Does Recommending a Home Staging Consultation Hurt or Help the Reputation of a Real Estate Agent?

As a Home Stager in Fairfield county Connecticut I work with both, real estate agents and home sellers. Recently I received increasingly inquiries from home sellers directly. All these clients had one thing in common – they expressed dissatisfaction with their real estate agents (they all worked with different agents).

But why? They were concerned that their agents did not go beyond the traditional way of marketing their property. These home sellers were desperate to sell their houses fast and at the top price, but they felt that they were just another house on the already long list of real estate inventory in their town. These home sellers understood that something needed to be done to make their most valuable asset stand out from the competition, but were not exactly sure what to do. All of them already de-cluttered, painted and did other things that their agents had recommended to prepare the house for sale. But yet, they knew it was not enough for this tough real estate market. They called Birgit Anich Staging & Interiors for help and got the results they were hoping for – a quick sale at the top dollar.

Here are 3 desperate home seller examples:

Home Seller 1:

Client states: “I am so desperate, I cannot stay in this house any longer. I cannot continue lowering my price – I need to try something else.”

Days on market before our consultation: about 1 year

Occupied House

Our Top 3 Diagnosis:

• Too much de-cluttered. There were no emotional connection points left for buyers to feel home. Needed to add area rugs, accessories, artwork,….
• Personal wallpaper in a couple of rooms to be removed and fresh paint needed.
• A few home repairs.

Our Services: Consultation only – Client executed recommendations based on our consultation report

Result: Sold within 14 days at full asking price.

 

Home Seller 2:

Client states: “We need to finally move on with our lives. We had to push our agent really hard to come up with a different marketing strategy – we wanted to change agent – that’s when he suggested a staging consultation”

Days on market before our consultation: 164

Occupied House

Our Top 3 Diagnosis:

• De-cluttering needed
• Home Improvements and Updating needed – painting of most rooms, trims and kitchen cabinets
• Replacing many of the dated furniture with more modern furniture through furniture rental to appeal to the target buyers

Our Services: Consultation & Staging

Result: Sold within 31 days after staging close to asking price

 

Home Seller 3:

Client states: “My agent wants to list the house for a much lower price than I think it should be listed at. I am not happy with the listing price and want to do what is needed to get the top price.”

Days on market before our consultation: not on the market yet

Vacant House

Our Top 4 Diagnosis:

• Updating of the kitchen
• Updating lighting fixtures
• Fresh wall paint and refinishing floors
• Staging 4 rooms bringing in furniture, accessories,….

Our Services: Consultation & Staging

Result: Listing price was $100,000 higher than originally proposed asking price. Sold within 1 day after staging at full asking price.

 

So the question is, does recommending a Home Staging Consultation hurt or help the reputation of a Real Estate Agent?

Staging Advice from HGTV’s Sandra Rinomato

Check out this great Staging Advice from HGTV’s Sandra Rinomato

Fuchsia Accents moodboard by Birgit

Fuchsia Accents moodboard by Birgit

Did You Know….?

Sea glass can be a fun way to accessorize and add color to your room.

Did you know that, according to the Coastal Living Magazine one of the best places to find sea glass is right here in Connecticut at Hammonassett Beach State Park in Madison?

Here are some ideas how sea glass can be easily used in some DIY decorating projects:

1. Candle Holder: find a decorative glass, fill it 1/3 with sand, stick in a candle and then add your sea glass

2. Table Lamp: get one of those table lamps that have a glass bottom that can be filled. Add your sea glass into the body of the lamp

3. Pencil holder - Simply fill a jar or glass with sea glass and stick your pencils in

 

Design Tips: How to Update a Kitchen without Breaking the Bank

In these economically challenging times, many people are holding off on big investments to update their house. But does this mean that you have to compromise on style and aesthetics while you are living in your home? Or does this mean that you have to make big pricing concessions when selling your home, just because your kitchen is not in par with what buyers are looking for?

As a real estate home staging company in Fairfield county, CT we know that kitchen and bathrooms sell houses. If buyers walk through a house and see that the first thing they have to update is a kitchen, before they even can move in, they just won’t make an offer on your property, but rather on the neighbor’s house that has been kept current in style. Buyers have many houses to choose from and they do not want to buy a “project”, but a move-in ready home.

Therefore, we worked with a recent client to make necessary changes to upgrade the dated kitchen. Here are some tips without breaking your bank that you can implement – either for enjoying a new look while living in it or for getting your house ready for sale:

• The plain “oak look” gives a kitchen a dated look. If the cabinets are in good shape you might want to consider re-facing them. If re-facing is not in your budget, you might want to consider painting them. TIP: bring the cabinet paint all the way to the ceiling trim to extend the visual height of the cabinets and give a larger space impression.
• Replace your old hardware with “new style” hardware. straight lined, simple design, brushed nickel works best for achieving a modern look.
• Granite has come down in pricing over the past decade and is a valuable option for also lower budgets. Granite countertops still has a great re-sale value and will give your kitchen a higher end look.
• In our specific kitchen example below we extended the kitchen countertop to provide a bar / eat-in feature as well.
• Compliment the granite countertop with a contemporary glass tile or other modern looking backsplash.
• A under-mount sink and a new faucet will extend the countertop space by a few inches.
• New and matching stainless steel appliances bring a continuous style into the kitchen
• If the floor is worn or dated, add a new floor as well.
• Coordinate the wall color with your backsplash, countertop, cabinets and floor.
• To top off the design, replace your old lighting fixture with a new style and finishes matching one.

 

 

 

Not Cool At All * What Does That Mean for the Consumer? * Tips on How to Hire a Home Stager

I just googled around and came across a local home stager who is using my youtube video/s on Google Places to attract traffic to her own business. Why would someone do that – the only reason I can think of is that she needs to get a superior look than her work actually is in order to get business. While I am flattered that she “chose” my work, this is completely unethical. To clarify, this stager is not a RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) Member, in which case she would be held accountable for showing someone else’s portfolio as her own work.

What does this mean for the consumer?

The Real Estate Home Staging industry is an unregulated industry. There is no independent national organization that certifies home stagers. Therefore, it is even more important as a client to educate yourself about the stager you are considering to hire – after all you are trusting this person’s advise with your single most valuable asset. Here are some important tips about how to hire a home stager:

• Look for a staging professional with great competency and professionalism, rather than the cheapest price
• Does the stager belong to a reputable national self-regulating organization? The largest such organization is the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) – the designation RESA-PRO™ indicates that this stager is not a "hobby" home stager. A RESA-PRO™ home stager is a dedicated home stager that is held to the highest standards of business, ethics and integrity. RESA-PRO™ Designees have also agreed to the RESA-PRO™ Code of Ethics.
• Ask about their training and experience
• Ask for how long has the stager been in business
• Take a look at their website
• Ask to see their portfolio with Before & After photos – specifically ask if this is work that they have done themselves
• Staging Style – make sure that not all staging installations look the same. Staging is marketing and thus it needs to be tailored to the property, local style, target demographic – and not to appeal to the masses
• Ask about insurance coverage
• Make sure that the professional is working full time as a Home Stager to be available for your needs.
• Ensure that you are being given a clearly written contract and that you understand all aspects of the contract
• Ask how they are keeping up-to-date with new staging trends
• Make sure you understand the general process the company has implemented.
• Probe to see if the stager has a marketing concept behind their staging design to sell YOUR house (what design strategy they use to make the house stand out from the competition)

Now that you have selected the right home stager for you and your needs, relax for a faster sale at the top dollar.

Listen to Your Stager, Not Your Heart–HGTV on Staging

Kris Berg from San Diego Castles Realty, also from Frontdoor.com - HGTV makes some great points about the importance of staging a home for sale if your goal is to sell fast and for the top price.

In a recent interview she said that “Mediocrity is not being rewarded. Buyers want “turn-key” or a “smoking deal”. Stage it to perfection.”

Kris has some great tips for home sellers that are important to think about when selling a home. Read her article on HGTV:

“Listen to Your Stager, Not Your Heart”