Meridith Baer Home: Meridith Baer. She Started Over at 50 and Put Home Staging on the Map.

<p>Meridith Baer grew up on the grounds of San Quentin prison, acted in TV and movies, wrote scripts in Hollywood … and then, at 50, started over – and built one of the best known home-staging companies in real estate.</p><p>Meridith’s life unfolds like a movie: As a teenager, she was forced to give up her baby for adoption. In her twenties, she was a writer for Penthouse. In her thirties and forties, she was a&nbsp;screenwriter in Hollywood, hobnobbing with Sally Field and dating Patrick Stewart.</p><p>But in her late forties, Meridith hit a wall. Her writing career stalled, so she poured her energy into fixing up the house she was renting. When the owner sold that house almost immediately, she stumbled onto a strange new idea: why not stage homes for a living?</p><p>From there, Meridith turned a few pieces of thrift-store furniture and potted plants into a full-blown business: trucks, warehouses, hundreds of employees, and high-end homes across Los Angeles, New York, Miami, and beyon...