Staging on a Budget: Bedroom

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey

Real estate pros offer their best, most affordable staging ideas for bedrooms.

Bring Your Own Bed
"I have a great way to add a bed to a vacant bedroom. I arrange moving boxes into the shape of a bed, and then I dress it up with nice bedding. It takes about half an hour and it's really inexpensive." -Kria Lacher, Meadows Group Inc., Realtors®, Portland, Ore.

Make a Bed
Another trick to add a bed: "Purchase an inexpensive air mattress that has a folding frame off the floor. Once the bedding is on and staged, it's hard to tell the air mattress from a real bed. After the home sells, all the client has to do is deflate, fold and pack." -Jackie Limsky, ABR®, TX Cyber Homes, Hank Layton, Texas

Get a Fabric Donation
"Here is an inexpensive staging tip: Ask a local fabric shop to donate beautiful fabrics. Use it to cover the following: an air mattress with a not-so-great comforter (cover the comforter with an over-sized sheet, and then place a nice fabric in the middle or end of the bed). Or use the fabric to cover TV dinner stands, to appear as nightstands, entryway pieces, or any other decorated 'table.'" -Jannel Lee Allen, Keller Williams Realty, Livonia, Mich.

Add Luxurious, Affordable Touches
"If the master bedroom is too boring (and most are), I have my sellers go out and buy a new luxury comforter set with bed skirt, throw pillows, matching valances, etc. We have a Burlington Coat Factory here that sells dramatic sets with rich, embellished material for around $100. The right set will totally transform a boring master bedroom into a luxury hotel suite." -Karen Walton, Share Realty, Midlothian, Va.

Try a Dramatic Fabric Backdrop
"One surefire way to dress up a plain bedroom is to hang sheers, fabric or draperies on the wall behind the bed. (I often remove window treatments from the other windows to allow more light in and then use these for the fabric backdrop.) It serves as a headboard, visually raising the ceilings and, particularly in a master suite, adds a sense of elegance and luxury. It's inexpensive but packs a dramatic punch." -Liz Harrison, Spruce it Up! Home Staging and Room Redesign, Salem, Ore.

Published: March 2009 REALTOR magazine

Reprinted from REALTOR® magazine with permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.