Fallbrook Realtor touts new home staging techniques using light and sound

FALLBROOK - For years home sellers have heard about the potential benefits of “staging” a home. Generally, this means the seller might declutter, freshen the paint, or undertake more extensive redecorating. If done right, industry experts generally agree that a staged home aid in selling a home faster or for a higher price.

But now there are new options for would-be home stagers, at least according to local Fallbrook/Bonsall real estate professional, Marla Cruickshank, who says home sellers can now stage their home using a new breed of wirelessly controllable sound and lighting devices. She says sellers can quickly transform their homes in ways that would not have been possible just a short time ago.

One such trend is a new breed of LED light recently introduced by global lighting manufacturer Phillips Lighting. Phillips’ new Hue brand of bulb allows a homeowner to literally, “paint with colors of light,” according to Cruickshank. “It’s remarkable. Light is everything when a home buyer tours a property,” she says. “If we can enhance a property by modifying the home’s light, or if we can correct lighting issues with cost efficient lighting technology, we served both buyers and sellers. That’s our goal.”

According to Cruickshank, new lighting technologies now allow consumers to design with light, much the way a lighting professional would design the lighting for a movie set, or the way an architect might design lighting for a resort. Cruickshank says the installation is more simple than it might seem at first. Hue LED bulbs screw into standard fixtures and can be combined in ways that allow a property owner to set “scenes” by using a mobile phone app to alter the color and intensity of light. That means a consumer can bring bright “sunlight” to a dark corner, or add a warm glow to a special nook or tabletop vignette. And these colors can be altered creatively and instantly, depending on the time of day or the need. “When we first saw this new wave of wireless wi-fi-controllable LED lights, it became clear to us that this technology could help home sellers stage their homes by using light,” Cruickshank said. “We’ve been testing wi-fi controlled lighting and sound systems and we’ve fine-tuned an approach that we think can help sellers and buyers optimize their homes.”

Cruickshank is a Realtor and a listing specialist for the Fallbrook/Bonsall region. For more information about staging and listing a home for sale in Fallbrook, Bonsall and surrounding areas, visit NorthCountyHomesAndEstates.com or call Marla direct at (760) 521-2787.