $20,000-$100,000 were being achieved.
He said there were two options. Adjusting existing furniture and adding cushions, rugs and mirrors cost about $1200-$2400. Replacing all the furniture (or filling new houses) with the designer's items for a few weeks cost $2500-$6000.
BEFORE AND AFTER 3: To see the before and after of this room simply slide the white line.
"It creates emotions. Like Coca Cola doesn't sell Coke it sells the good time having the Coke," he said.
Mr McCormack said styling worked best when houses sold quickly.
Mr McCormack said styling for five-six weeks made sense now when properties sold in that time, but was less effective if they took longer to sell and sellers had to keep paying for styling.
Anna Derham added property styling to her interior business work in 2017 and has now styled about 70 houses in Orange, from the mid-$400,000s upwards.
She is currently working on three new houses in Orange.
Mrs Derham said interior design TV shows such as The Block and House Rules were converting people.
"I think it definitely plays a part. Presentation is key. Everyone sees it on those shows," she said.
Mrs Derham said she bought all the furniture and on-sold it to keep up with design trends. "I've got enough for eight houses in my storage shed," she said.
Jess Toohey she had been styling for 18 months on top of her design work and had done about 50 houses with more underway. Initially it was new homes but now it was also older homes.
She said de-cluttering and allowing buyers to see how a room could be used effectively was important.
"I like to get rid of cords and televisions and replace them with art," she said.
Ms Toohey said the home buyers had also bought the furniture and art in about half the homes she styled.
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