STAGE YOUR HOME TO SELL

In this lagging real-estate market, every little counts when it comes to making your home appeal to potential buyers.

(Image credit: Courtesy Barb Schwarz)

In this lagging real-estate market, every little counts when it comes to making your home appeal to potential buyers. That's why it can pay -- with a quicker home sale at a higher price -- to set the scene with a home stager. Professional stagers can help eliminate clutter, arrange furniture and prepare a home to make a great first impression.

Here are before and after pictures of nine rooms that have been professionally staged in houses across the nation. As you click through our slide show, you can see the difference staging can make and get ideas for how to make your home look its best for resale.

By Pat Esswein