[Photo from HGTV website]
With all of the hype surrounding HGTV's newest show The Stagers, I couldn't wait to watch Episode 4. As a Professional Home Stager, I guess I am more critical of some of the shows that are out there on T.V., especially those that really don't portray what we do in an accurate way.
Episodes 1 to 3 have not disappointed (although I thought Episode 2 became more about design rather than staging).
Did Episode 4 find its mark? At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I'd say the city got a little brighter last night. Wondering why?
I think the light bulb went on for a few more homeowners. Finally, a show that educates the public and helps them "get it" about the value of home staging.
Was there some drama in this episode? Of course there was. No one would watch if there wasn't, but it wasn't overdone or unrealistic. Let me tell you, in real life home staging includes its share of drama also. Staging projects seldom go as smoothly as viewers may think. Each job has its own set of challenges to be addressed and no two jobs are ever the same.
Stager Matthew Finlason had 4 days to stage an 800 square foot condo. Here's a breakdown of what took place:
Day One
Matthew goes to view the condo to get a sense of what he is in for. While there, he finds out that his Staging Assistant, Rakiya, is not available to help him. The condo was still under construction, so the exterior didn't create a very good first impression which really made for a challenge. The second issue was the view from the unit. The living room overlooked a highway and the bedroom looked out on garbage bins. Matthew's friend Sarah was arriving from out of town for a visit, she was enlisted to help him.
Day Two
Since the space was so small, it was crucial that every measurement be accurate. I was very impressed that Matthew was able to utilize the floor of Dekora's warehouse to tape out the exact dimensions of the living room (including marking the columns). From there, he was able to experiment with various pieces of furniture to see which would work best in the space. Matthew joined fellow Dekora Stager Jay to do some shopping for the warehouse. What I wouldn't give to have their budget!
Day Three
The day starts at 7:00 a.m. with Matthew and Sarah at the warehouse packing up the truck. I was so glad to see that they included that as part of the process. Many homeowners don't realize the extra hours that go into staging a property because they don't see all of the behind the scenes work that goes on (selecting furniture and packing being two of those tasks). Kudos to The Stagers for pointing that out. The balance of day 3 was spent commencing the staging of the property.
Day Four
Time to select the artwork. Matthew finds out that the homeowner will be doing the walk-through of the property at 3:00 p.m., so in reality, they only had 3 1/2 days to complete the project.
End Result
As Matthew so aptly put it, the result was "a comfortable, stylin' home". The homeowner was thrilled with the transformation. They managed to diffuse the view in a very effective way and selected furniture that did not eat up the space.
Listing Price: $609,000 / Staging Cost: $10,000 / Selling Price: $597,000. Another successful sale!
I would like to see them include the length of time that the property is on the market after staging. The only criticism I could come up with was that 30 minutes just isn't long enough to fully present the episode - it's much too rushed. I think 1 hour episodes would be much more effective. Overall, I LOVED it. HGTV, I think you have a hit on your hands!
By the way, Matthew, if you are out there somewhere and happen to see this, if you are ever in a bind again and need another out-of-town assistant for the show, I'm sure I'm available that week ;-).
Dezigner Digz is a home staging and interior decorating company located in Burlington, Ontario and servicing Ancaster, Hamilton, Burlington, Waterdown, Stoney Creek, Bronte, Oakville, Milton and surrounding areas. The owner, Charlene Storozuk, is a member of the Real Estate Staging Association and is the founder and current President of the Halton & Hamilton-Wentworth Real Estate Staging Association. For more information on us, visit our website at www.dezignerdigz.com
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Having just watched the second installment on American HGTV, I have to agree that I wish they'd made hour-long episodes - especially because after every commercial break they show clips from earlier in the episode - as if we really need a recap! With that padding and the commercial time, we're probably only getting about 20 minutes of new material per episode. I WANT MORE!