There is something to be said about a neat and tidy house when you are sorting through house after house looking for the perfect home for you and your family. This is something that should be kept in mind when selling either a personal home or an investment property. There are a few other things you should keep in mind when it comes to selling real estate. One of those things is that staging sells homes.

Seriously, there is something cold about an empty house. It could be painted impeccably and meet every possible standard a family has and yet feel cold and anything but homey when walking through the home for a real estate tour or inspection. This can be easily overcome by contacting a local furniture rental store and picking out furniture that will match at least the primary rooms of the home in order to make the home appear leaved in and homelike.

The primary rooms that you will want to appear ‘lived in’ are the living room, dining room, master bedroom, and all bathrooms. These are the rooms that essentially sell homes and it is important to make them appear neat, orderly, and well cared for. If you have the funds for every room in the home then by all means do so. It is a huge selling point, particularly for those who are trying to sell homes quickly. If the home doesn’t sell after the first two weeks or month (you decide the time limit) then you may want to remove the ’staging’ furniture in order to eliminate the expense. I would strongly encourage you to keep this furniture as long as the home is being shown fairly regularly though.

You will want to do so much more than simply putting furniture in the property you are trying to sell. You want to create an atmosphere or warmth and comfort. This means you want to have prints on the walls, mirrors, plants, and pillows. You do not have to purchase items particularly for this process. You can use things from your own home in order to establish this atmosphere of homelike comfort. Be sure not to use sentimental favorites or very valuable pieces, as not all people who will view the property being sold are honest. It’s a sad reality but something to consider all the same.

Other things that may help an empty home sell are scents. There is nothing quite like the smell of cookies in the oven or flowers in bloom to make a home feel ‘homey’. These scents can be easily accomplished with well placed scented candles, potpourri warmers, dry potpourri, fresh-cut flowers, and electric room air fresheners. There are few things that will turn off potential buyers more quickly than an overpowering fragrance however so keep this in mind when selecting the method of fragrance. Having some fragrance in the home also eliminates the problem of an empty house taking on the ‘empty house’ scent that so many do over time. In other words, this is yet another part of the staging process that works for many trying to sell homes.

The short answer to the question of whether or not staging sells real estate is “yes”. Staging a home can absolutely lead to a higher offer and a quicker sell, even in today’s sluggish market.

There is a lot of advice out there on how to live a frugal life. You can go from anything as simple as turning off the lights when you leave a room to grinding your own flour. There are forums out there where people discuss the way they use the rainwater they collect to do everything from watering plants to flushing their lavatories. These have their place.

Being frugal is not about washing out Ziploc Baggies and reusing them. It is not about grinding your own wheat or collecting rainwater. It is not even about that new dress you did not buy. It is about thinking before you spend. It is about conserving what you have. It is about saving money and managing your finances.

The point is that every household has to look at their own situation and then decide where they can – or need to – become more frugal. Frugal living does not mean doing without. It does not mean that you do not have what you need. In fact, it means the opposite.

Frugal shoppers are careful. They take care of their money and make the most of it. Many frugal shoppers actually have everything they want and the satisfaction that it does not hurt them financially. They spend time to make wise decisions. They learn how to make their dollars really work for them, instead of against them. They have more for less money.

Frugal living is about reducing what you spend, living within your means, using what you have and taking care of your belongings, including your money. It is about making goals and working to reach them. Which would you rather be: the person who decides when and where to spend his money or the person whose money is spent before he makes it?
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Step 1: Know your destination.

You can’t stay on the path towards your goals if you don’t even know what your goals are. Have you ever gone into a grocery store without a list? You wander up and down the aisles, not really knowing if you are getting what you need. This is a lot like your frugal living. You have to know where you are going and what you need in order to follow the correct path.

Step Two: Don’t take every path.

You will quickly find that if you follow every single frugal path that you encounter, you will go crazy! It just isn’t possible. Not everything works for every person. It simply depends on where you are at in your life — and how much you want to take on.

Step Three: Keep searching for new paths.
You know your destination, but you don’t always know how to get there. Frugal living is an ongoing challenge. There is no end to it. You keep learning and you keep pushing yourself to save a little bit more.

Step Four: Budgeting is your gasoline.
You have to know where you are spending your money in order to spend less. It often helps to track every penny that you spend. Right down to the penny. Don’t cheat. Those small expenditures can really add up. Your budget will keep you working towards your goal and spending less each month. This is where you can really sit down and see what is necessary and what isn’t. When everything is on paper, it is easy to see the changes that could be made.

Step Five: Save your savings.
If you save money on groceries, what happens to it? Do you spend it somewhere else? You should save your savings. Immediately write out a check to your savings account for the money you have saved. This ensures that the sacrifices you made in cutting back really pay off. If you don’t save it, it really isn’t saved money.

Seasons come and go. So goes with the trends. But, there are certain outfits that never go out of style. Buy classic pieces. Such staples include blue jeans, black pants, white shirt, and a sultry black dress. Pair bargain finds with the basics. With a couple of designs and colors in your wardrobe, the main rule to follow is very simple: mix and match! Use your imagination!

Go thrift shopping for your clothes and accessories. For fall clothes, they typically hit the racks in July and they start getting marked down by around September. If you buy a sweater by October or November you can save up to 75%!

Everyone likes a bargain. Buy at the end of every season as the price is marked down. Add pieces as the season progresses and the prices fall. Go to clearance sales, if it’s possible, target the mall’s opening and start shopping as early as possible – when there are less people and the best buys aren’t sold yet.

Accessorize accordingly. Learn to sew and put on decorations to your wardrobe. If you have time, overhaul your unused clothes to make them more fashionable. Like scrap booking, it can actually be therapeutic!

Vow to stick to your budget. Have that as a challenge for yourself. Remember, fashion is what suits you, not what fits the model from the magazine.

Remember, you can look fabulous for less. Know what styles can be in par with your body type. This is definitely more than merely following what is going on in the forefront of the fashion world. The woman who always manages to look like a million bucks on the skimpiest budget is a true achievement.

Don’t buy it if you won’t use it. Things like small kitchen appliances, repair tools, and gardening tools are good examples. We know they’d make our life easier if we just had the opportunity to use them. Simplify your life and narrow it down to a couple you just can’t live without like a can opener and coffee maker.

The above are examples of things you can do to save money on your quest to live to live the frugal lifestyle. I want to tell you about another frugal activity that can result in hundreds of dollars a year-rebates and coupons. I list both together, because using both, along with your weekly sales ad, is the best way.

Gather all your coupons-you have been clipping them, haven’t you?-now check your weekly sales ads and see what items are on sale that you have coupons for. This done, check and see if the store offers double coupons. These are the stores you want to check first. Now go online and put in a search for rebates plus your product. Many will be printable.

This done, do your shopping and mail out your rebate forms, then sit back and relax. Oftentimes. You will find you actually come out ahead in this deal, as the rebate will be the price of the item before the use of the coupon. Now, that is the best example of frugal shopping I’ve found.