Great list Kimberly!

With a cute smile like that, I would have figured you to be the kind of girl who would nexer say 'sex' out loud in public.  I guess typing it in a private place like the 'rain' is different!  You're alright in my book!

SEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEXSEX

SMILE, It's Monday!  Y'all have a great 'sex'  Day!  :-)

Great ideas--especially religion and politics.  I just showed a condo ithat had a pic of George Bush in the bathroom==the buyer was very offended.

Good Post.  I guess stagers aren't afraid of offending sellers.  I've been learning myself but notice some people stiffen up when I bring up certain things that shouldn't be on the walls.

In Alaska, it's the guy who doesn't want to take his trophies off the walls.

I just stopped by to read your post for Carnival of Real Estate 

Great post. We actually had a listing in which we found various "growing" items.  Needless to say, they were promptly moved so that no one else would see them.

Kimberly,

That is a good list of potentially offending things. The word neutral is key to making a house presentable. Sometimes it's easier said than done. Some home sellers are just too adamant about their ideal lifestyle to even contemplate any changes for the good of the saleability of their property. That's the way it is.

The last time I was shopping for a house, we found a sleeping person in the storage shed out back.  Well, we assume she was sleeping, but it was a metal shed with 100 degree heat out so who knows.  Needless to say, we didn't buy that one.  So add this to the list...no bodies.  LOL

Oh yeh, we also went to a house where their was a rubber sex outfit hanging on the back of the bathroom door...LOLOLOLOL 

Well, dang. If I remove all of that.... my house would be almost empty.

But maybe that would be a good thing

Kimberly, as usual your post is well written and right on the money.  I think you could add pets to your list.  Clients don't want to see or smell anything to do with pets.  Food bowls, litter boxes and especially smells should be removed.    

Betty

Louis- Interesting comment. I'm not sure how to respond...

Gerry - LOL! Were they offended by the phote, or by the fact that it hung in the bathroom?

Marty - It's not that we aren't afraid of offending, it is that we address these things so often that we have learned how to do it without offending.  And, oddly enough, sellers tend to find it less offensinve when we address it than their agents.   Trophies definitely hit the wrong note with PETA members, btw.  Thanks for stopping by to read my post. :)

Jim & Maria- Not all greenery is good, Huh?  LOL!!!

Esko - Neutral certainly does apply to more than color, doesn't it?  You are right - some will not change anything, which to me means they really do not want to sell.  I have one woman that was so offended by my suggestions that she asked me to leave.  I only mentioned that repositioning the couch would make the room appear larger....

Tony - #6 Foul play - that's a good one! 

Tom- If that is all we will find, empty IS better!  LOL!!!

Betty -So True!  I would rather see a kitty litter box in the bathroom than the kitchen, though!  YUCK!!!

Great post.  I know that I have accidentally stumbled on all of these while showing homes.  They definitely are a hindrance to any sale.  Thanks for the reminder.

Glad to know Bush was where he belonged! HA. Just kidding. Couldn't help myself.

Kimerbly, I have not had the experience yet, of running into these issues.  However, I am sure I will. 

There really are thinks that can set a buyer off, so it is in the best interest of the seller to do everything they can.

I once was looking for a house personally and was viewing a lovely home with a incredible garden, as I was entering back into the house, a garden snake passed in front of me.  I am snake phobic, I was absolutely paralyzed and was screaming!  My poor husband thought something horrible had happened to me.   Now this was completely out of the sellers hands, they of course had no control over it.  But I can tell you all the "warm and fuzzies" I was feeling for this house, went right out the window.  I still refer to that house as the "snake house"! 

So, if you have control of a situation, do something about it for sure!

I thought that Bush being in the bathroom was quite appropriate,  However, my clients did not. 

What a great refresher list!  These all sound like such common sense that you would think every seller would realized the potential pitfalls, but so many don't!

Kimberly,

What a great post - and so well written!  You got your point across but in a non-judgemental way.  Good for you!

VAL

Another new fruit!  guanabana!!! What's that?!!

Holy Smoke Kimberly. Great Post. Some of these advises seem to be common sense, but for many sellers they are not. Some are funny. Its the house they are selling and a potential buyer may be turned off by some of these personal items. 

How about dead animals mounted on the wall .

vicki

Here's five more,

Shag

paneling

brass

doiies  

Mauve

:) 

Kimberely..another great post..I just bid a house yesterday with a teenage boy whose room was adorned with some ..shall we say, striking topless photos...sadly for him, they gotta go.

Ok..what is a "Moosewood" ?.... isn't that a famous vegetarian restaurant?

Great post! And may I add... CLUTTER?! :)

cheers,

cindy 

Dan- Thanks and you are welcome.

Joelle - I totally understand - I cannot even watch snakes on television.  I've freaked out over snakd skin, so a live snake would definitley put me over the edge!

Michelle - Well, as a stager, I think most of what we do is common sense, but, well, you know...

Val - I seek only to enlighten... :)

Vicki - That would definitely fall into the political category (along with other hot button issues.)

Maureen - I can add to that ....smoked glass or other mirrored walls, dried floral arrangements, geese wearing clothes, hunter green carpet and Renuzit dolls.  ;) 

What the heck is a goatnut?

James - Thanks. Leave it to the AR guys to find something more confusing than elderberry!  LOL!!

Cindy - All of these things together is quite a bit of clutter, isn't it?

Great breakdown Kimberly.

And if I see one more lace curtain, I'm going to scream.

Julia

Julia - Maybe it's just me, but don't those things collect more dust than your average curtain? :)

Great post.  I like rock and roll as much as the next person but that doesn't mean it needs to be on display for all the world to see.  The big challenge with the Rock and Roll thing is teenage kids' rooms, I've found.  Most kids aren't all that keen on parents moving anyway, and their band posters and what not are one way they have of rebelling against the whole idea.  Tough nut to crack. 

Kimberly,

Great information as usual.  Thanks for the post.  I'll keep that in mind with my next listings.

Kimberly,

I thought you might find this story amusing: A potential seller called me a couple of days ago about listing his home in Crown Point.  I asked all of the questions that I usually ask while interviewing a potential seller. We got to the subject of the carpeting and he said that HE thinks the carpet should be replaced before they list the home, however the wife does not agree.  I asked him how old the carpet was, so he told me it was 4 years old. I immediately exclaimed that that if the carpet is only 4 years old, that he may just need to have it professionally cleaned. Then he told me that they have cats and they sometimes pee on the carpet, as the cats' litter box is not always accessible to the cats. He said that his wife goes around after they(the cats) pee on the carpet, the wife follows after them and spot cleans!!!  I proceeded to tell the gentleman that spot cleaning will not solve the odor problem, so the carpet in the whole house should be replaced.  The celler eluded to the idea of just selling at a lower price, so he didn't have to absorb any more costs to get the house ready.  I then explained to him that by spending 2000.00 on carpeting(the whole house needs new carpet) would, at the very least, net him twice what he spent on the new carpet. By the end of our conversation, he got it! He is going to sand and paint the wood window trim(it's peeling) and would install new carpet.  Here is my question: Why are some Realtors not getting educated about  home staging and preparing the home for a quick, profitable sale.  I am constantly amazed at how some Realtors fail to be honest with their sellers.  It may be a little uncomfortable to tell someone that the black leather couch, that has been chewed to shreds by the family rotweiller(sp?) needs to be removed, or that the wall paper the owners hung in 1971 does not appeal to most people. I'm in this to do a great job for my sellers, so if that means that I have to be bluntly honest, in order to get a larger pool of buyers to look at the home; so be it. I'm constantly amazed that some people need a LOT of hand holding throughout the selling process. That is why I think our job as Realtors is so complex. 

Thanks again, for doing such an amazing job at transforming/staging my vacant listing in Schererville.

BTW, I agree with your blog comment that recommends NOT to advertised that the property has been staged. The first reason I feel that way is: We don't want the potential buyers  to feel like the seller is desparate to sell, because the property is vacant and cold feeling. The second reason is: Once the home is staged, buyers can more easily imagine themselves living in the home. If they(the buyers) were informed that the home has been staged, they may assume that the owners would do ANYTHING just to get the house sold.

See you on Tuesday, at the Broker's Open Luncheon.  I will be there at 10:00, to start setting up.

 Talk to you soon!  Keep up the good work, You are very talented and have a good eye for detail. 

Sherri- Love the story.  I think you answered your won question.  Some people are not hand holders or do not know how to handle these types of situations.  I work with agents who hire me because they don't do either.  As far as educating themselves, I think more will learn when it is required of them. 

You are very welcome- I enjoyed staging that house and I look forward to doing more for you.  I will be there at 10 as well. 

Great post!  I also agree with the "dead animal" comment.  I definitely think it doesn't not leave a good impression!!

Great ideas. I also add anything that implies violence - posters, toys, guns, etc!

Well written post.  I really agree with your points.