My Crazy Staging Story…No Monkeying Around
Many years ago when we were returning to Florida from one of our Family Obligatory Tours, I received a frantic call from a homeowner.
The renters she’d had in her home while she was out of state caring for her parents had moved out. She’d decided it was a good time to sell her home and move back permanently to care for her parents.
While she was absent, her agent assured her that he had checked on the property and all was well.
OOPS!
The afternoon I returned from our trip, I met the agent at the home. While the tenants, a young couple, did not have children, they had monkeys for pets! There were ropes still hanging from one corner of the kitchen to the family room…all around the main living area through the breakfast area so that the monkeys could do what they do!
The expensive tiki hut on the patio had been totally destroyed as had much of the landscaping.
The agent met a neighbor outside who wondered why there were so many diaper boxes in the trash each week. Now she knew.
The whole house would have to be repainted and the flooring replaced. Many of the doors and cabinets also had to be replaced or refinished.
The homeowner had called me thinking I could “use my staging magic” with furniture and accessories.
My suggestion…use whatever budget she had to clean, deodorize, replace, and redo her home and landscaping. Her home was in a good area on a beautiful lot.
If she had room in her budget, after everything was repaired, then I would be happy to stage it.
There’s still time to share your story with us for the Crazy Real Estate Agent Stories September Challenge.
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