We took to the woods at Woodmoor, in Monument, Colorado.  Are you ready to experience a relaxing life in the woods?

Court, Park, Springs...pleasant thoughts...

 Bethany, University, Colorado...pleasant words...

 Put them together and you have Bethany Court, University Park, Colorado Springs!

Take a peek!

That's right, 30 days...3-0, THIRTY, three-zero, 30 days...

Please excuse this braggadocio, but if not on AR, then where? Staging WORKS...

At least to get the offer, now to see if it is accepted, approved, etcetera...

But, to get the offer? Staging WORKS! Along with Realtors who are creative and aggressive with their marketing.

Depending on the part of the country where your home is listed, the price can range from a couple of hundred to a couple of thousand dollars, (sometimes more) but rarely more than the first markdown you will take...

I know, you've heard it before, but STAGING WORKS!

OK, bragging over, now we wait for an accepted offer....

What? Staging could land sellers in trouble, read the headline on a newspaper clipping my son sent to me last week.  The sub-head, in halftone gray said "Avoid crossing line between fix-up, concealment".

The article was in the Denver Post, and the author is the top rated Realtor, and nationally syndicated columnist for Inman News, Dian Hymer. For several years I worked in the ad-building department of a few newspaper offices and I know for a fact that writers rarely choose their own headlines.  

So, after reading the article, and finding it to be PRO-staging, I contacted Dian, who referred me to  Inman News.  My hunch was correct, neither Inman nor Dian wrote that title, an editor at the Post did.  I asked for permission to use a portion of the article, to write this blog, because the attention grabbing headline was misleading.

I won't reprint the whole article, just the gist of what was said:

 Avoid crossing line between fix-up, concealment.  That is the gist. 

"To enhance appeal, many sellers hire a stager... who specializes in presenting homes for sale.  Stagers help rearrange furniture and artwork. They also recommend work that needs to be done, such as painting; suggest what should be removed; and bring in furniture, house plants and accessories."

Staging could land sellers in trouble? The article suggests nothing of the sort, it  drives home the points that all stagers make, regularly.

"Turning your home into a showcase makes good sense. Just make sure you don't cross the line between fix-up and concealment. Seller disclosure laws vary from state to state.  However, the trend over the last decade or so has been to disclose material defects."

About a year ago, there was an article that popped up in my Google alert for staging.  The story recounted how a California homeowner had successfully sued and won judgement against their Realtor for NOT suggesting staging.  The complaint was that the exact floorplan, a few doors down had been staged at the recommendation of that homeowners Realtor, and the property sold faster and for more money.  No concealment, no cover-up, no gimmicks, just staging.

I saved the alert, and days later when I tried to retrieve it, the article had disappeared from the internet.  I have since seen the story recounted by others here on AR, but with no link to the actual story, so urban myth or not, I cannot say. Either way, it is an interesting story.

Where IS the truth? Can a Realtor be sued for NOT recommending staging?  Can a stager get a seller in "trouble" for the recommendations they make?  I cannot answer the first, but I can speak to the second.

No trained, accredited stager would EVER suggest, imply, recommend or otherwise hint that a seller should in any way cover up, conceal, hide, or otherwise disguise a problem in a home that needs repair.

Dian Hymer hit the nail on the head, with her opening line, "Fixing your house up for sale is highly recommended in the current market if you hope to sell within a reasonable period of time and for an acceptable price." The editor at the Denver Post who wrote the headline missed by a mile...

 (Thank you Dian and Elaine for permission to use select portions of this copyrighted piece! )

One of my first staging jobs was arranged through a Realtor who had listed a home for 11 months with no offers.  There had been return visits by a few lookers, but still no offers.  I was hired to do a consultation,   because though it was a cute little bungalow, that appeared to have plenty of room, appearances can be deceiving... The bottoms of the closets were not visible, and the blankets covering the boxes at the bottom of the closets, did not make that fact any less noticeable. 

Because it was my first consultation, I was nervous and excited, and the walk through with both homeowners and the Realtor in tow, took almost two hours. I did not pick up the subtle uneasiness of one of the homeowners, the person whose things I was speaking of, when I said the clutter needed to be cleared. Though seemingly eager to get done what needed to be done, to sell the home, the anxiety was just under the surface... appearances can be deceiving...

I should say that I did not pick up the uneasiness, AT FIRST.  When discussing the storage closets in the basement, where it was revealed that some of the items dated to high school, I realized the CURRENT home was cramped, and did not have enough storage for these important things, but the new home would have room...

So, before the consult was over, a combination of "woman's intuition" and a very loving spouses intervention on their partners behalf, made the not so obvious, clear...there would be no "parting with the stuff"...

 I quickly redirected to "storing off-site" rather than yard-sale and Goodwill, and the anxiety subsided.  By the end of the consult, a staging had been scheduled, and I returned within the week, giving the homeowners time to store, off-site, some of the identified "clutter".

After staging, the home sold, within the month, to one of the previous return "lookers", and then, I was hired by the homeowners to do a redesign of their new home they had just built!   

Knowing what could have transpired with my first encounter, my consult for the redesign went very differently.  I was very aware how much change affected this family member, and asked that they choose five to ten pieces of art that absolutely must be used.  I asked each family member to  tell me what was important with regard to accessories, momentos, and also what was important for ease and convenience regarding use of their new space. Those guidelines directed my redesign.

Redesign is very different from staging, and we don't always have the luxury of accomodating the design choices of a client in staging, but we certainly have to be conscious of their comfort level with change. 

Most staging clients are accomodating to stagers, as they see the benefits of the small inconveniences created by staging.  They recognize that the small price they pay, will pay off in the end.  The valuable lesson I learned, is that even when the homeowner appears to be at ease with the idea of staging, and the accompanying changes required, appearances can be deceiving. 

A lot can change in a year, or even less...and my avatar pic is proof of that!  It has not even been a year and a half, since the photo on the left was taken, but there is a noticeable difference in the person in the photo on the right, namely, me.  I let the color in my hair grow out, I finally convinced the eye doctor that I DO need glasses, (even if they are only prescription readers!), and I decided to grow out the length of my hair. 

The combination of those changes makes it appear that I am guilty of having a decades old photo of myself for promotional purposes, when in fact, the photo is not yet 2 years old!

 Less than a month ago, I attended the IRIS conference. The Interior Redesign Industry Specialists national convention was conveniently held in Denver, and was attended by over 100 staging/redesigning women.  There were multiple breakout sessions to choose from, to help us grow our businesses, from expanding our lines of service, to getting better SEO.  One session I attended affected me profoundly, with regard to the nature of blogging.  Without going into great detail, I realized that by committing myself to blogging, and "Delivering Fresh (Almost) Daily" I was not using my time as wisely as I could, with regard to marketing through other venues.

The combination of the class, and the acquisition of one very large staging project upon my return, made me re-evaluate the amount of time I spend blogging.

A little over a week ago, I completed a very large scale staging project, that had consumed my energy and brain power for the previous week.  So much so, that I barely had time to check my e-mail, much less write a blog. 

I'll be honest, when I returned last night, to catch up, I realized how quickly things move along here in the Rain, and if you snooze, you lose...no new blogs, no new comments, (at least very few)...

The combination of the realization that  EVERYTHING must be nourished to flourish, and that in order to grow, the "nutrients" must come from several sources, made me come to a conclusion.

I will still be blogging, because I enjoy the relationships developed here, communicating with  friends, sharing great information  with colleagues, other industry professionals of every type, and it is a comfortable place to "talk shop". 

I will just be blogging a lot less...Not the attempted 5 days a week, and not just on the "photo days".  I will be adjusting my profile page to reflect some changes, developing as I write, but for now, backed off considerably, to pursue other avenues of exposing my business and services to the public.  

It's interesting to me, that I had just recently read several posts about participation here, and had done my own simple research project regarding stager participation, when the conference shed some light on the subject of SEO and exposure.  Like I said, a lot can change in a year, a month, or even a day...

All photos and/or written content produced by Cheryl Marantino. All rights reserved and may not be reproduced or reprinted without express written permission of Cheryl Marantino, Re:Fresh Re:Design,  Serving Colorado Springs, Colorado and surrounding areas in El Paso and Teller Counties.   

 EDIT/UPDATE: I originally titled this I.M. "Paid" Attention to Architectural Details, because we were told that I.M. Pei designed the building.  After I posted it, I decided to check further, and found that Frank Gehry actually designed it. I have edited the title, same post...

All photos and/or written content produced by Cheryl Marantino. All rights reserved and may not be reproduced or reprinted without express written permission of Cheryl Marantino, Re:Fresh Re:Design,  Serving Colorado Springs, Colorado and surrounding areas in El Paso and Teller Counties.   

Tuesdays "Double Dip" Tips: Two "tricks of the trade" from personal experience for stagers, Realtors, homeowners.

Wednesday Word of the Week: Featuring a word and it's definition, pertinent to all things "home".  The title is in honor of Wordless Wednesday, where I love to post some of my "phavorite photos"!

 It has been a busy week already, and no end in sight, so Tuesdays' post, (which I missed) and the post for Wednesday, (which is almost over) will be combined to explain a little about the Makeover Monday post.  Here is a "mini-refresher on Monday's photos:                        

The double dip will be about the furniture placement.  As noted in the comments and responses, there is probably too much furniture in this room for a staging, but it could work for a redesign, if the homeowner wanted to keep all of the pieces.  Remember, this is ONE STAGERS OPINION, as other stagers have already stated their choices, of the pictures I posted on Monday.  Of course I have now added the soft touches of an area rug, accessories, lamps and plants, which may adjust a few thoughts...let's see... 

My Wednesday Word is obviously BALANCE. Two of the pics are better than the others, simply because the furniture follows the lines of the room, long on long, short on short, (sofas on walls).  Additionally the chairs in the corners play well diagonally across from each other.  The arrangements below make use of the spaces along the wall, without having to push the furniture against it.  They allow for a cozier conversation area, between the sofa and loveseat, than the original  middle photo above. They pay attention to the focal points, and allow for separate reading nook in the corner by the bookcase, and a cozy spot by the fireplace.

Of course there is no RIGHT WAY, though there are plenty of WRONG WAYS, to do this room.  For the purposes of staging there are a few rules that should be adhered to, simply because they will be the most pleasing arrangement to the most sets of eyes. For the purposes of redesign, the arrangement needs to be the most pleasing to the inhabitants of the room.  So, take your pick, it is even easier than a coat of paint to give a room a "space-lift"!

All photos and/or written content produced by Cheryl Marantino. All rights reserved and may not be reproduced or reprinted without express written permission of Cheryl Marantino, Re:Fresh Re:Design,  Serving Colorado Springs, Colorado and surrounding areas in El Paso and Teller Counties.