Staging Basics: Cozying up Large Rooms

If you are fortunate enough to have huge, sprawling rooms in your Atlanta home, you may think that they will sell themselves when it comes time to showings and open houses. This may be true, but then again, it may not. The reason being is that large rooms often appear overwhelming to potential buyers. A myriad of questions begin entering their minds, such as: What can I use this room for? Do I even have enough furniture to fill this room? Will the room look barren and empty with my current furniture?

Although large rooms are definite selling points when viewed on paper, it is up to you to set the stage for a comfortable, warm room for potential home buyers, despite the size of the room.
Create Different Seating Areas

Perhaps the easiest way to begin staging a large room in your Atlanta home is to divide it up into different seating areas. For example, a large living room can be divided up into a reading nook, a formal area at which to greet guests, and another area, perhaps centered around the fireplace. Dividing up the room into easily manageable sections creates a warmer atmosphere and immediately turns a large, hard-to-manage space into one that is full of possibilities.

Anchor Your FurnitureAnother way to bring a large room together is through the use of area rugs. A seating area in a large room often seems to be "floating", but a seating area anchored by an area rug immediately grounds the spot and makes it feel comfortable and welcoming.
Consider the use of several area rugs in large spaces when arranging your separate seating areas.

Move the Furniture Away from the Walls
Furniture that is lined up against the walls in a large room looks as if it's standing at attention. Stiff, boring and unimaginative usually comes to buyers' minds when entering a large room with an empty center.You can instantly play down the enormity of the room by simply pulling the furniture towards the center of the room. Once again, ground the seating area with a large area rug, and consider using large plants to fill in empty corners.

Make Sure the Furniture Scale is Consistent
Loads of small-scale furniture in a large space immediately looks out of place the moment you enter the room. It can also make the room appear cluttered and unorganized.
Larger furniture, however, will fill the space better and eliminate the need to over-decorate and over-furnish.

If you are interested in listing your home, Tina Fountain Realtors has a customized selling strategy that fits every type of home. For more information on listing your home with Tina Fountain Realtors or buying a home in the metro Atlanta area, please visit www.tinafountain.com/

Easy Steps for Preparing Your Home to Sell

Your Cobb County home may be similar to all the other homes on the block, but there are things you can do to make it stand out from the crowd!

With an ever-increasing inventory of Cobb County homes for sale, sellers must become creative if they want to make their house shine. Thus, the question you must ask yourself is: What can I do to make sure my house is memorable to buyers?
The following tips will guide you as you prepare your home for its first showing:

• Clean it! Although this may sound like a no-brainer, it is extremely important to clean, and I mean a good, thorough cleaning. That means wiping down walls, cleaning windows, scrubbing out the refrigerator and sweeping off the front porch. Buyers need to imagine themselves living in your home, and that certainly can’t be done if there’s a ring around your bathtub.
• Clear out the clutter. Your kids’ pile of toys in the corner of the living room does only one thing: it detracts from the room and makes buyers feel like they have entered a toy store instead of a living room. Don’t forget the closets as you clear out the clutter, too. Your closets should be neat and organized and the contents should not attack buyers if they open the closet door. There is no quicker way to leave the buyer with the impression of a cluttered home with not enough storage than with messy closets, crammed with stuff.
• Open all blinds and curtains and allow the natural light to come shining in. And, if weather permits, open the windows and let fresh air circulate throughout the home. It gives the impression of openness and space, and quickly eliminates the odor from last night’s fish dinner.
• While you’re at it, turn on the lights in every room. A well lit space will give buyers a sense of comfort and hominess, and instantly create a feeling of spaciousness.
• If you have a fireplace, light it. This is a great way to add instant ambience.
• Add splashes of color with fresh flowers. It may be cold and raining outside, but a vase of fresh flowers in the entryway or dining room can give your home an instant facelift.
• Take Rover or Fluffy with you, and hide evidence of the litter box and food dishes. It is important to understand that not everyone loves animals, and having your frisky dog jump on buyers as they enter the front door (or barking incessantly from behind a closed door) will not leave a positive first impression.
• No dishes in the sink! And no shoes by the front door! These small details may seem rather insignificant, but in the end they can all add to a buyers’ overall impression of your home.

Tina and her staff of professional Realtors are seasoned experts in the Cobb County real estate market. To schedule an appointment to discuss your real estate needs contact us at 404-842-1555.

Cobb County Luxury Home - Under Contract!

Tina Fountain Realtors recently put 5657 Westhorpe Lane under contract! The home was listed at $500,000 and located in the Stonemill Creek Subdivision. Tina Fountain and her realtors know how to price a home to sell! They want to be sure to get their sellers as much money for their homes as possible while maintaining a price to fit the current economy to get their home sold. This is one of the many homes that Tina Fountain Realtors has put under contract in the past month. This is definitely a buyers market and Tina Fountain has personal connections that bring in buyers looking in all price ranges and all locations in the Atlanta area.

If you would like information on Cobb County real estate or listing your home with Tina Fountain Realtors, please visit www.tinafountain.com/ or call us at 404-842-1555

Cobb County Real Estate In FMLS

As of today, there are 6,737 Cobb County residential homes listed for sale in the First Multiple Listing Service, and 1,605 Cobb County condominums and townhomes for sale. When compared to other metro Atlanta counties, Cobb has a very high amount of properties for sale. The homes range in price, location, and structure. In 2006, there were 679,325 people living in Cobb County. That number continues to grow exponentially everyday with all of the homes and properties being sold. The Cobb County School District is the second largest system in Georgia and ranked among one of the top districts state wide. Cobb also offers a variety of job opprotunities and is the headquarters of The Weather Channel as well as Home Depot. Cobb County offers something for everyone and makes a great place to raise a family.

If you are interested in properties for sale in Cobb County please visit www.tinafountain.com/ or call us at 404-842-1555

Greystone Village

Tina Fountain Realtors recently listed a section of homes located at the comfortable community of Greystone Village. All of the homes are custom designed by the award winning developer Roger Thomas and feature upgrades as well as detailing throughout. Tina Fountain Realtors is offering a variety of different floorplans including ranches as well as two story plans. All homes come with fenced in yards, private patios, hardwood floors, granite counter tops, and professional lawn maintenance for the front and back yard! The community is brand new and located in the booming area of East Cobb. Greystone Village is in close proximity to shopping, dining, work, and recreation.

Cobb County Schools - Factbook 2008

The Cobb County School District was featured in a recent article by Factbook 2008. The article boasts the awards and achievements that the district has been able to obtain throughout the past decade. The school district has 17 high schools among them include: the award winning Walton High School, the Magnet School Kennesaw Mountain High School and E-High which is a new program where all courses can be taken online. The school district is the largest employer in the county with an amazing 15,000 employees working full time. Cobb not only goes beyond the expectations academically but athletically as well. Cobb County Schools makes Cobb County a great place to raise a family as well as live and work with all of the job opportunities.

If you would like more information about the Cobb County School District or homes for sale in Cobb County, please visit www.tinafountain.com/ or call us at 404.842.1555

Kennesaw - Top 10 Towns in America

Family Circle Magazine recently named Kennesaw as one of the top 10 towns in America for families. This is an outstanding achievement for us but it is no surprise with all of the wonderful ammenities we have to offer. Kennesaw offers something for everyone. We have a variety of shopping and dining, recreational sports, rich history, and renowned schools. Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is nationally recognized and brings tourists from all over to experience the history and memorials from the Civil War. Kennesaw is also home to Kennesaw State University which is the 3rd largest university in the state of Georgia and offers a variety of studies. Kennesaw is also within 15 minutes of Downtown Atlanta making it is an easy commute to businesses as well as Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Kennesaw is a great place to live, play, work, and raise a family.

If you would like more information on homes for sale in Kennesaw please visit www.tinafountain.com/ or call us at 404.842.1555

Cobb Home SOLD - 4525 Stilesboro Road

Tina Fountain Realtors has done it again! 4525 Stilesboro went under contract in July of 2008. The home was located on a private, gated 3.9 acre estate. This home features a horse arena, a large pond, 3 car garage, granite swimming pool, and 5 fireplaces. This home is perfect for a quiet evening at home as well as entertaining guests. 4525 Stilesboro is also in the renowned Kennesaw Mountain High School District making it not only a great place to live and work, but also a great place to raise a family.

If you would like more information on this home or any Cobb County home for sale please call 404.842.1555

Vinings is still a hot market!

While almost every zip code has been negatively affected in some way by the housing market, the prestigious Vinings area of Cobb County has remained a hot market. The housing price in Vinings increased by an amazing 57%. Riverwood can be thanked for part of the healthy market. It is a newer development consisting of mixed use developments. Vinings continues to live up to it's reputation as a great place to live, work, and relax.

For more information regarding Vinings Real Estate, Please visit www.tinafountain.com/

Cobb County School District

Cobb County is home to the nationally renowned Cobb County School District. It is the 2nd largest in the state of Georgia with currently over 100,000 students enrolled. Walton High School was featured in "Outstanding American High Schools." Six of the Cobb County high schools are "Magnet Schools" which have programs for the academically advance. The elementary schools in Cobb County have had record scores on standardized testing. The school district in Cobb is another reason that makes Cobb County a great place to live and raise a family.

To search for homes for sale in the Cobb County School District or for more information on Cobb County Real Estate please visit http://www.tinafountain.com/

Marietta Square Real Estate - Meeting Park

The Meeting Park is now under construction with furnished models to be viewed. The Meeting Park is home to residential as well as commercial real estate. It is within walking distance to the well-known Marietta Square. The Meeting Park will offer restaurants, coffee shops, and various retailers. The Meeting Park accents the historic feel of downtown Marietta and offers ammenities that everyone can enjoy. The Meeting Park is definitely a great addition to Marietta, and the Marietta Real Estate market.

For additional information regarding The Meeting Park or other Marietta homes for sale, please contact Tina Fountain Realtors at 404.842.1555 or by visiting http://www.tinafountain.com/