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Home Stager's are the Merchandiser's of Previously Owned Homes!

Would Nordstrom's Department Stores ignore their window dressings? No, they hire window dresser's full time to draw the attention of passersby to lure them into the store. They know how important merchandising is to the retailer.

Once in the store, would Nordstrom's have stacks of inventory in boxes and rows of wrinkled clothing leaning against the walls, inaccessible to their potential customers? No, that would be a bargain hunter's paradise though! Is Nordstrom's a discount store? No! They are in the business of selling fashion and lifestyle! Their isles and displays are well thought out and designed to sell their merchandise.

So why would any real estate agent consider selling properties to bargain hunters? They haven't had much choice until recently. For the most part, real estate agents have been vulnerable to the tides of style dictated by their clients, selling homes without the skills of a merchandiser to properly display their products.

Well, there is a new facet entering the real estate industry that has been long overdue...

ENTER...THE HOME STAGER...THE WINDOW DRESSER'S OF RESIDENTIAL RESALE REAL ESTATE...THE PROPERTY MERCHANDISER'S FOR HOME SELLER'S.

Home staging in not a new concept, interior decorators have been doing it for years. But the price of decorating a property for resale has come down dramically and is now attainable by everyone thanks to the many talented people entering the specialized field.

Merchandising resale properties increases the chances for making the greatest profit possible. Don't let the moss grow under your feet! Interview your local home stagers, find one that is just right for you. Learn to stage yourself.

Consumers want a lifestyle for their money, not someone's leftovers. Hire a stager today or become one yourself.

Click here for more home staging information.

Posted by Sheron Cardin - how2homestage.com on 01/03/2007 01:23 PM

Comments (24)

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Originally posted at: Sheron Cardin's Input...: Home Stager's are the Merchandiser's of Previously Owned Homes!

24 Comments on Home Stager's are the Merchandiser's of Previously Owned Homes!

JAN

2007

Great post, Sheron! Love the analogies between how stores merchandise and how sellers need to merchandise. The important message is that the successful retailers hire professionals because they are trained to merchandise and move the goods. The same holds true for professional Home Stagers - we have the background, training and experience to know what needs to be addressed in order to sell the house.

Val - I have no doubt that you will succeed in this business! Everywhere I go in the AR rain forrest there you are. You must be soaked by now :-)

Bravo, Sheron!

Merchandising is exactly right. What is inherent in what you are saying is that merchandising doesn't leave anything to chance. It is well thought out and deliberate...all to move the goods.

Veronica

Thanks Sheron! Coming from you, who has great presence all over Google, that is quite the compliment!

Good analogy Sharon! To a successful 2007 :)

Scott

Hey Scott, I have a great idea for you. Call you local stagers there in Chico and put on a Seminar for your agents at your expence. The stager you choose to speak will increase everyone's bottom line including yours. Houses will sell faster and for more money because they are staged! Yes? Good idea, huh.

Hi Sharon----Good information. Home Staging is just starting to become popular in my market area, Hilton Head. I'm working with one of my seller's right now to get some staging done in their home. Wouldn't it be nirvana if EVERY seller would do this?

Diane - Do you remember when teeth whitener was new? Only the rich and famous could afford teeth whitening at the dentist...then we could buy these plastic contraptions and fill them with goo and try to keep it in our mouth's for 30 minutes. Now everybody can buy strips in the drug store. Now everyone has white teeth and the one's who don't won't get kissed!

That is what it will be like if a home goes on the market without being staged...no kisses!

Diane,

I read your comment with great interest....as a realtor, how do you think we (collectively - stagers and realtors) can 'sell' the concept to the seller?

Would you consider taking a stager with you to speak to the seller about the benefits?

Why do you think sellers are resistant to the idea? Is it because they need to be educated as to what staging is, how it is done, why they need to use it, and how it will help them to sell their houses?

What about realtors as a whole, do you know of any in your area who believe in the benefits of using a stager on every listing in order to make the house show at its best and sell for the most money in the shortest period of time?

We stagers here at AR really need some feedback from realtors (I'm not trying to self-promote here, but I wrote a blog yesterday Let's Dialogue: Realtors - What "Reservations" do you Have About Using a Home Stager? asking for help from our AR realtors and to date not one has responded).

Sharon - Tony and I both have our ASP designations - however - we outsource staging to a professional home stager in our area. It's a huge plus to stage a property properly!

Sheron:

I can tell you that home staginf is the way to go. In my past life I had a home for sale and on the market for 2+ years. One offer came along at year one and no others after that. I had the home staged and it had three offers within 30 days after staging and sold. Since then we use a stager for all the homes we sell personally and encourage our sellers to stage their properties as well.

Ken

Aw Shucks! Why is it that the Realtors who 'get it' live in Arizona?!!!!!

Great blog Sheron...I love this and it really hits home...

Phyllis Pafumi

Sheron,

That comment about "no kisses" cracked me up. Scared the cat away from my lap. AND it is another great analogy!

Veronica

What? Is that music in my ears? Ah yes, I hear singing in the rain forrest. Hey Val, this is getting better, we are hearing from more agents. Thank you agents, thank you Ken and Susan. Can you help us spread the word? And Veronica, nice hearing from you. The way I see it, the agents who do not use staging, or worse yet, never heard of staging, are being deprived. We don't want that do we!

I have many Realtors on my mailing list in SC and AZ. They are very loyal.

Thank you everyone!

Stage It Forward!

Sheron,

You really hit home with me in what you related in your message.

Sheron---Very valid points....and well stated. The problem I am beginning to see is that many people don't hire stagers or even implement staging tactics in their homes because they think their homes are great just the way they are; especially if they are clean, in good condition and uncluttered.

I recently had a conversation with a friend who was visiting from out of town. She showed me pictures of the new granite countertops that she had installed in her kitchen recently in preparation of putting the house on the market. While looking at the pictures, I had to force my eyes to fixate on the countertops because they were being drawn instead to the handpainted saw blades and other handcrafted items that decorated the kitchen and adjoining breakfast area. When I suggested that they be removed so that the focus can be on the gorgeous new countertops rather than the personal items, she looked hurt. I explained that I was spending more time looking at them than the countertops and it is likely that potential buyers will do the same thing. Again, she looked hurt...like I was insulting her ability to decorate her home in a way that would appeal to buyers. Since both she and her husband are realtors, they know how important is to prepare a home for sale...apparently, they thought they had done just that.

Hi Judy,

On my website and in my Home Staging Instructions, I address this issue:

Even if a home has been professionally decorated, even if the home sellers are in love with their possessions, the attachment can keep the house from selling. So it is important to stir things up and mix it up creating spaces and groupings that are not recreating emotions of attachment belonging to the sellers. This is a fact. Once understood you should have no problem. The last thing you want to do is point out your processes in detail.

Stage It Forward!

Sheron- I like the analogy between window displays at the department stores (Nordy's) and a person's home. Especially in times like today when the market has changed a bit. I will have to remember this analogy and use it with my next seller. And I like your website staging instructions.

JAN

2007

Hi Debi -

Thank you. I have a lot of Windemere and John L Scott agent as members in Washington. Please feel free to sign up for my monthly Staging Tips Newsletter. It has a lot of fun decorating tips. You can sign up at the website. I will forward you January's issue. That invitation goes out to everyone in AR, just click on the Stage It Forward link below.

Stage It Forward!

Sheron,

Thanks for the post. I have not engaged the services of a stager in the past. However, as a result of reading the staging articles here at AR, more here than anywhere else, I have initiated discussions on the subject with my clients. I may very well have my first staged listing this month(an investor's rehab no less).

Say William, welcome aboard. Is there an AR stager in your area that you are going to use? Keep up posted!

Thank you for the valuable information, what would you consider to be a fair price to pay for staging of a $200K home, $300K home, $400K home? Your feedback is appreiciated!

Byeloth - that is a very unusual name! Is there a story behind it?

Home staging is turning a home into a marketable product so it all depends on how "homey" the house is. The value of the home is taken into consideration of course, but home stagers need to evaluate the need of each individual home based on the degree of difficulty. A stager will perform a walkthrough to evaluate the exact costs involved in bringing a property up to speed and then offer different scenarios based on budget. Call your local home stager (you can find one in AR under Washington) found on the main page. Often times a real estate agent will pay for a stager as a service or actually stage the home themselves. Even the home seller can stage their own home (I do offer instruction's for these options) but whatever you do, do stage all your listings. If I were in your area I would hop right on over and give you and estimate! I charge on average $1.00 per square foot plus merchandise.

Stage It Forward!

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