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Home Staging, Home School, La Leche League and ActiveRain

I don’t have time to write this blog. I have other things which MUST be accomplished today. I wrote a blog Sunday. I wrote a blog Monday. I wrote a blog Tuesday. I have other things to do today and I should not be writing a blog on Wednesday. But I am. I have to. I must write this blog because there will be no better opportunity to say what I have to say.

Being the organized little creature I am I will start at the beginning.

Monday morning – Craig Schiller wrote this blog.

Also Monday morning – Bryant Tutas wrote the following comment to that blog.

Really good post Craig. I think you are right that appearance and perception help in the selling of any product. When I was young I stocked shelves in a grocery store. If an item wouldn't sell at $.29 we could change the price to 3 for $1 and they would fly off the shelves!!! It was a perception issue not a pricing issue.

In my market a well presented house may not sell for more but it may sell quicker. Staging is not being used in my area yet. If I can just find a seller that isn't in some stage of foreclosure I may give it a try.

03/31/2008 05:40 PM

by Bryant Tutas, Broker-REALTOR(R) Tutas Towne Realty, Inc

Later on Monday morning – I sent an email to Craig which said something to the effect of, “I can’t believe it!!! Bryant Tutas has said he may give staging a try! Well done my friend!!!!” (Those probably aren’t the exact words but there were a lot of exclamation points as depicted.)

This morning Craig Schiller wrote this blog.

Then Broker Bryant wrote the following comment to Craig's second blog.

Craig, You done well my friend. I'm glad I could be your motivation even if it was due to my lack of understanding. If it helps....I GET IT!!! :)

If I can get my head around it my next post will be about home staging.

04/02/2008 07:40 AM

by Bryant Tutas, Broker-REALTOR(R) Tutas Towne Realty, Inc

I’m feeling oh so good at this point and vowed to subscribe to Broker Bryant because I simply don’t want to miss his home staging post.

Then I read down a little further and I see this comment

I love Craig's pretty Blog :)

As far as getting it goes...We do 'get it' and always have. The problem is that Seller's in our area are a bit behind the times. Believe it or not they are just now catching on to the Blogging thing. Many of the Seller's in Poinciana are not ready for the future, which includes staging. The ones that are ready can't afford the extra cost.

I hope this helps you to understand that our Market is unique and still struggling to catch up to the 21st Century. It seems it takes 1 step forward and 2 steps back.

Shoot It Forward my dear friend :)

P.S. I still think responding to the Reader's on your Blog would truly help Rain in your target audience :)

TLW...ROAR!

04/02/2008 08:01 AM

by "The Lovely Wife"...Broker Bryant's...Wife!

OK, I have to admit, I’m a secret admirer of TLW. I watch her writing and her antics with glee! I like to check on her once in a while just to see what she is doing. Just because. Until now I have remained one of her secret admirers. (I think I will go ahead and subscribe to her blog also now that I’m out of the closet on that one.)

But, yes I said BUT!

But, TLW, you forced me to write a blog which has been rolling around in the back of my head for a few weeks if not months now. So it should be pretty well thought out even if I am doing it in haste. Remember, I have things to do today!!!

Home Staging, Home School, La Leche League and ActiveRain

As a home stager I often hear from real estate agents that their home sellers simply can’t afford to pay for my services. Some of these REAs even mention the “F” word – Foreclosure.

After hearing the “they can’t afford it” line over and over I remembered a conversation I had with one of my long time home school buddies. She and I both home schooled our children for their entire school years. One of the lines we heard from home school wannabes as they frequently tried to get one of us to teach their children was – I can’t afford to be home with my kids, I have to work.

My friend, Karen, shared with me that she had heard that line many times before in a different relationship. Karen was a leader in the La Leche League. She said she never learned how to respond to the women who chose not to breast feed after they told her they couldn’t afford it and drove off in their Mercedes with the diamonds sparkling from each finger.

Same thing happened with home school. If only those people who could “afford” to home school did so then no one would have ever heard of home school. We made it work by changing our habits, our desires and our lifestyle.

For a person to be able to “afford” the services of a home stager he may have to cut out the satellite dish for a month or two. (What the heck, he’s moving anyway, he may as well get started early.) He may have to stop having lunch out every day and stop paying $5 for a cup of coffee on his way to work each morning. For a person to be able to “afford” the services of a home stager she may have to stop buying new shoes for the next season and see if last year’s will work for this season too. She may have to dip into the reserve of wine and not purchase a new one on her way home from work. For a person to “afford” the services of a home stager he may need to change a few habits, or desires or his lifestyle – for a very short period of time.

Then again, he may not need to change a single thing. A couple of hundred dollars in most areas buys a person the expertise a home stager can bring to the table. A few thousand dollars in most areas buys a person the hands on actions of a home stager.

Yes, there are a few people who really ain’t got the dough and no way to get it. They are few and far between.

Allowing home sellers the opportunity to say, “Yes, I’m interested in trying that,” or “No, I don’t want to hire a home stager,” doesn’t have to be about deciding if someone can afford the service or not.

Most can.

Others can if they really want to.

And only a few are really ready to give up their homes and stand in the soup line.

Yvonne Root from Northern Arizona, near Prescott said that.

And Curley

home stager dog

the home stager dog agrees with me!

Posted by Yvonne Root Northern Arizona Home Stager on 04/02/2008 01:07 PM

Comments (30)

craig schiller, bryant tutas, broker bryant, tlw, home stager, home staging, real estate, northern arizona, prescott

Post is included in group: Stage It Forward...
Post is included in group: Arizona Homes

30 Comments on Home Staging, Home School, La Leche League and ActiveRain

APR

2008

OK Yvonne, You done good. When TLW mentions our sellers can't afford it what she means is.....they can't afford it:) In my market right now most of my sellers are in some stage of foreclosure and can barely put food on the table. Actually out of 21 active listings that I currently have 10 are vacant and empty of all furnishings. 4 are lots. 1 is a duplex with tenants living it. 7 are owner occupied but 4 of those are in dire straights financially. Which leaves 3 candidates. So I guess I need to work on those:)

If only some would realize they can't afford NOT to stage! I suppose it is difficult to grasp certain things --

i.e.

can you afford NOT to go to the dentist?

can you afford NOT to repair your roof when it has a leak?

can you afford NOT to replace your refrigerator when the motor burns out?

can you afford NOT to put gas in your car?

CAN YOU AFFORD NOT TO SELL YOUR HOUSE IN A TIMELY FASHION FOR ITS APPRAISED VALUE?

Who knows? Maybe some can afford a lot more than we realize.

Another great post -- you are spoiling me -- you are getting to be like my morning paper and coffee; I can't afford for you not to entertain me tomorrow. What will you be bloging about come Thursday?

Yvonne- Thanks for some great ammunition for the next time I hear those fateful words!

Yvonne - my daughter has her stager's license and is getting ready to start her business - I am sending her your blog to follow, you are always so helpful!

Hey Yvonne...

I always tell people that staging MUST take into consideration the budget of the seller. But I think one of the "perceptions" people have about what we stagers can offer ALWAYS takes a ton of money. This is simpley not the case...

There are many different solutions that consider many differnt budgets, market conditions and needs.

Not every home needs to be staged... or be ubber staged. YES, I know stagers might not like to read this, but there are times a realtor can AND does have the same level of understanding what needs to be done to prepare a home for its sale. But this depends on SKILL and understanding of what good staging IS and is not.

The point of my blogs (of late) is to get realtors to expand on their way of thinking. My goal has been to get them to look beyond those issues that keep them from using a stager.

IWe alll know that nformation is power... the more a Realtor knows what we do the better off they and their sellers are.

Any realtor who THINKs you know what stagers do... all I can say is this. I LIVE EAT AND BREATH staging. I learn more and more each day. I get better and better each day. The industry of staging is growing and expanding... stay instep with that expansion and you will win.

But everyone can 'afford' home staging, because Home Staging pays for itself!

Home Staging is not a 'cost', it's an investment!

Have a happy one!

Yvonne,You have been thinking well.....thanks for explaining that the cost of staging is affordable to most. Hopefully they will call their local stagers and confirm this service is cost effective.

Yvonne- I love it! I am a fellow prior breastfeeding, current homeschooling (my husband and I share the duties depending on who is working out of the home that day), stager! I have heard all the arguments for breastfeeding, homeschooling and staging....what great parallels, I can so relate.

Just a fun FYI, my sister's middle name is Yvonne (with the Y pronounced)!

I LIVE EAT AND BREATH staging. Me too, but I think I am getting dragon's breath.

APR

2008

Broker Bryant, How cool to have a word from you. I truly am honored!

You are right there are some people who simply can not afford home staging. You mentioned that 10 of your listings are vacant. That won't slow down a good home stager. We know the whole beg or borrow if renting isn't possible scenario. (Meaning we can suggest to the owner that he bring back some of his furniture or that he can borrow from family and friends.) You didn't mention so I'll ask; are all ten of those vacant properties REOs or is the above scenario possible?

Believe it or not, there is at least one home stager I've heard of who specializes in staging vacant lots -- go figure.

I can't think of one stager who would touch a tenant occupied property - it more than likely wouldn't do anybody any good.

And you are right again! You have at minimum 3 people who might be overjoyed at the idea that you are suggesting to them one more strategy to help them get that property sold! They could very well be elated that you are a broker who has an overflowing toolbelt of marketing tools which includes home staging.

Wow, Broker Bryant, thanks for commenting here!

Hello Karen from Atlanta! You are right on concerning what we can not afford. I love being there with your newspaper and coffee. I know how much the coffee means to you! Well, there probably won't be a new blog tomorrow. Of course I'm still such a free spirit -- left over from my teen days I guess. :)

Yes Elaine, we do indeed hear those words on occasion. It is nice to be prepared. Thanks for stopping in!

Virginia, How cool. Tell your daughter congratulations. I think you may mean she has completed her training. So far I don't know of any licensing body for staging. Of course, Nevada may have something the rest of us don't know about. Hopefully your daughter will like getting into the mix here in the Rain. Be sure to let us know.

Hey Craig! It is good to see you dropping in here too. You are right. There are some houses which don't need much to help them be sold. But, the vast majority of photos I see in our area proves that those homes are in the very small, teeny, tiny minority. There are several home owners who can use a consultation and go from OK to FANTASTIC. That is a very good use of their money -- even if I do say so myself. And, there are some who will need to put down a number of $$$ in order to get to the goal of selling the property. You do a great job of educating folks and I appreciate that!

Tom, while I have to agree with the investment comment, and it is one we use over and over, I have to admit it reminds me of the little lady who failed to pay for her new double-paned windows. It seems when she was confronted with the lack of payment her only response was she couldn't understand what the caller was talking about. Why, the salesman had told her more than once that these new windows would pay for themselves in no time at all. :)

Hello my friend Leslie! Yes, it will be nice to be able to discuss the benefits with those who realize we are truly a very affordable solution for home sellers. Thanks for bringing in the cost effective comment!

Lea-Ann, We are breastfeeding, home schooling, home staging sisters! How cool! It is fun to find another Yvonne who pronounces with the "Y." In fact, Yvonne is also my middle name. My momma was named Bonnie, my first name. I was never called by that name. It can indeed become confusing to answer only to your middle name though. Please tell your sister hi for me.

Oh Kathleen my friend. You have the most wonderful sense of humor! I love seeing your comments in the various puddles here in the Rain! Breathing is not the same as spitting fire -- I think. Dragon breath indeed!

Yvonne - We know that staging is a new concept to some Realtors as well as most sellers (I think). Blogging is a new concept to many Realtors. Once a Realtor has a house staged and sees the results, he will probably insist on it at his next listing, as a necessary cost, BEFORE it sits on the market and becomes a stale listing.

Could you somehow show a base price list for us? More examples of the cost aspect? Staging does not have to be expensive. A basic expense (stager's charge) could be a list of recommendations. As you have said, the seller can use his own (or friend's) stuff. It also could be a re-arrangement of the furniture and simple accents - Ways to show off features of the home, not just paint and cleaning, etc.

I know it would be difficult to do a price list - each home is different - each actual cost is different, but I would love to see it on paper - Realtors here in Mesquite do not use stagers yet. I do it myself, but I am not a stager.

Or, even better, could you just move to Mesquite?

Ok, had to read this just to see where it was going. And, it was a fun ride. Good post.

Hey Virgina, the Virgin River is quite a draw for me. I love the way that river looks as it goes meandering around. So. . . moving to Mesquite sounds like a fun adventure! But, in the mean time. . . I will send you an email with some ideas about how and what to charge for staging. One of the first questions we always get when talking to new customers is the biggy -- how much will it cost? I remind them that the answer to that question would be as easy to give as the answer to this question, "I want to buy a house, how much will it cost?"

Yes, staging is an industry which is still in its infancy so there are many places where it isn't as yet practiced on a regular and standard basis. But those REAs, like you, who understand the possibilities within the framework of top notch marketing of a house or condo are the ones who are already setting yourselves apart to be the forerunners in your industry and the ones people will call because you are more likely to get things done -- like the sale of their property.

Oh yeah, where does your daughter live? Just like everything else there are differences in the cost of staging in geographical terms.

Terrylynn, So glad you enjoyed the ride! Who knows where a Title will take you sometimes. :) I'm so happy you dropped in!

Yvonne - I learned the benefits of staging from my daughter, then noticed that the most successful agents in her area were already using it and promoting it as a listing tool. Those agents were using the most advanced technology, too.

Last month, I had a small condo listed - "the lowest priced condo in Mesquite" - I had "staged it" myself as a golf getaway, but with some other simple touches as well. I got a sign call, showed it, and showed him the one next door, same floorplan, same price - but it had been redone with new paint, very nice tile throughout, etc. He compared the two and chose my listing which had the original green carpet, linoleum, etc. I asked him why - "It was more homey, I can see myself living here". If I got those results, with my "faux-staging" - imagine what you could have done! Staging = faster sale + more money for seller. No doubt about it!

My daughter is in Mississippi, Gulf Coast.

Yvonne - I think that was possible the longest blog I've ever read, and with no pictures.

I also live in an area that seems to be lagging behind the times when it comes to real estate marketing, blogging, that new fangled internet etc. I often hear agents around here reminisce fondly about the days when clients had to come into the office and look through "the book". It is hard to change the mindset of an industry and some areas are more reluctant to change than others.

BTW - Who isn't a TLW and BB fan? ;)

Yes Virginia! And the best part is it is truly a win-win-win. You also gain the reputation for being the go-to agent when someone needs to get a property sold, you have more time to list and sell other places because you didn't spend as much time on the listing and you didn't have to put as much money into the marketing. Wow! It is worth it for everyone! I like it when a plan comes together. I like it even more when an agent understands the ramifications of staging. Cool!!!

Maureen, you are right -- I did just write and write and write! What was I thinking? I'm glad you took the time to read. There is that one little picture of Curley the home staging dog. In our area the idea of staging is still in the educational phase. I'm among the pioneers who are making way for all the other stagers who will be on the scene in a few years. That is OK, I love a challenge.

Oooo...

A closet TLW :)

Sorry Yvonne...You teed that one up nice and purdee :)

Anyway...As much as of what I was thinking has already been said (I don't do redundant)...

I'll tell you that we do have a little surprise in store for the Staging Community. Can you say FUN? :)

By the way...It wasn't that long...I've read/seen them longer :)

TLW...ROAR!

APR

2008

Just think of all the extra google juice you'll get for name dropping Craig Schiller, Broker Bryant and TLW, all in one post!

Great job, really :)

TLW, you ROAR so cool! I'm so excited about the fun you have stirring for the home staging crowd. Thanks for saying I wasn't the windiest writer here in the Rain. :)

Audrey, Can you believe the blessing I had being able to include those three names in my little blog? The Rain in just pouring all over me and I'm singing and dancing! You are one wise young gal. Nothing gets past you! Way cool!!!

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