Going through the process of selling our home and moving has been an interesting and eye-opening experience.  From the original "Let's pack up what we don't absolutely need," to staging the home with area rugs, candles, towels, furniture placement and artwork, to the daily keeping it clean, it's been hard to focus on much else. 

The sale went well and we are now moved into a home we are renting.  The overriding thought and frequent exclamation throughout the moving process has been, "We have WAY TOO MUCH STUFF!"
 
Adding to the trauma of moving is that our new house, while not significantly smaller, does have considerably less storage & closet space.  So guess what?  We're purging again, and will continue to do so as we open each box.
 
 
How about you?  If you had to move, how many unnecessary boxes would be packed, moved and unpacked with items that are no longer needed in your current or future stage of life?   How much of your mortgage or rent is being spent for storage of things that are cluttering your home, heart and life?  Are there items that could be better used by someone else?
 
Besides the financial toll of excessive worldly goods, how about the emotional toll?
 
This month we will focus on looking specifically at our closets.  Thanks to Julie Morgenstern for some of these ideas in the January 2009 issue of House Beautiful. 

Your closet holds clues to who you were,  who you are, and maybe even who you want to be! 
 
If you have the feeling that there's something more you want, or you are feeling stuck or weighed down, you may be ready to do some "shedding,"  to let some things go and create space, or margin, in your life.  (These principles can also be transferred to other areas of your life - financial, emotional, relational & spiritual). 
 
Before starting, you may want to buy new matching hangars and matching baskets or plastic bins.  
 
Set aside a couple of hours, put on some great music, and begin by pulling everything out of your closet if possible.  Ask yourself some questions as you select what to put back in:
 
1)      Do I love this?
2)      Is it flattering on me?
3)      Is this the image I want to project?
4)      Is it still in good condition?
5)      Does it make me look dated, older, frumpy?
6)      Is it a holdover from a past season in my life?
7)      If it were gone tomorrow, would I miss it?
 
*Some items are treasures - keep those.
*Trash the trash.
*Bless others with the rest (lots of charities will even come and pick them up for you).
 
Then value your cleared space!  Breathe it in and enjoy it.  In the future, only fill it with items you REALLY want or need to make the statement of who you want to be. 
 
And keep some space in your life!  You'll sleep better, feel better and have more energy!

It seems even harder for realtors to get to the top of Search Engines than it is for home stagers, so I hope you can take advantage of this class.

The latest study by Real Estate Staging Association shows that in our worsening housing market, home staging shortens the time on the market by up to 89%.

With the changing market over the last year, many realtors and homeowners are wondering if the buzz about home staging is really true, or just a waste of time and money.  Statistics from 2007 and 2008 have just become available through the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA), proving that professionally staged occupied homes sold 46% faster in 2007, and up to 89% faster in 2008.  Staged vacant homes previously on the market sold 68% faster in 2007; 85% in 2008.

Homeowners must take advantage of this relatively inexpensive investment opportunity.  By properly preparing a home to entice buyers, homes sell faster, saving valuable equity for the homeowner and decreasing the time and cost of keeping a home on the market.  And did you know that 63% of buyers report that they will pay for more for a home in move-in condition?

Real estate staging is one of three necessary strategies of selling homes - proper pricing for the size, location and condition, marketing and preparation (staging).  The cost of staging is much less than a price reduction.  With over 90% of home buyers using the internet to select which homes they will view, it is critical that your home be shown in its best possible light.  To learn how we can help your South Bay home sell more quickly, call us at 310-809-7467 or visit our website at www.homestagingdesignsca.com.

Rancho Palos Verdes, California

Click on image to see slideshow

See press release at http://www.prlog.org/10190890-new-staging-statistics-prove-success-in-faster-home-sales.html  

This week my husband and I listed our "dream home" in an effort to allow for his early retirement eventually.  As a home stager, I felt extra pressure to make it look great.  Here are some lessons I learned anew, which helps when I work with clients who are living in their current "for sale" property.

Click on picture to see slide show

1. Decluttering takes a long time.  We've been purging since before Thanksgiving.  Even though I thoroughly purged four years ago when we moved in, "stuff" seems to creep in faster than my ability to move it out.  Thankfully my children are old enough to do most of their own rooms, but they still needed me for final approval on most items.  We sold some stuff and took a few loads to the Salvation Army.
2. All those little projects that we had let go had to get done....now.  I barely noticed the missing grout, chipped paint, weedy yard, etc., etc., but now they had to be completed.  My husband has been working hard to fix and replace everything a home inspector is likely to find.  We don't want to be haggling over details, so better to catch it now.  Thankfully, my husband is one handy man!
3. Paying a gardener to do the yard is well worth it!  As my husband and realtor listed outside projects, I would just sigh and say, "I'll try to get to it."  As we were coming down to the last two weeks, it was obvious we just couldn't get to everything, so my husband called in a gardener to put in gravel, bark dust and plants.  Thank you!!
4. It's not just hype - it really IS hard to look at your own home objectively.  I had my realtor (who is very savvy) go through the place with me and give his opinion, as well as having another stager stop by and give her opinion.  There are still a couple things I'm not sure if I should have changed....time will tell.
5. There's a difference between "ideal" and "realistic."  For instance, if I was doing a consult on a home, I would tell the seller to paint that pink bedroom.  However, as a parent of a 16-year-old who is already a bit traumatized by losing her first "all to herself" bedroom that she could paint pink, I decided to let it go for now.  With the other 3 bedrooms being neutral, hopefully a buyer can see past one.  After all, we bought it with all white walls except for a bright lime green bedroom!
6. Living in a home that's on the market means extra time spent before you leave the house...every day.  Even though most realtors are very considerate about calling ahead, it still needs to be in "showing shape" when we leave the house.  That means toilet seats down, only the pretty towels out, dishes totally done, countertops clean, laundry hidden, floors swept & vacuumed, litter box clean and those little homey enhancements in their proper place. 

 All in all, this has been an overwhelming experience - not one I'd like to repeat anytime soon.  We already have an offer by the first buyer who saw it, which is encouraging, even if the offer could have been better.  We'll see how negotiations go....

Feel free to take a look at the MLS listing.  This has been an awesome house to live in.  If you know someone who's interested, please pass on this link.

 Here's a slideshow and the MLS link below.   

www.realestateshows.com/366096 

http://www.mrmlsmatrix.com/DE.asp?k=211265XKTIV&p=DE-37707127-764

This 4-bedroom, 5 bath home in a private, country-like setting functions beautifully for both daily living and entertaining. 
 
Amenities include:
3400+ sq ft
City light views

Spacious office
Flat back yard with fruit trees
Open space in front with abundant trees
3-1/2 car garage
Central vacuum

Tankless water heater

Central A/C & heat
Great neighborhood with yearly block party
Patio & 2 decks
 
Excellent floor plan - including a bathroom & utility sink in the garage - or "man-cave" as we call it.

Tons of storage - 3 closets in master, under-stair storage, underground room, linen cabinets.

Agent:  Jerry Carew
3 Leaf Realty
 310-714-1416 
Jerry@3LeafRealty.com

www.jerrycarew.com

Speed up your PC

I recently received an invitation from Keith Kyle to join the South Bay Realtors group (thank you!), and I'm excited to read through the current entries of our local RE picture.

My interest lies in two areas -

1)  As a seller.  My husband and I are currently preparing our house for sale in the 1.2 million dollar range in lower Hollywood Riviera. 

2)  As a professional home stager and redesigner.  Although we have purchased and sold several homes in Torrance over the past 20+ years, it has been a few years since I've lived in a home while it was on the market (before I started my home staging business).   This is a good refresher to me how stressful the preparation stage is, even before the MLS listing comes out. 

It is also a reminder that a good realtor, and we have a great one in Jerry Carew, is not only exceptional in real estate knowledge, but also needs excellent people skills.  Dealing with homeowners and buyers in one of the most difficult tasks in life can get dicey, as all realtors know.  I'm continually amazed at how adept and adaptable successful realtors are, yet I see so many making mistakes that diminish their success, as well as their sellers'.  Forums like this help us all to do a better job.

Have you ever notiched how homeowners are often resistent to their REA's suggestions on how to prepare their house for sale, yet when the same advice comes from a "professional designer," sellers tend to be much more accepting and willing.  I believe that comes from a culture that believes in "specialists," whether that is doctors or decorators.  Realtors have their specialties, and we stagers have ours, especially when it comes to the "enhancing" part of preparing a home for sale.

I invite you to check out my website and sign up to receive my brief, intermittent newsletters if you are interested (one is coming out on organizing very soon).  If I can be of any assistance, please feel free to give me a call.

Happy New Year!

Beth Lester

Home Staging Designs of California

www.homestagingdesignsca.com

Whether we are homeowners or realtors, selling or not selling, we are all worried about declining home values.  If your home is currently on the market or you are trying to sell homes, you're wondering whether buyers can even get credit to purchase a home. 

While I can't do much about the credit crunch, I can help you position, or merchandize your home in such a way that it will stand out.  By looking from the perspective of a Buyer, let's think about what makes us select the particular homes we ultimately purchase.

Let's say there are five homes on the market in the neighborhood you want, in the price range you can afford.  How do you choose the one you want?

Some things are obvious, like a good floorplan and a safe, quiet location.  Yet people buy homes with poor floor plans or on busy streets all the time, so there must be something more. 

One thing that humanity is looking for, even when we're not aware of it, is a place to call our own that feels like our own - a haven to be a place of escape from the crazy world. 

So while there is a very logical component to choosing a home (like thinking ahead to resale, and Is there a place for my big screen TV?), I believe there is also an emotional or instinctual component - a "gut feeling."  We want a home that is the "best" that our money can buy.  This includes safety issues, repair issues, cleanliness issues, design issues and beauty. 

Home Staging is both an art and a science, whose goal is to evoke the gut reaction that "This home is the best that we can afford for our current situation and needs."  We achieve this goal through a variety of means - from "pre-staging" effects such as making repairs, decluttering & deep cleaning, to the actual merchandizing of the home.  Using furniture, accessories and artwork, a professional home stager will enhance the home's positives and downplay the negatives.

Home Staging Designs of California offers professional Home Staging Services, ReDesign Consultations & Services, and low-cost "Simply Color" Consultations.  Please visit our website for more information, or call me today for an appointment.  

 Beth Lester

www.homestagingdesignsca.com

(310) 809-7467
 

With my home staging and redesign business less than a year old, I offered a free Room ReDesign drawing to my fellow homeschooling moms to gauge their interest and gather names for my enewsletter.

When the winning name was drawn, I had to smile.  This was a woman who I knew had wanted me to come work on her house, but they have absolutely no money for such a "luxury."

My assistant and I drove to South Central Los Angeles (with a little fear and trepidation, I admit - this is not the neighborhood I usually find myself in).  We pulled up in front of the 2 bd 1 bath home which houses the parents and six children (with another daughter and her 2 or 3 children visiting).  By the time we finished touring the small home, my assistant and I glanced at each other with the thought of "What on earth are we going to be able to do to help this family?"  It seemed totally overwhelming with the amount of clutter and hand-me-down furniture pieces throughout.

We selected the living/dining room to redesign, removing much miscellaneous clutter and a couple pieces of furniture.  Fortunately we found some "well-loved" pieces in the garage which we brought in, and rearranged the furniture.  Even without touching the badly-needing-paint walls and window coverings, there was a huge difference in the look and feel of the rooms.  The mom said, "All kids out! I actually have a space for myself now."

The next morning I got a call from my client and she said, "I just have to tell you what a difference you have made in our lives."  In all her life she had never lived in a room that wasn't filled with clutter, and even her children realized that they never give a thought to what they set down anywhere and everywhere.  They were so inspired that they had gone through the entire house making lists of what they were going to get rid of.  She had already called her family members and told them to get their stuff out of her garage now or it was disappearing.  She even called a mutual friend who lives in a very cluttered home and said, "Get over here and see what you need to do in your own home!"

As we talked about she could do in the backyard, I suggested that when the garage is cleaned out, they could turn it into a family/playroom using the furniture that was currently sitting on the back patio.  With excitement she said, "That will keep the kids motivated."

Even though I'm currently sitting in a hospital waiting for my daughter to come out of surgery,  the warm glow comes back and I appreciate having something positive even now to distract me!

After years of serving others in other essentially volunteer capacities, I had been concerned that starting my own business would make me too "money-focused" and less people-oriented, but I'm finding that working with people and making a difference in their lives is still the most exciting part of what I do.  We have seen some great blogs recently on serving others and living out our passion as Tim Russert did, and I whole-heartedly agree!   What could possibly be more fun?

Beth

See the Slide Show Here:   http://www.realestateshows.com/306292