home staging: Aretha Knew the Magic Word - 04/07/14 10:43 AM
 
I'm a professional home stager but I still remember gettting a wee bit offended when I was told I needed to make some changes to my own home by a realtor.
 
You may not be surprised, but that realtor did not get the listing!
 
It's rare I run into someone else giving staging advice but those few times,  I've nearly had to bite my tongue. Is it because I am sensitive? Not receptive to new ideas? I don't think so. I'm more than happy to consider a new angle but the key to acceptance is HOW the advice … (55 comments)

home staging: It's a Hot Market - Does Staging Make Sense? - 03/13/14 04:12 AM
Recently on my Linkedin Home Staging Professional group, professional stagers and I were debating this question. What do you say to a realtor or home seller who says "why stage when it's a hot market"?
If homes are flying off the shelf in a matter of days, does it make sense to invest in staging your home?
Staging always makes sense and here's why:
- Better presentation and photos attract the picky buyers 
 (all buyers these days are picky!)
 
- Better first impressions = less days on market 
(fewer DOM = happier sellers)
 
- Better product = less price … (21 comments)

home staging: Talking about Home Staging LIVE in Albuquerque NM - 04/11/12 08:03 AM
Today I had the pleasure of talking live with Rich Cederburg, a local Albuquerque Realtor  on the Albuquerque Real Estate show on blogtalkradio.com. Patsy Bailey, a local mortgage professional co-hosted. Listen here:
 

Listen to internet radio with Albuquerque Real Estate Show on Blog Talk Radio Since I recently moved to the Albuquerque area from Fort Worth TX the first thing I did was look on Active Rain to see if there were any local realtors I could connect with and Rich stood out. His Albuquerque Real Estate blog is highly trafficked and a great source of local real estate … (5 comments)

home staging: Would you spend $175. to save $25,000 or more? - 03/22/12 02:03 AM
What’s a better investment for home sellers? Spending a little time and money before listing their home or waiting to see if it’s going to take a price reduction to get it sold?

I did some research on the local market here in Santa Fe, New Mexico. (see the chart below) but you can use this wonderful Trulia chart to understand where your local market is in terms of days on market before a price reduction occurs. It's a powerful reminder of how much it costs when your home sits unsold.
For example:The average price reduction in Santa Fe is … (6 comments)

home staging: I love it when I get calls like this. - 03/05/12 09:52 AM
Sometimes your clients are the best home staging advocates. This morning I received a call from a homeowner seeking a staging consultation. They found Hampton Redesign online and commented that our site seemed the most comprehensive and organized. The homeowners know their home is in a prestigious and exclusive location, will have a limited number of buyers and will be priced in the range of $1.8 - $2 million. Buyers who want to be in this location pay a premium and as there are a limited number of homes available for sale, most sellers might assume that staging their home wasn't … (10 comments)

home staging: If every picture tells a story, make it a Best Seller! - 11/07/11 07:16 AM
Recently I used Realtor.com for research while working on a project. I was searching all over the country in different price ranges to get a sampling of current listings.
In this market and with the challenges facing sellers today I was frankly shocked at what I found. Listing after listing had either inadequate photos to market the home or the photos did absolutely nothing to sell a potential buyer on the property.
Realtor.com allows up to 25 photos to participating agents to market homes. I found million dollar plus homes with only 4 photos. Or million dollar homes with photos clearly … (7 comments)

home staging: How to Embed a RealEstateShow in your Emails and Get Noticed! - 02/09/11 06:13 AM
I recently decided to change my email campaign and email marketing tool. I now use Mailchimp and was really happy with the results!I find RealEstateShows to be one of the most effective marketing tools I use for my home staging business. Visual proof of the difference between an empty un-staged property and one that is staged is the reason I love the shows. They are easy to make and easy for clients to view.I decided to create a new email campaign and wanted the main focus to be on a RealEstateShow I had recently created for a property that sold in … (11 comments)

home staging: 2011 Home Gain Survey Shows Home Staging Returns 299% ROI - 01/20/11 03:37 AM
If you haven't seen the new 2011 Home Gain survey here are the results:

 
Out of the Top 10 recommended improvements, STAGING is the No. 3 improvement home sellers should make when selling their home according to the national Home Gain Survey. The recommendations are based on ROI or return on investment for each improvement.
Staging returns almost 300% of a sellers investment. How is this return calculated? Increased sales price!
#1 Improvement is cleaning and de-cluttering
#2 Improvement is lightening and brightening
#3 Improvement is Staging
Actually most home staging incorporates those #1 and #2 improvements as well!
… (14 comments)

home staging: If you do nothing else when you put your home on the market, this is it. - 10/26/10 11:26 AM
CLEAN. Yes I know that may seem obvious to you and me but apparently not to all sellers, because today I got an eyeful of bugs. And yucky toilet stuff. Did I mention spider webs big enough for Hallowe'en decorations? And that was without my glasses on. Ugh.If you do NOTHING else, have your home professionally cleaned before, during and after you have it on the market for sale. Before you even think of staging your home, before you let the realtor put the sign in the yard, CLEAN.
What does cleaning do for your home's appeal?
It makes it smell … (62 comments)

home staging: Do you REALLY want to sell your home? Take control. - 09/15/10 05:15 AM
If you really want to sell your home then you are going to have to make some changes. Changes to your lifestyle (no more leaving dishes in the sink or an unmade bed), changes to the way you view your home (it's now a commodity on the open market), and the biggest challenge of all is not taking it personally when someone doesn't love your home. Change can create stressful feelings in most of us. By nature we are creatures of habit. The habits we form help us create order out of our sometimes chaotic world!Moving is change, there is no … (16 comments)

home staging: Marketing aha! ... I needed to hear this and maybe you do too - 09/10/10 04:29 AM
My professional background includes over 20 years of advertising, design, marketing and internet technology experience. Home staging and working in the real estate field is my passion and having a creative background has helped me design my website and marketing materials.But what I realized yesterday was, although I know what I'm doing, I need to take my own advice! I've discovered and perhaps you have too, that although you may be great at selling or marketing for someone else, when it comes to tooting your own horn you may fall short. I think many of us creative professionals find it difficult … (22 comments)

home staging: Is Your Home Overdressed? Maybe it needs a "Make Under" - 08/23/10 12:03 PM
Happened to be home when Oprah was on this afternoon. The topic was Makeunders. Women who needed less not more. But this also applies to homes. Nate Berkus did a room Makeunder and it inspired me!Every home that goes on sale needs a makeunder. The less of you, the quicker your home will sell. The bigger and more spacious your home looks the higher it's perceived value.
This means it's really important to edit your stuff so what's really important greets you (and your buyers) when you walk in the door. You want your homes' features to shine, you want … (127 comments)

home staging: Turn Your Photos into art - at Costco! - 07/29/10 10:59 AM
Happened to walk by the one-hour photo department at my neighborhood Costco yesterday and this caught my eye:
Your Photos on Canvas™
You can turn your digital pictures into a beautiful canvas enlargement. Get the look of fine art with an easy clean surface that's gallery wrapped and ready to hang.

I didn't want to use the photo from Costco so came up this photo and a simulated canvas look using Photoshop!
You can order these online from their photo link or at the one-hour kiosk in store and it takes 7-10 business days. Best of all is the pricing!!
12 x … (19 comments)

home staging: Ten Really Good Reasons to Stage Your Home - 07/22/10 12:24 PM
I was updating my website today and decided to also update the downloadable PDF files I have for sellers and Realtors to click on and read to find out why they should stage their home, as well as Home Gain and RESA staging statistics to show the numbers.
I thought it was worth posting my top ten list of reasons to stage a home. The original list was provided by Home Staging Resource (an excellent training resource, thank you Audra!) and I have updated it. Here we go....
Top 10 Reasons to Professionally stage your home 1. You Will Make More … (7 comments)

home staging: What's the "Bounce Rate" for your home? Or how to learn from google analytics. - 06/30/10 05:30 AM
Sometimes tossing and turning results in surprising epiphanies!Have you checked your web site statistics lately? I use google analytics code to track visits and traffic to my site www.hamptonredesign.com. Tracking code gives you unique information about how many visits your site is receiving, where the visits are coming from, what pages they are looking at and how long your visitors are staying on each page. There's also something called a bounce rate. The lower your bounce rate the better because it means your site visitors are finding what they are looking for on your site. Your content is appealing to them … (30 comments)

home staging: Are Picky Buyers Stalling the Housing Recovery? - 06/17/10 05:37 AM
I found this interesting article in the NY Times today about how buyers may be sabotaging the recovery of the housing market.
Demanding buyers hinder the housing market

It doesn't come as a surprise to me as I have heard of, or known of several deals recently that fell apart at the eleventh hour.
One buyer had made the April 30 cut off to get the tax credit but then became very picky about wanting a new roof along with other concessions and the deal went south.
Another deal fell apart over the same issue. The buyer wanted the seller to pay … (13 comments)

home staging: If you're buying new construction, property taxes may be an unpleasant surprise. - 06/10/10 02:08 PM

I received a call from a local Real Estate agent who wanted me to set an appointment for a home staging consultation for his client. The homeowner is desparate to sell after living in his new home for only two years. 
 
Why? His lender just got his new property tax bill and adjusted the  escrow payment accordingly.  Unfortunately this means his monthly payment has jumped up by 75%!
 
When he purchased this home from the builder, his realtor did not tell him the property taxes would adjust to include the home in addition to the land once the … (2 comments)

home staging: Hip new Oleander Place Townhouse Just Staged in Cowtown, yes Fort Worth TX! - 05/18/10 01:20 PM
Hampton Redesign was really pleased to have the opportunity to design, furnish and stage a model townhome in the hip "near Southside" neighborhood near downtown Fort Worth. These tri-level townhomes are beautifully finished with hardwoods in the living areas, granite and stainless steel kitchen as well as three full bedrooms and baths. This is the Escape model ... it's gorgeous! Great city views from your roof top deck and easy access to 1-30 and the hospital district. Not to mention being able to walk to cafes and great restaurants on Magnolia Ave.
Here's my first shot of the vacant space.

… (17 comments)

home staging: I Flipped Out over this $500. Staging Job - 07/14/09 04:14 AM
Recently on a HOT Saturday morning I found myself watching a mini marathon of my favorite home flipping shows on TV. The temperatures have been consistently hitting the 100s here in central TX so I was basking in the AC while getting inspired!I love to watch house flipping shows. I like it when they tally up the costs at the end to show the investment they made and what their projected profit would be if it sells for their target price. This particular house flip took place in CA - complete with wild fires and wild price fluctuations during the flip. … (15 comments)

home staging: We DO judge a book by it's cover! - 03/20/09 06:09 AM
When was the last time you picked up a magazine or book with no picture on the cover? If you were searching for a particular title or subject you might overlook a missing book jacket but how many magazines would survive on the rack with no photos or artwork?Like it or not we do judge a book by it's cover. We grab the magazines or books that appeal to our senses. Whether it's a glamorous cover shot promising to show us the way to eternal beauty or a beautifully decorated room, we buy what appeals to us.
The creative people who … (16 comments)