In a market like the current one, how important is it for sellers to consider staging?
It’s never been more important. The reality is that it’s a tough market out there and with short sales and foreclosures flooding the market housing prices have fallen. Staying ahead of your competition means a move-in ready home, having high quality and quantity of photographs for your internet marketing along with a competitive price.
With 93% of potential buyers previewing your home on the internet first it’s critical your home have a strong virtual tour. It is really the first impression you can make to a potential buyer. Hiring an experienced stager who can stylize your home to enhance its photographic appeal is important. When designing a room layout I always consider how the room will be photographed so that I can enhance its photographic impact.
View a variety of virtual tours and it won’t take you long to be able to discern the professionally staged homes. The answer becomes obvious. Potential sellers need to do their homework and view their competition’s virtual tours. Their goal should be to outshine and provide more value to a potential buyer than their competition does.
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What should I consider before painting a room in my home, if I plan to sell soon?
Hire a color consultant!! I can’t begin to emphasize the importance of hiring a qualified stager to assist with the color choices in your home, especially if you’re going to sell. 65% of potential buyers will remember a house by it’s color and color is one of the most influential aspects of your moods!
A color should enhance the home’s existing finishes and create a warm inviting space. There are a load of books written on the topic of color psychology. In less you have a lot of experience in color I would not recommend selecting one from a small 1×2 inch swatch. Color changes from one side of a wall to another, depending on how the light is hitting it. Some colors create energy while others instill calm and rest. And let’s not even talk about how many “whites” there are out there. It is amazing the color choices we now have.
Also, it’s important not to go the ‘easier’ route and paint the walls white or ‘Realtor Beige’. Neutral colors do not have to be boring colors! You can warm up a room with beautiful colors that bring out the best in your home without being either boring or outlandish.
Some of my best staging results are when I have had control of the color both in the house as well as in the staging materials. That is when the whole home seems to glow from within. There is definitely a “Wow” moment when you first enter the house. All the color is balanced and flows from one room into another. All for just the small investment of hiring a color professional.
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My agent keeps telling me to ‘de-clutter’ but I have kids! Why is this SO important? Don’t potential buyers know I have life?
Almost everyone lives in some degree of clutter. However, when you are selling your home you want potential buyers to see your home, not be distracted by all of your personal items. You want them to be able to envision themselves living in this space, which is why it is recommended to de-clutter and neutralize the decor. Do you want buyers to see your beautiful kitchen with its granite countertops, stainless steel appliances or do you want them looking at the mirage of family photos on the refrigerator or the rooster collection that blankets all available shelves?
You can maximize the look of a space by having fewer items in that space. It’s really that simple. Nothing says ‘this home isn’t big enough’ than over- filled closets and storage areas. It tells the buyers that there isn’t enough storage. You should always be able to see the backs and sides of any storage space, cabinet or closet.
It’s not easy to live in a house while it’s on the market. I advise my clients to consider de-cluttering as the initial move. Pack up most of what you have and move it into storage. I tell them to think of it as if they were packing for a long trip. Anything that they won’t need in the next few weeks should be packed up and placed in storage. That includes everything from clothing and linens to kitchen items. It really breaks up the burden of moving into two manageable parts. The final move into a new home is already half done. Just pack up everything else and your move is complete.
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What resistance have you had from sellers/agents and what are your arguments to overcome that resistance?
I don’t think there are many people who are not experiencing the side effects of a downturn in the economy. This is particularly applicable to the real estate industry. The resistance I encounter is economically based. Homeowners are having a difficult time grasping the volatility of the market. What their home was worth just a few months ago is now irrelevant. Evaluating how much to spend on the marketing of their biggest investment is often overwhelming.
Let’s face it, it’s not cheap to properly prepare a home for sale, and it’s even more of a problem when there’s deferred maintenance to address! Even the basic preparation involves carpet cleaning, painting, power washing, garden sprucing, window washing, garage cleaning, a BFI run (or two), a storage unit rental and that’s before we even address the showcasing and virtual tour! Add on dry rot repair, foundation work, termite inspection and repair, home inspections and most homeowners are overwhelmed.
I understand the vastness of the project. Starting with a simple, yet comprehensive, workup of the property I outline the scope of the project. Breaking down that workup into small segments tames the overwhelming project into a organized project that homeowners can feel comfortable about.
Establishing a budget and offering some economic solutions is an important aspect of any staging job. Recently I have added two services to my staging business. The first is a $1000.00 Basic Stage which is popular for the smaller home or condo. The second is virtual staging. In virtual staging furniture is virtually placed into the virtual tour photographs. Although this does not replace traditional staging it is a solution for the extreme budget or remote location which renders staging too cost prohibitive.
We know that the economy keeps money on the top of homeowners minds and we have tried to adjust our business to fit our clients and allow them to still have the quality staging they need to sell their homes for more, while not making it too expensive for them to afford.
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When Furniture Abounds: A Staging Success Story
My favorite success story encompasses the “there’s good news and bad news” scenario. It started when I received a staging job for a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom owner occupied home that was packed to the gills with furniture. It even had a large office armoire in the breakfast nook! A plan of attack had to be created to make this home less cluttered and more easy on the eye.
We decided to move about 80% of the owners furniture into storage which would allow me to bring in smaller pieces to set the look. The owner, understandably, was overwhelmed with the idea of moving so much furniture to storage, but I was prepared for that. I told her to go to work and I’d take care of everything.
I had my professional movers come in and move the furniture to storage and by the time she was home from work the entire house had been transformed! The owner was delighted that she hadn’t had to lift a finger to move the furniture and the Realtor was pleased the home was ready for the market.
I thought everything was fine until I received a call from the Realtor a week later. It ends up the owner liked the new feel of the home so much she decided to pull her house off the market and keep the newly transformed home!
Definitely a staging success story for me, and the Realtor was a good sport about it as well. He still uses me for all of his listings, as when staging is done right it makes selling a home much easier!
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