home staging: THINK CRUSTY THOUGHTS... When Taking Listing Photos - 03/06/07 01:38 AM

Realtors you'll notice that while I am a home stager, a number of my blog postings have to do with taking better photos of listings.  This is because I KNOW that what a home buyers SEES influences their desire to purchase... or NOT. But what a buyer SEES often starts BEFORE they drive up to your listing or walk through its front door.
With each passing day the Internet becomes more and more of a resource for buyers to PRESCREEN your listings by looking at the photos YOU have provided. So with digital photography being so easy and inexpensive... Realtors you have the responsibility to feature PERFECT images … (55 comments)

home staging: REALTORS... Selling a home is as easy as riding a Tricycle - 03/04/07 07:24 AM

When a home seller puts their home up for sale, they are much like kids about to go on a tricycle ride. But for this selling ride there are 4 basic elements impacting how smoothly the ride will go: Market, Location, Condition, and Price.
The Market is the sidewalk that the seller's tricycle maneuvers on. Sometimes the market is bumpy, sometimes smooth. Regardless, what the markets surface conditions are, the seller must just roll along for there is little they can do to impact the market path.
However, to get the tricycle ready for its travels, the seller must consider the 3 wheels … (55 comments)

home staging: Home Stagers... Your Website is the Display Window of Your Talent & Skills - 03/03/07 08:35 AM
Knowing that the home staging industry is in the business of creating great first impressions, I often search the Internet looking at the websites of home stagers to see what kind of first impression they are or are NOT creating for the consuming public.
I first started checking out home staging websites 3 1/2 years ago when I was opening my own home staging business and researching our industry. At that time, 2 home staging company's websites caught my eye and left me with an great impression of who they are and what the do. Those 2 staging companies were: Dekora in Vancouver and Nest Home Designin San … (19 comments)

home staging: Home Staging = Sweat Equity ON STEROIDS! - 01/09/07 11:25 AM
Realtors, with the spring selling season just around the corner I think now is the time to FLEX YOUR MINDS to make a very GOOD point! While home staging does not raise the appraised value of a property, IT STILL CAN BE A VERY PROFITABLE VENTURE!
Here's why... As every realtor knows, a home that goes to market has a possible low/high list price point range.  This low/high price is primarily based on location, condition, features, and finishes.
But you might not know is that if staging is done correctly, and at the right time, the asking price can be raised toward the high side … (33 comments)

home staging: For Crying Out Loud... it's CHRISTMAS! - 12/22/06 01:32 AM

 
 
Well I thought this picture really captured the essence of the last few post I created. 
In light of my recent post on Tears, and then all the boo-hooing and belly aching I was doing this past week... this seemed the perfect transition into Christmas.
Oh and NO... they are NOT my children! In case you are wondering! (They actually are the children of one of my associate's friends here at Real Estaging.)
Happy Holidays to all!
Cry it forward...
Me
PS: Check out Santa's expression!
 
 
… (34 comments)

home staging: Joy to the Rain - 12/16/06 05:35 PM
  
To all my friends in the rain...
I would just like to take a moment to wish you the very best and hope you have a joyous time with family and friends during the Holiday Season.
It truly has been a gift to meet, learn and share with you here in the rain.
Stage it forward...
Me
PS: This is my cyber gift to my cyber friends. Take it use it, post it, print it. Do what ever you like, where ever you like. And if you want a different format or a less blurry version of this wreath... just let me know.
… (68 comments)

home staging: TRIX FIX 12 PIX - 12/01/06 12:22 PM
For both the realtor and a stager... GOOD photography of the property for sale is a necessity. For the realtor, the photos you take of your listing show the product you are trying to sell. For the stager the photos of your work capture and chronicle your staging skills.
Therefore it is to BOTH the realtors and stager's advantages to take and display the ABSOLUTE BEST PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGES you can... especially NOW that more and more people use the internet as a means to determine evaluate a home or the abilities of a stager.
With that in mind... last night I went on line and looked at … (38 comments)

home staging: Welcome Stagers! I have a "pumped up" idea... - 11/28/06 09:21 AM

FIRST!!! WOW....  You gotta love them AR guys. Those "drips" know how to "drop" in nice features.
To prime our new STAGE IT FORWARD GROUP pump... please go back to your blog postings about staging and re-assign its group under the new Stage It Forward catigory.  That way, your best and most informative blogs will appear in here/there in our group.
AND!!! When new stagers join AR... they can see and read all that we have written and discussed... even before this group formally existed.
Finally, that little arrow logo in our group is temporary... until we come up with something MUCH better. ANY IDEAS?
 
RE-GROUPING INSTRUCTIONS: To RE-Group a previsous … (9 comments)

home staging: DID OPRAH'S SHOW HELP HOME SELLERS....or was the message mixed and confusing? - 11/25/06 10:27 AM
It's no secret how much I admire and am inspired by Oprah. So when I finally watched last week's show on preparing a home for its sale I have to admit I was a bit disappointed. 
While I applaud the shows desire to help home sellers who currently find themselves emotionally and financially burdened with a house that just won't sell... after watching it I felt the show sent a confusing and incomplete message to home seller's about what it takes to ready a house for its sale in a TOUGH buyer's market. The show chronicled the efforts of Oprah's design guru Nate Berkus … (37 comments)

home staging: Canned Cranberry Sauce… the jiggly symbol of an industry? - 11/20/06 11:17 PM
This Thanksgiving every Realtor and home seller should be thankful and contemplate Canned Cranberry Sauce. As it/they sit/s on your plates, know that it/they symbolize/s what staging has to offer. 
Here is my scholarly list...
7 ways Canned Cranberry Sauce embodies Real Estate Staging!
1. Canned Cranberry Sauce does not cost much, but can have tasty results.
2. Canned Cranberry Sauce visually appeals to almost everyone.
3. Canned Cranberry Sauce takes the right tools and skill to get it out of a can properly.
4. Canned Cranberry Sauce is memorable without overpowering the rest of the food.
5. Canned Cranberry Sauce isn't cluttered with complex flavors.
6. Canned Cranberry Sauce is best served with the entrée, … (26 comments)

home staging: Working with Seniors... requires some flexibility! - 11/19/06 10:49 PM
Well I finally had my opportunity to talk about real estate staging to the group of seniors selling their homes. The auditorium was PACKED with an overflow crowd... to a point that there were those that needed to be turned away. To be honest I did NOT expect so many.
Upset and anxiety filled the room. You could feel that the folks attending were searching for help and answers. ANY answers on how to sell their homes. Boy was I glad I prapared my "staging" case.
The idea of staging a houses for its sale is still for most people a new concept. And... it has been my expirience that the SENIOR market is … (48 comments)

home staging: Property Pricing advice can be hard for sellers to swallow - 11/09/06 04:13 AM

Being a stager can put us in a "funny spot" with sellers. After working in a seller's homes and transforming them in ways they never consider... sellers REALLY starts to TRUST us.
Stagers need to be very careful. While you may be asked... a stager should NEVER suggest what a property should be listed for or sold for.
Determining pricing is the Realtors job.
So, while it is not our job to advise a client on pricing of their homes... this information is good to know and understand. Basacilly, if asked, I ALWAYS advise a seller to listen to and trust in the professional advise of a Realtor.
Here are … (32 comments)

home staging: WOW does this stager have "IT" or what? - 11/01/06 11:40 PM

With nearly 170 Real Estate Stagers now listed here on Active Rain I tend to only have time to "check out" those who have jumped further in the puddle and participate more fully by blogging and commenting.
Recently I stumbled upon Jessica Hughes of Ambiance Staging. a new stager that I believe has “it”...  in every sense of word.  I believe she has a GREAT start, a GREAT attitude, GREAT talent, GREAT acumen and most importantly… tenacity.
A little while back I shared a “secret” on how to easily evaluate a stager. In that blog I said… “USE YOUR EYES and see the good AR stagers … (11 comments)

home staging: Blog Comments: Thorns amongst the flowers. - 10/30/06 02:47 PM
When I posted my “Little Orphan Rodney” blog this morning I never thought it would create such a firestorm of comments.
I been so inspired by the spirit of kindness and generosity on Active Rain that I try hard to make my voice here be a voice of inclusion, a voice a sharing… with a dash of humor.  
Two simple little AR blogs in particular have touched me, inspired me and have COMPLETYLY changed the way I now approach my blog and my industry. They represent generosity in the purist of sense. Neither blogger needed to share their “secrets”. But they did. Those two blogs (from a while … (12 comments)

home staging: Stagers... are we red headed step children that get no respect? - 10/29/06 09:38 PM
Lately I have been getting a lot of email from stagers that are frustrated with the response they have been getting from the real estate community. Basically they are surprised that realtors are not flocking to them with open welcoming arms and lavishing them with clients. Compared to mortgage brokers or home inspectors we are "red headed step children that get no respect".The best advice I can give you is to "persevere".Staging is new and in many parts of the country untested. So it is up to us as a united industry to get the word out about staging and the … (40 comments)

home staging: Staging Realtors... how big are your guns? - 10/24/06 11:07 PM
When should a realtor, who considers themselves to be a stager, bring in a professional real estate stager?  In my opinion it really comes down to 3 key elements: TIME, TALENT, & TREASURE.  A keen and rich knowledge of these basic 3 elements and a system for implementing and administering them is what truly makes a stager an effective resource.
I have found if stager does not have access to all 3, they undermine the true benifits of staging and what is available to the seller. (Please note, the key word here is “access” and does not mean EVERY property needs all 3 … (14 comments)

home staging: "CHEERS" to new marketing opportunities for stagers! - 10/19/06 01:26 PM
So if you have not figured it out yet... I have a BIG mouth.
I would rather share what I know and NEW THINGS I have learned about staging then hold it as a trade secret. WHY?  Because the staging industry is young and the faster we all share what we learn the better realtors are helped, seller's benifit and the quicker the enitire industry grows.
(For an AWESOME example of sharing to the industry, see fellow stager Cindy Lin's blog from earlier today)
Anyway, today I visited a Retirement Community to set up a time to come in (open my … (29 comments)

home staging: Staged Property does NOT sell... BUT WHY? - 10/18/06 03:06 PM
    
Here is a set of Before & After pictures of a TOTALLY VACANT property we staged back in mid June and un-staged today.
IT DID NOT SELL. WHY? Was it because staging really does not help?
SOME nay-sayers might (and will) jump to that conclusion. I happen to have experienced far too many POSTIVE results because of our work to agree with that deduction.
Could it be because of the slow/poor market? Yes, that is a strong possibility. Actually the owner WAS able to rent it in the end.
OR COULD IT BE IT WAS PRICED WAY TO HIGH?  YES, DEFINETLY in this case … (15 comments)

home staging: Paint a HOME'S SALE into a corner... by not making repairs! - 10/18/06 12:30 AM
While many stagers talk a lot about cleaning, depersonalizing, decluttering and rearranging a home, which ARE important aspects of what we do, there is another area a GOOD stager will focus attention on and find solutions for... home repairs.
Much like a buyer, the moment a real estate stager steps into a house they are looking for problems. We have trained our eyes to look for those items and areas in a house that need tending and mending. Why? Because quite often a seller no longer sees the issues we see... the owner/seller has become so accustomed to and accepting of the property the way … (6 comments)

home staging: Who wrote the book on Home Staging? - 10/09/06 12:55 PM
   
Well from the looks of if... 5 different people so far. So there is NOT a lot written about the subject as of yet.  I happen to own all but have only read 4 of the 5 books listed here so far.  And I gotta admit... not all staging books are the same.
I am actually surprised to say that the ONE BOOK I thought would and SHOULD be the best of the bunch... is a bit of a let down on a number of levels.
While this industry is still on the grow, so I am sure there will be … (14 comments)

 
These are the creative writings of Craig Schiller, a home staging professional, passionate real estate marketing professional and founder of the Real Estaging, one of the nation's leading home staging companies.


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