Today we welcome a new guest to the St. Louis Real Estate Voice. We are pleased to have Sue Rector from HomeStaging Innovations, LLC and her team from http://www.westagestlouis.com/  join us as contributing members. Sue and her team will post bi-monthly articles about Home Staging and how it could make the difference in getting your home SOLD! - Doug Aegerter and Art Wagner, St. Louis Home for Sale Team.

STAGING®....The New BUZZ Word in St. Louis Real Estate by Sue Rector, ASP Stager, HomeStaging Innovations, LLC

Home Staging is a fairly new concept here in the Midwest; however, this process of preparing a home for sale has been around for a long time, especially on the West Coast.  The word "STAGE®", as it refers to turning a home into a product for sale, was coined by Barb Schwarz, over 30 years ago.  Barb Schwarz began her career in residential real estate in 1976 in Bellevue, WA.  She realized that challenges existed in how she communicated to her clients about ways to get their homes in the best possible showing appearance, without offending them.  Barb started educating her clients on "how to set the scene and how to set the STAGE®" in order to get their properties sold fast and for the most dollars.  This is when she coined the phrase "Staging the home for sale".  In 1990, the US Government granted Barb, the Stage® Federally Registered Trademark.  The rest is Real Estate history!  Barb Schwarz is the CEO and Founder of Stagedhomes.com, which prides itself as "The World Standard in Staging Education".  Through Stagedhomes.com, Barb has developed the "Accredited Staging Professional^TM (ASP^TM) Course". An ASP is an Accredited Staging Professional trained under strict guidelines using proven Staging techniques developed and used successfully by Barb.  The ASP^TM designation, which is earned through this course work, is one that consumers have begun to recognize as the True Professionals in this fast growing business...which is part of the Real Estate Industry and not the Decorating Industry.

In addition to developing professional staging education, Barb Schwarz was also instrumental in the creation of the "International Association of Home Staging Professionals (IAHSP)". In any industry or profession, it is the standard to have a professional association to build its members' level of knowledge and abilities, as well as maintaining a standard of excellence.  In addition to professional development, IAHSP has also dedicated itself to widening community service projects through its annual "World Wide Staging Services Week" in the fall of each year.  These are the goals of IAHSP with over 50 chapters in the United States, as well as Canada.  The local St. Louis Chapter of  IAHSP meets monthly for all interested area ASP Stagers and ASP Realtors to share ideas, learn new ideas, and to perform community service activities.

Need to find an Accredited Staging Professional (ASP) in your area?  Want to find out more consumer-related information about Staging?  Maybe you want to become an ASP.

I encourage you to visit http://www.stagedhomes.com/ for information regarding the above and/or feel free to contact our Staging Team at homestaging@stlouisrealestatevoice.com.

Be mindful when looking for an ASP in your area.  It is important to find one with an established business, insurance, references....and equally as important are success statistics for their staged properties.  What is their average days on market until an accepted contract and what is their average % of the List Price at the time of closing? These will be important questions to ask and have answered as you consider staging services for your home.

More Staging information in the weeks to come from our Staging Team to keep sellers, as well as Realtors updated on how they can make their listed property STAND OUT among the large "for sale" home inventory in our St. Louis market.

Sue Rector, ASP Stager
HomeStaging Innovations, LLC
Part of the http://www.westagestlouis.com/ Team