Recently I posted a blog about the importance of not over-decorating when staging a home to sell and the importance good photos play for the MLS listing. Quite a conversation ensued and several Realtors got further educated about the value of professional staging. We had fun comparing notes, answering questions and making comments to one other.

This whole process got me thinking: The more the Realtor is trained about the value and benefit of professional staging, the greater the chance a client would be willing to have their home staged in the first place. It's a win/win situation: the client's home gets cleaned and refreshed, packed and de-cluttered; a buyer is attracted to the home much quicker; a contract develops in less time and for more money (statistics show this as long as the home is priced right for the local market); the Realtor looks like the hero, gets a good reputation and more business; the professional stager gets a good reputation and more business; the client gets to move on with their life.

All that being said, which is the better approach: To educate the Realtor about the benefits of staging so they will include us in their listing portfolio OR to educate the client so they will request professional staging services from their Realtor? (Here's another question: Do Realtors like to do their own staging? Oh-oh, what have I done now?)

If the answer is to educate the Realtor, what is the best way to do that? Blogging is a great forum for learning new things but blogging by Realtors in my area has been somewhat limited. Let me know what you think....

                               Here's a photo of one of our staged homes that has recently sold:

Copyright 2008 Simply Staged, LLC  All rights reserved.

Prior to becoming a professional stager, I spent seven years as a Realtor. As my career progressed, it became evident that the best marketing for my listings was via the Internet. People, especially the younger buyers, do most of their shopping for homes on the Internet and so it was very important to have many good quality photos and/or a video tour available as soon as possible, to market the property.

In my last blog, Too Much of A Good Thing, I had before and after photos of a room that was over-decorated. I want to point out that the photos I place on the MLS wouldn't be the ones I had in the blog. The blog photos were used to prove my point, not necessarily give the best perspective on the property of interest. As you can see, I have posted new photos that could be used as a better representation of the home for sale. I understand that initially photos are very important to post online to peak a buyer's interest in the first place.

We at Simply Staged will stage a property to reflect the best features of it photographically by showing architectural interest, spatial relationships and warmth. Staging is however, most effective "in person" rather than on the Internet. The reasons make sense: your goal is to draw the buyer into the space, make them want to linger so that they will imagine themselves there and be inspired enough to write a contract!

 Copyright 2008 Simply Staged, LLC  All rights reserved.

Have any of you encountered a model home that was "over-decorated"? I experienced over-decoration on a recent Parade of (New) Homes this past Spring. When I first entered the home, my eye went to the large and unusual window treatment on the Palladian window. I was awed by the fact that the fabric was sewn and mounted for a very curved window. My mind started to wander about how costly this must have been and how professional it looked. I never noticed the great view of the outdoors as I was too taken with yards of lovely, draped fabric.

Next, I tried to squeeze my way past some large over-stuffed furniture, a two foot vase with dried plant material and an ottoman on my way to the kitchen. The furnishings were beautiful but there was just too much of it! (I forgot to mention I was in a ranch-style condominium.) The kitchen surprised me with loads of cabinets, a soaring ceiling to give the illusion of space and a sun-tube that allowed extra light into the windowless room.

Despite all of these lovely qualities I felt claustrophobic. Why is that? Because there was artwork and accessories on the countertops, on the backsplash area above the counters and above the cabinets all the way up to the ceiling. The artwork looked like old signage from the past and made me reminisce about our old house and the 50’s café we had in our basement.

When my husband and I were finished viewing the home, I was overwhelmed. Once in the car I had trouble remembering the layout of the living room, dining room, den, etc. I couldn’t recall the type of appliances that had been there either. I was too enamored with all the great stuff that was in the condo.

This all got me to thinking about how we stage homes to sell. The way we live in a home and decorate it to our tastes and functions is so different than if we were actually selling it. We try to create an impression for the Buyer but not overwhelm them with too much of a good thing.

Here is an example of a home that was "over-decorated" and we re-staged it:

Copyright 2008 Simply Staged, LLC  All rights reserved. 

When Simply Staged goes to work for you, one of the first things we do is help you de-clutter your home. Whether Staging to Sell or Staging to Live in your home, Clutter-Free is an important part of our process. It's not always the easiest thing for the client to do alone. We assist them in this difficult but necessary step with fresh eyes and non-sentimental attachments.

Here's an example with a typical kitchen: When you first moved into your home you probably had a coffee pot, a  toaster and a bowl of fruit on the counter. After a couple years it seems as though the kitchen is so much harder to clean than it used to be. Why is that? you ask. It's because you NOW must clean around the spoon rest and the cooking utensil holder; a stack of cookbooks with Post-its poking out of the sides; a tray full of papers and old mail you're not sure what to do with; a stack of newspapers waiting to get read; a pile of coupons that need filing; a bowl of miscellaneous snacks you gleaned from everyone's old lunches. And we've only just begun. (I didn't mention the junk drawer, the boot box or the closet by the garage door.)

SOMETHING on my list must have hit a nerve...Right? We simply get used to all of our junk hanging around, albeit some of it's good junk--all the more reason NOT to throw it away. So, there the stuff sits, waitng for a rainy day and nothing to do. Is that ever going to happen? That's why you need Simply Staged. That's right. I said you NEED Simply Staged to de-stress your life by de-cluttering for you. We LOVE to do it plus, we aren't as attached to your old stuff like you are.

Here's an example of a closet that is now Clutter-free and organized by Simply Staged. I hope you enjoy our before and after photos.

Copyright 2008  Simply Staged, LLC  All rights reserved.

...Been busy as a bee Staging Homes to Sell and Staging Homes to Live in. I haven’t had a chance to blog cuz we just finished De-Staging 7 homes in the past 2 weeks. “What does that mean?” you ask. Well, that means 7 homes that Simply Staged decorated (staged) and worked on, have sold recently in the last couple weeks. Consequently, we have to move our stuff out so the new buyers can move in! I personally worked on four of these homes and they are already sold! I’ve only been with Simply Staged for 2 months. Whew! So it just goes to show you that staging does work. On a recent news program (Simply Staged was a featured story), statistics show that homes in the Midwest sell in half the time and for 6-8% more money than the un-staged homes.

 Oh and one more thing before I go make dinner (my husband and I love to cook)...I must apologize to all the folks that are waiting to see what I look like. My photo CD was not in it’s case however, a music CD was. So I’m in the process of hunting it down. Just a little FYI: the “shadow” photo is a very accurate replica of my silhouette: short wavy hair and long thin neck. So it’s not too far off from the ‘real’ me!

Here is one of the homes we recently staged. Enjoy!

Best Regards,

Laura

Copyright 2008  Simply Staged, LLC  All rights reserved.

Hi, I'm new to Active Rain and I'm really excited to be here! My name is Laura Evans and I work for Heidi Herbruck of Simply Staged where we stage homes For Sale and homes To Live in. Recently I left the real estate market after 7 years in the Greater Grand Rapids Area so I have lots of experience with what looks good and what sells. I've also staged dances, dramas and parties...(Is it okay to say I love my new job?) More later...must go stage a vacant home right now!