And as estate agents or prospective landlords would lead Sarah Evers across the thresholds of various properties, the same thought would gallop through her mind: “I’d be surprised at how much better the spaces could have been presented for relatively little cost,” says the Dublin woman.
The scene was set for a career change.
Her leap into the world of home staging was not only prompted by Sarah’s passion for interior design, but her work has become “a focus for my compulsive shopping for homewares and vintage finds!” she adds.
“I have bought and sold family homes and I have rented on numerous occasions abroad and in Ireland, pre- and post-divorce, with kids and pets in tow.”
A living space staged by Sarah. Picture: MediaProSarah believes a high proportion of sellers expect potential buyers “to see through their clutter or poor presentation”. “Whereas the opposite is true, buyers will be concerned that if they can see areas that need repair, there are more significant underlying issues,” she says.
“There are, of course, buyers who are happy to purchase ‘doer uppers’, but they will expect to pay a lot less than the asking price!”
Before becoming a professional home stager, the mum-of-four had worked in Aer Lingus, having first joined the company’s passenger marketing team at 19. “I started planning towards setting up my business, Sarah Evers Interiors (Saraheversinteriors, Instagram, @sarah_evers_interiors) which was originally called Staging Your Home for Sale, two or three years before leaving Aer Lingus in 2018, but at first struggled to focus and plan or progress as I was working full-time,” says Sarah.
“My very supportive new husband, Jimmy, has actively encouraged and invested financially in me. I married for the second time in November 2017.”
Living area, 3A Greenwich Court, Dublin. Pictures: MediaPro
Jimmy, she adds, “is also a very talented landscaper and general grafter”. “His services are key to my business as kerbside appeal is key to the staging process!” says Sarah. “Potential buyers can eliminate a property from their viewing schedule based on a drive-by viewing!”
It was high-speed car-chase stuff as soon as Sarah started her business and discovered her staging services were in demand among estate agents, sellers, and landlords and for both residential and commercial properties.
She has also scooped several sought-after industry awards, most recently winning Best of Houzz Customer Service for the sixth year in a row.
So, is home staging still regarded as an unusual profession in Ireland? “I have seen exponential growth in the home staging market since starting seven years ago,” says Sarah.
“Staging is still not such an Irish concept, while being a huge industry in Australia, the US, the UK and Europe, but the word is spreading and increasingly Irish homeowners are getting the why and reaping the benefits.
Living area in 22 Carlisle Street, Dublin.
“Additionally, people are time poor, and if you put a cost or value on your own time, it can often make sense to outsource to a professional.”
That said, there can be peaks and troughs depending on the market and season, of course. “Housing stock is still low, the market is back to pre-covid behaviours in terms of seasonality, best times to go to market are still mid-January to mid-May, September-November,” says Sarah.
“Of course, there is also a school of thought, which is often proven to be correct, that while people are travelling or on holiday, they are online and scrolling, and Christmas is also a great time when the Irish diaspora are home and seeking an Irish base.”
Working for herself (and with “her bestie Jill” [Jillian White]) is something Sarah loves. “And the variety of projects and clients makes my working day very interesting, it is amazing how very different each space and its story are,” she says.
“After a long and exhausting day, recently, working on a large period home in D4 with eight-plus flights of stairs, Jill and I were on the top floor, when Jill offered to pay me to get something from the basement for her! The exhaustion and desperation were palpable!”
Her background in travel and the commercial sector has helped in her current role, she believes. “Home staging is a commercial strategy to sell a home optimally in the shortest period of time. Any investment in preparing a home for sale should be commercially sound, i.e. it will yield a return,” she says.
Drawing room, 22 Carlisle Street.
Sarah left Aer Lingus briefly in 1994 to join Best Western Hotels briefly before moving to Chicago, where she worked in the Kennedy family-owned Merchandise Mart (“four million square feet of wholesale furniture showrooms,” she says).
A move to Amsterdam followed, and Sarah blended working in the home, caring for her sons — “I had my three boys in three years and three months” — with locum stints with Aer Lingus.
“I moved back to Ireland in 2003, having missed the Celtic Tiger’s halcyon days, and my only daughter Kate was born in Ireland four years later.
Home office, 51 Belmont Avenue, Dublin.
“I think moving around within Ireland, Chicago and the Netherlands, really gave me insight into the housing market, both from a rental and sales perspective, combined with my commercial background, I became keenly aware of the importance of presenting your home optimally online to leverage its best sales price.
“Typically, your home is your main asset and selling your home presents a one-off opportunity to earn much-needed money. Home staging can be tax-deductible, so if you can afford to employ a stager, it’s a no-brainer!
Sarah Evers, photographed by her friend Sinéad O’Neill and right, home staged by Sarah, photographed by MediaPro.
“Of course, you can DIY stage, if you have the time, energy — and stuff! Even a consultation with a Stager can be incredibly useful to guide you in the right direction, and a constructive critique from a fresh set of professional eyes can be invaluable.”
My home is definitely an eclectic mix of old and new, although the house itself is actually quite new (completed in 2017), it has a traditional cottage vibe externally — a parapet roof and sash windows, while benefiting from all the mod cons and energy rating of a recent build. Internally, it is a mish-mash of vintage and contemporary.
Entrance hall, 30 Belgrave Square West.
As a stager, the home to be staged dictates the interiors style to a great extent, while being careful not to alienate any demographic by choosing any potential contentious items or colour palette. It is very important that every home should have pops of colour, focal points and points of interest.
The bane of my life: Polystyrene and its ability to spread everywhere and constantly loading and unloading vans and trucks.
The common misapprehension that a stager’s job is just to faff around with cushions, a total lack of understanding of the hard graft involved!!
From a staging perspective, keep it light, spacious and bright, emphasising the best features of your home.
Basement living dining area, 30 Belgrave Square West, Dublin.
No! So I need to surround myself with tradespeople who are! I have definitely become more resourceful in terms of problem-solving on the spot!
